Storytelling. Why It’s Become a Buzzword in Business From international companies like Nike, Microsoft and IBM, to small startups, many organizations now employ Chief Storytellers as part of senior management, a move that makes a lot of sense. The business of selling has grown more complicated and competitive requiring new methods of communication to engage…
Recently I was running a hurricane drill for a client in the Caribbean and they were inspecting their campus to see what debris needed to be removed. Each year, as part of the drill, we look for things that could ‘float or fly’ during a hurricane and make plans for proper storage or disposal. This…
Active shooter incidents are on the rise in US, and your organization is most definitely at risk. Quoting FBI statistics, the National Fire Protection Association reports that “an average of 6.4 active shooter events occurred annually in the U.S. from 2000 to 2006. From 2007 to 2013, that average more than doubled, to 16.4. From…
Rob Burton recently wrote an article on LinkedIn, “10 Key Elements to Good Crisis Leaders“. Within the article, Rob outlines what these ten key elements are: Honesty & Integrity Confidence Inspiration Commitment and Passion Good Communication Decision-Making Accountability Delegation and Empowerment Creativity and Innovation Empathy Related: The Role of the Crisis Leader Versus the Crisis Communicator…
Lone-actor gun attacks against populated areas such as arenas and crowded places such as schools can challenge first responders and those organizations or educational institutions that are impacted. Now think about increasing the number of attackers and adding explosive devices, more weapons and other arms. Consider a Paris or Brussels style attack in the heart…
Simulated crisis tabletop exercises are like a flu shot: The vaccine won’t prevent the illness one-hundred percent of the time, but if you do get the flu, the vaccine will greatly reduce the illness’ severity and bring you back to health more quickly. The potential illness in your organization is, of course, a crisis….
In a crisis situation, speed of the operational response and clarity of initial communications, both internal and external, are essential. A Crisis Preparedness Plan provides a structure and process that coordinates all levels of the organization and puts the company back on the path to full recovery as quickly as possible. Here are six…
An enterprise faces many threats to it’s existence. Some threats are external and can pose complex challenges, others are internal and come with their own set of unique issues. During any crisis, an organization has a responsibility to react. Some business do this well, others fail miserably. In this podcast we hear from Dermot McCarthy…
Crisis Management Teams Should Always Have a Toolkit That Supports Them During the Crisis. One of the questions that I get asked most often is “what are some of the most common mistakes you see as you visit various clients?” Other than companies not being committed to exercising (another article, another time) my biggest concern…
VW’s now infamous dieselgate crisis is far from over, and additional punishments and damages still await in the wings. But after months of PR efforts to regain the trust of customers, regulators and governments, more bad news for the company was revealed in late January. VW had also been sponsoring laboratory tests that forced lab…