preparing for public difficulties ben verinder chalkstream communications 7 july 2015
TRANSCRIPT
Preparing for public difficulties
Ben VerinderChalkstream Communications
7 July 2015
The fundamentals “The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavour to be what you desire to appear.” Socrates
“In the last analysis, what we are communicates far more eloquently than anything we say or do.” Steven Covey
The fundamentals “Reputation is what men and women think of us.” Thomas Paine
“You don’t build a good reputation on what you are going to do.” Henry Ford
The fundamentals “An organisation’s livelihood is affected by its ability to develop mutually satisfying relationships.” John Ledingham
Positive relationships trump crisis response strategy - Organization-Public Relationships and Crisis Response Strategies: Impact on Attribution of Responsibility, Brown K.A. and White C.L., Volume 23 (1) 2011.
When are you going to start building the reputation you need?
Authenticity“When asked to think of types of college, a University College is the most popular unprompted mention…”
“Just under three quarters (72%) think Trinity College, Cambridge is a Further Education college, while close to three-fifths (57%) say the same about Eton College.
Understanding of colleges varies. Most know they offer the chance to study A-levels but less than half that they are independent and look after their own finances. Over half think that FE Colleges are under local authority control and a fifth do not believe they are inspected by Ofsted.”AoC/ICM 2011
Why bother?
Life cycle• Emerges
• Public Debate
• Codification
• Legislation
Resolution
Fraud probe hits College
Sacked college principal's £200,000 pay-off
College campus likely to be sold amid budget crisis
City of Bristol College 'fails students’Tributes pour in for tragic student couple
College 'threatened to exclude girl who accused students of raping her'
Ex-College worker jailed for fraud
Former community college photography lecturer admits child porn charges
College tutor sacked over 'sex talk' in class
College evacuated due to fire
Student threatened with knife and racially abused at sixth form centre
Reality• Serious issues, slow burn - public difficulties rather
than crises
• Student safety, industrial action, HR issues. Finance?
• Shield of issues management vs open season (Persil effect)
Elements • Primary Danger – Information vacuum
• Evaluation
• One voice
• One message
• Team roles
Vacuum“The state secondary school selected by David Cameron and Michael Gove for their daughters appears to have breached school admission laws by asking parents for money when offering them a place, Schools Week can reveal.
“Parents at the Church of England school – which is less than a mile from Downing Street – have claimed they were asked for a payment of £96 when joining Year 7 of the school, the entry route intended for the Camerons and taken by the Goves.
“Grey Coat refused to comment when approached by Schools Week, despite repeated phone calls and a reporter visiting the school…”
Key aspirations• Quick response• Be in control • Know what’s happening• Communicate well• Demonstrate leadership• Minimise impact• Be authentic
BSI 11200
Rolesa) Spokesperson b) Head of communicationsc) Press officerd) Media monitoring e) Social media monitoringf) Call takersg) Internal communicationsh) Support/admin
Leaders• required to make decisions rapidly and without all
the information they would wish for• dealing with issues that are difficult to understand
and which threaten the viability of the organization • working in an environment that is uncertain and
possibly chaotic;• need to impose calmness, authority and confidence,
backed up by decisiveness • all of this in circumstances they are unlikely to have
experienced directly beforehand
What to expect of a comms team• Developing strategy• Spokesperson coaching• Media response• Social media monitoring and response• Internal comms• Scenario planning• Relative response• Stakeholder• (Investor comms)
Social media
• Monitoring• Online footprint• Protocols• Incorporating into team plans• NOT a reliable indicator of real-world
sentiment• Speed• Recognizing that social media is still only a
channel – Content is king!
Remember….• get it fast
• get it right
• get it out
Key aspirations• Quick response• Be in control • Know what’s happening• Communicate well• Demonstrate leadership• Minimise impact• Be authentic
