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Just a Thought
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"Sometimes
crisis management
professionals need
to be Karma's
champion."
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From
the Editor
Dear
Volkswagen,
We
all loved your
print ads and
commercials.
Your marketing
captivated
drivers and your
cars performed.
You built a
massive
foundation of
goodwill through
50+ years of
entertaining and
satisfying us as
consumers, only
to squander it
with a decision
we still have
only the
slightest
understanding
of.
A
Japanese proverb
famously states,
"The
reputation of
a thousand
years may be
determined by
the conduct of
one hour."
Could there be a
quote more
applicable?
In a
recent blog post I stated my belief that you were ready to
face the problem
you created.
Now, I'm not so
sure. CEO Martin
Winterkorn was
removed and
other unnamed
staff members
have been
suspended, a new
CEO has come in,
but here's what
bothers me - the
official party
line coming from
the VW camp is
that the entire
scandal is the
result of the
actions by a
"small group" of
engineers and
technicians
involved in
engine
development.
Are
your
stakeholders
expected to
believe that a
small group of
individuals was
able to
massively and
illegally tamper
with core
systems in your
vehicles for
seven years and
NOBODY ELSE
knew? No red
flags were
raised anywhere
in the process?
No back-channel
memos came to
light? Nobody
let one iota of
the deception
slip? Do you
realize how
insulting that
is?
If
you want to fix
this crisis,
along with your
plummeting stock
price, it's time
to come clean.
Tell us who
screwed up and
how it went
unchecked. Tell
us how you're
cleaning up the
mess. Tell us
how you'll make
sure none of
your systems are
tampered with
ever again.
Tell
us, Volkswagen.
Your hour is
running out
fast.
- EB
For more on
Volkswagen's
situation, don't
miss BCM
president
Jonathan
Bernstein's
recent
interviews for CTV and Marketwatch.
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Interested in
reprinting BCM
articles or blog
posts?
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We're
happy to give
permission for
material to be
reprinted in hard copy
or online!
If you find something
you would like to
reprint, simply submit
a request to jonathan@bernsteincrisismanagement.com.
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Blogs!
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Here,
we share a look
at some of the
most popular
posts from
recent weeks:
Knowing how to
best deliver
messaging to
stakeholders is
a critical PR
skills, and
considering the
popularity of
social media
today you really
must be up to
date on Social Media Demographics.
Do you
have a topic
you'd like to
see featured in
our blogs? Send
an email to erik@bernsteincrisismanagement.com
and there's a
good chance
you'll be seeing
it right here in
the next issue!
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| Apropos of
Nothing |
Make Some Easy
Money
Bernstein
Crisis Management
pays VERY generous
referral
commissions, a
nice chunk of the
first year's
business from any
referred client.
If you have
someone you think
we can help,
direct them to jonathan@bernsteincrisismanagement.com
and let us know
you sent them our
way.
Avoid The
Apology
AT&T
drawing the ire of
the theater
community after
tweeting an image
encouraging
playgoers to watch
football on their
phones mid-show;
UCLA
Medical Center
having to explain to
as many as 4.5
million patients why
they didn't bother
to encrypt personal
information;
Clueless
advertising folks at
Anheuser-Busch
eliciting widespread
anger with a Bud
Lite commercial
featuring the
tagline "The perfect
beer for removing
'no' from your
vocabulary for the
night;" or,
Starbucks
kicking off - and
then aborting - its
ill-considered "Race
Together" campaign;
So many of
the damaging
crises we see
making headlines
and creating costs
every day could
have been
prevented if
someone first
asked, "What the
(expletive
deleted) could go
wrong with this
idea?" That's the
premise behind
Bernstein Crisis
Management's AvoidTheApology.com.
To learn more,
email erik@bernsteincrisismanagement.com.
Bernsteins
Available to
Deliver Free Guest
Lectures, Q&A
Sessions
Jonathan
alone, or the team
of Jonathan and Erik
Bernstein, are
available at no
charge to deliver
guest lectures and
host Q&A
sessions with
college classes via
Skype or Google
Hangout.
For our
latest
presentation we
had the pleasure
of speaking with
Fred Muir's crisis
communications
class at USC's
Annenberg School
for Communication
and Journalism.
The
lectures are fun for
us and students, and
we're more than
happy to allow
recording for your
future use. All you
need at your end is
a single computer
with webcam and a
strong broadband
connection for us to
appear in your
classroom in
real-time.
