blog post – second quarter 2024
two rights make a wrong
Crises completely rearrange a company’s priorities. Yet, it can be very difficult for some – including senior management – to understand that you cannot respond to a crisis the same way you manage your everyday business.
I recently counseled a client where everyday personnel matters were understandably handled by the human resources department. I shared that should they have employees injured or killed in an industrial setting, a better procedure might be for the direct supervisor or department head to share the news with families and to keep them abreast of updates.
“That’s not how we operate here,” I was summarily instructed. When I tried to share case studies about how family members don’t want a corporate representative but rather someone who knows and works with their loved one, I was again shut down.
If something happens, that organization will learn the hard way … and, unfortunately, family members will bear the brunt of their obstinate thinking.
When I work with organizations, I try to help them understand their obligations during a crisis response. However, when it comes to carrying out those duties, I encourage them to try and see it from the vantage point of the person on the receiving end. This allows a more humanitarian approach to whatever needs to be done.
I am baffled at how hard this seems for some organizations. Isn’t this how you roll out a new service for your customers? How will they view it? How can you make it a more positive experience for them? This is something most organizations do regularly. But somehow when it comes to crisis response, the hackles go up.
One of the more common mistakes I see in crisis response is the organization taking that defensive stance public. I have seen companies where customers and employees have been killed saying to a customer’s family, “well we had people die too”.
You are right, you did.
Other organizations have mixed human and financial components together when speaking about a crisis.
“We suffered significant losses beyond the unfortunate deaths in today’s accident. Accordingly, we’ll record a charge of this amount in our upcoming financials.”
You are right, you did and you will.
But those two rights make a wrong.
This is not about your organization. It is about the people touched by the crisis. If you remember that, you will save yourself a lot of heartache. More importantly, you might begin to understand the true impact of the crisis.
Now, you may ask, doesn’t the organization have an obligation to acknowledge its human and financial losses? Of course, it does. It is how you do it that makes all the difference.
First, never mix people and money in a crisis.
If a reporter asks you early on in a press conference how much this will cost the company, work with your comms teams to have an answer ready such as “Our focus is on those touched by this tragedy right now. We will address other issues at the appropriate time.”
If you are a publicly traded entity, you may have to quickly file a document with your local stock exchange. Check with your legal and investor relations teams on whether your first empathetically written press release may satisfy any initial notification requirement.
Second, look outward then inward.
In making your initial statement, focus on customers, innocent bystanders, and others before acknowledging the internal impact. “Our crisis support team members are assisting the families of our customers and bystanders with information and transportation right now. We are offering that same support to the families of our employees touched by this tragedy.”
Third, use internal channels to provide a more personalized employee message.
“We have teams assisting the families of customers and bystanders, something we will continue to do in the days ahead. You can be assured that we are offering that same support to your colleagues and their families. We will also be offering special support here starting this evening which your individual supervisors will share with you shortly.”
No internal communication will escape being shared externally so always ensure your messages are aligned.
Things will ultimately get back to some kind of normal. But don’t try to use normal procedures to respond to your crisis. That is why having a crisis plan and exercising your response in advance is so critical.
Be different. Be ready.