Humble Crisis Management on the High Seas

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Coast Guard’s willingness to ask for help meant this crew made it out alive When it comes to crisis management, having the humility to ask for help can mean the difference between a narrow miss and utter disaster. Nobody knows that better than the U.S. Coast Guard and the crew …

Crisis Management Musts: Employee Communication

Jonathan Bernstein crisis communication, crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Response, Jonathan Bernstein 3 Comments

Don’t keep your employees in the dark When it’s time to go into full-on crisis management mode, many organizations are focused purely on A) cleaning up the situation, and B) communicating with outside stakeholders, whether that means customers, investors or the media. Here’s the problem with that – your employees, …

Crisis Management Tactics: Updates on Updates

Jonathan Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, public relations, reputation management 1 Comment

“We’re working on it” can buy more time than you expect When you encounter a crisis, the pressure to immediately make a statement is immense. Not only will your stakeholders be clamoring for you to talk, and angry if you don’t, but you also risk damaging rumor or innuendo taking root …

Senator Walsh Stumbles on Crisis Communication

Jonathan Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, crisis public relations, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, political crisis management, PR, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

[Editor’s note: The following is a guest post from Brittany Foster, one of the talented members of the Triad Strategies team. Triad is a preferred Bernstein Crisis Management contractor.] Senator John Walsh (D-Montana) was already running a losing campaign for re-election, but he may have shored up his retirement with …

ESPN Benches Smith for Domestic Violence Comments

Jonathan Bernstein crisis communication, crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, PR, public relations, reputation management, sports crisis management Leave a Comment

Understandably angry stakeholders and poor crisis management leave sports reporter in a bad spot ESPN anchor Stephen A. Smith won’t be stepping up to the mic for at least a week following his on-air comments regarding domestic violence – specifically that women should avoid “provoking” men into assaulting them. Smith …

OKCupid – PR Genius or Crisis Management Mess?

Jonathan Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Erik Bernstein, internet crisis management, internet reputation management, Jonathan Bernstein, online crisis management, online reputation management, PR, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

Dating site seems to be applying the dubious principle of “any publicity is good publicity” Move over Facebook, because OKCupid just hopped on the user experimentation train! In a blog post published Monday, one of the dating site’s founders, Christian Rudder, proudly proclaims “We Experiment On Human Beings!” From the …

Chase’s (ineffective) Compassion-Free Crisis Management

Jonathan Bernstein crisis communication, crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

Lack of much-needed compassion leaves bank’s communications falling flat Having a debit or credit card charge declined is both frustrating and embarrassing no matter who you are or what you’re buying, something we would expect a bank to be aware of. That’s why, when we spotted the below email from …

Crisis Management Quotables…on Showing Through

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, crisis management quotables, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, media consultant, media training, PR, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

150 year-old wisdom that still applies today Ralph Waldo Emerson was a legendary speaker, essayist and poet who, perhaps not surprisingly for a man who published dozens of groundbreaking essays and delivered thousands of lectures, has a long list of quotes that have survived the nearly 150 years since his …

Crisis Management Musts – Keeping a Healthy Trust Account

Jonathan Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, PR, public relations, reputation management, strategic reputation management Leave a Comment

Considering how stakeholders will react to change is key The impact of stakeholder trust on reputation and the bottom line is at an all-time high, yet organizations are burning what little faith their proponents have left on a daily basis through penny pinching, poor customer service, or a simple lack of …

Crisis Management Quotables…on The Damage One Lie Can Do

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, crisis management quotables, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

17th century wisdom that’s even more true in the 21st This time around, our Crisis Management Quotable comes to us courtesy of a 17th century Spaniard who wore many hats, from scholar and philosopher to army chaplain. A single lie destroys a whole reputation of integrity. — Baltasar Gracián The meaning …

Analyzing P.F. Chang’s Crisis Management for Data Breach

Jonathan Bernstein computer security, crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, cyber security, cyber threats, Cyberheist, data breach, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, public relations, reputation management 2 Comments

Was the popular chain’s crisis management a four-star effort? The data breach at P.F. Chang’s came to light in mid-June of this year, with the organization claiming to have learned of the situation June 10. Crisis management started out in troubled waters when a massive number of news organizations and …

OOPS! White House Accidentally IDs CIA Spy Chief

Jonathan Bernstein crisis communication, crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, public relations Leave a Comment

Double-checking is never a waste of time when it comes to crisis management Late last month the White House made headlines when it accidentally exposed the CIA’s top officer in Kabul, Afghanistan. In case you missed the story, here’s a rundown, from a Washington Post article by Greg Miller: The …

Walmart Takes Control in Tracy Morgan Crash Crisis

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Good crisis management means finding a way to take control Sometimes, there is absolutely nothing you can do to prevent negative incidents from happening. That said, just because you couldn’t prevent something doesn’t mean you have no control of the situation. Take the recent crash involving a Walmart company truck …

Good Advice, Badly Delivered

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[Editor’s Note: The following post from Jerry Brown’s Monday Morning Media Minute newsletter addresses the issue of conducting crisis management without creating more risk through the methods and verbiage you put to use.] I think it’s safe to say things aren’t going well when you feel compelled to tell employees …

Crisis Management Quotables…on Why Hiding Doesn’t Cut It

Erik Bernstein crisis communication, crisis communications, crisis management, crisis management quotables, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

Duck and cover is not a crisis management strategy Leave it to a legendary college football coach to understand dealing with the media! Paul “Bear” Bryant spent 25 years as the University of Alabama’s head coach, amassing an absolutely incredible 323-85-17 record and chalking up an immense number of press …