Attention
Corporate Boards
of Directors (and
those who serve
them).
If
you're connected
with a corporate
board of directors
in some way and
think that board
would benefit from
having a veteran
crisis management
pro amongst its
membership, please
contact me. --
Jonathan
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Business
Announcements
(aka
blatant
self-promotion)
We're
Giving Away
Keeping the Wolves
at Bay
Keeping
the Wolves at
Bay, the
widely used
media-training
manual published
by Jonathan
Bernstein, is now
being given away
in its PDF format.
Formerly $10,
there will be no
charge for the
publication as
long as demand
exists.
Exciting
New Services from
Bernstein Crisis
Management
We are
are proud to
introduce two new
services that will
allow us to better
meet the needs of
our clients!
First,
from entering new
markets to defending
billion-dollar
established
industries, BCM's
public affairs
practice, led
by twenty year
veteran Greg Brooks,
will help you win
the battle for the
hearts and minds of
audiences from City
Council to the halls
of Congress.
Our
second addition is
based on the belief
that an important
piece in managing a
crisis includes
attending to the
emotional reactions
that influence the
outcome. Presented
and facilitated by
Steven Degelsmith,
Ph.D., our focused human
factors in crisis
management service
will equip you with
the tools you need
to handle even the
most volatile of
situations.
Are
Your Social
Media Managers
Crisis-Trained?
A solid social media
manager has quickly
become a must-have
for organizations of
any size, and can
make an immense
difference by
driving in customers
and building your
positive reputation
online.
The
problem is, the vast
majority are simply
not equipped to even
identify building
crises, much less
take the steps
necessary to cope
with and mitigate
the damage that can
result.
That's where we come
in.
Bernstein
Crisis Management is
now offering crisis
management training
for social media
managers, both
independent and
in-house, as well as
social media firms.
Traditional
Social Media
Training
Want to get your
feet wet with social
media but don't know
where to start?
Maybe you have
accounts, but aren't
sure what to post,
or how to reply?
Being
active on social
media is a must
these days, but you
have to do it right.
Erik Bernstein now
offers social media
training sessions in
person or via Skype
for groups and
individuals.
Manager's
Guide to
Crisis
Management
Whether
you're a
seasoned
manager,
aspiring
up-and-comer,
or student of
crisis
management,
Jonathan
Bernstein's
textbook, Manager's Guide to Crisis Management will
put you in
control of any
situation.
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Guest
Authors
Guest authors are very welcome to submit material
for "Crisis
Manager." There is
no fee paid, but
most guest authors
have reported
receiving business
inquiries as a
result of
appearing in this
publication. Case
histories,
experience-based
lessons,
commentary on
current news
events and
editorial opinion
are all eligible
for consideration.
Submission is not
a guarantee of
acceptance.
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About Us
 
Jonathan Bernstein
is both publisher of
Crisis Manager and
president of
Bernstein Crisis
Management, Inc., a
national crisis
management public
relations agency
providing 24/7
access to crisis
response
professionals. The
agency engages in
the full spectrum of
crisis management
services: crisis
prevention,
response, planning
& training. He
has been in the
public relations
field since 1982,
following five-year
stints in both
military
intelligence and
investigative
reporting.
Write to Jonathan
at: jonathan@bernsteincrisismanagement.com.
Erik
Bernstein is vice
president of
Bernstein Crisis
Management. Erik
started with BCM
in 2009 as a
writer and
subsequently
became social
media manager for
the consultancy
itself as well as
for a number of
BCM clients before
moving to the VP
position.
Write to Erik at: erik@bernsteincrisismanagement.com.
Bernstein
Crisis
Management,
Inc. is
located at 700
S. Myrtle
Ave., #404,
Monrovia, CA
91016.
Telephone: (626) 825-3838.
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Legal
Disclaimer (aka
the small print)
All information contained
herein is obtained
by Jonathan
Bernstein from
sources believed
by Jonathan
Bernstein to be
accurate and
reliable.
Because of the possibility
of human and
mechanical error
as well as other
factors, neither
Jonathan Bernstein
nor Bernstein
Crisis Management
is responsible for
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of any kind.
Bernstein Crisis
Management and
Jonathan Bernstein
make no
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Jonathan Bernstein
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Crisis Management
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Crisis Management
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Crisis Management
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