Toyota executives have been virtually silent amid a recall of millions of their cars because gas pedals can become dangerously stuck. For their customers, oh, what a feeling _ fear, frustration, confusion and anger. Since Tuesday, when the Japanese automaker said it would stop making and selling some of its …
Need for Crisis Management
Many organizations who had never before considered hiring a crisis management team are now scrambling to find one. Why is that? This quote from a Finance & Commerce article has the answer: The trend has been fueled by the national recession that spawned a plethora of business bankruptcies and corporate …
Audi’s Lack of Research Puts them in Crisis Management Mode
German car manufacturer Audi is playing with fire in their latest advertising campaign, which is acting as a lead-in to the premiere of their new Super Bowl commercial. The trouble? This quote from social media strategist Danny Brown’s blog explains: The campaign is based around a new creation called the …
Protecting Against an Ambush
The Ambush Interview is an interview in which an investigative reporter catches their subject off guard in hopes of causing them to make a mental error which the reporter can then exploit. In her article for the latest Crisis Manager newsletter, aptly titled “The Ambush Interview: Taming the Wild Animal,” …
Don’t Snap!
From the moment the day begins, we are juggling work and our personal lives. Before we know it, we’re making snap decisions or we’re snapping at each other. When we don’t feel that we have the time or the need to get curious we can (1) get angry or defensive …
New Crisis Management Newsletter!
A new issue of Crisis Manager is up on the Bernstein Crisis Management website, and we have guest articles from two seasoned crisis management experts. The first, an excerpt from Nance Guilmartin’s book “The Power of Pause,” illustrates the challenges created by the rush of today’s pressured working environment. Following …
Crisis Management Time for Toyota
It’s time for Toyota to roll out the crisis management plan, as the Japanese automaker joins the recent string of manufacturers forced into massive product recalls. Here are the details, from a USAToday story: Last Thursday in the U.S., Toyota said it will recall 2.3 million Toyota-brand cars and trucks, …
Crisis Management Camps
Gathered in meeting rooms at universities and offices in four different countries, a flurry of typing, conversations, collaborations and snacks are powering an army of technology volunteers committed to helping the situation in Haiti. CrisisCamps, sponsored by CrisisCommons, are open, collaborative events that allow digital citizens to come together using …
Red Cross Disaster Response Challenge
The time is coming near again for the UK Red Cross Disaster Response Challenge. A true test of real-world crisis management strategy and skill, the two-day event is built around a simulated humanitarian disaster which you and your team will be tasked with responding to. Participants will the rare opportunity …
French Pirates Go Into Crisis Management Mode
When your company takes a strong public stance on an issue, displaying any behavior that contradicts that position is very dangerous. If you need proof, look no further than the crisis management French anti-piracy group Hadopi, who was caught red-handed last week using a font which was created exclusively for …
Pampers Crisis Management
Failing to control your brand’s story is one of the most common, and most dangerous, mistakes in the corporate world. With the amount of credence now given to information on the Internet, a few vocal people with time on their hands can cause a serious problem. Manufacturer Proctor & Gamble …
J&J Fails Crisis Management
Johnson and Johnson’s 1982 Tylenol recall set a precedent for effective crisis management, laying out the guidelines of communication, cooperation and transparency. Because of this, it comes as a surprise that they recently strayed from their practices by failing to react to customer complaints or FDA questioning about many of …
Crisis Management for Technology
The ever-increasing level of connectivity among devices and services has made handling large volumes of personal or business information easy, whether you’re at home, the office, or on the go. Along with new technology comes new risks as well, as this quote from an AP article demonstrates: A Georgia mother …
Twitter’s Role in Crisis Management
In the aftermath of the Haitian earthquake, Twitter again is playing a key role in providing communications and news, as are other social networking sites, cementing their role as information providers during a time of crisis. Twitter, a micro-messaging blog that limits posts to 140 characters, has been dominated by …
Crisis Management for Haiti
The U.S. has pledged to provide as much aid as possible to the people of Haiti after an earthquake devastated the small nation earlier this week. and has already began to move an aircraft carrier, Coast Guard cutters and a Marine unit into the area. Unfortunately, there are significant issues …