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Just a
Thought
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"When
the shit hits
the fan, or is
about to, is the
wrong time for a
CEO to build
team consensus.
It's a time for
rapid and
decisive
action."
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From
the Editor
Everyone
has
expectations
of the
organizations
and
individuals
they interact
with. And,
when those
expectations
are not met
(whether they
were defied
intentionally
or not is
inconsequential),
people get
upset.
This past
week our own
Jonathan
Bernstein
collaborated
with Grayson
Brulte,
President of
Brulte &
Company and
Co-Chair of
the City of
Beverly Hills
Mayor's
Autonomous
Vehicle Task
Force, to
author an article discussing this very issue. Here's a
taste: "Let's
look at what
happened when
the Wright
Brothers were
pioneering the
art of flying.
On Thursday,
September 17,
1908 Orville
Wright took
Lieutenant
Selfridge, a
West Point
graduate who
was one of the
army's most
knowledgeable
aviation
specialists
for a flight.
After a few
minutes, the
plane crashed
and Lieutenant
Selfridge
perished in
the crash and
Orville Wright
was seriously
injured.
Orville's
passenger that
day was
supposed to
have been
President
Theodore
Roosevelt.
This
unfortunate
accident did
not slow down
The Wright
Brother's
determination.
Instead,
Wilbur Wright
grabbed the
bull by the
horns and
continued to
test, build
and modify
planes.
While The
Wright
Brothers faced
uncertainty
after the
crash, they
did not let an
unfortunate
accident turn
into a crisis
that would
derail all of
their efforts
and an entire
budding
industry.
Instead the
brothers went
on to change
history
forever."
Although
the article
speaks
directly to
the burgeoning
autonomous
vehicle
industry, the
principles are
not industry
specific.
Stakeholders -
whether they
are employees,
investors,
regulators, or
customers -
have certain
expectations,
and if they
are not met
you can expect
reputation
woes to
follow.
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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
|
Here,
we share a
look at some
of the most
popular posts
from recent
weeks:
Failing
to come
prepared for
predictable
issues is a
quick road to
crisis. Snapchat and the Story of Predictable Questions
looks into a
repeat
controversy
for the social
platform, and
what the
implications
of similar
troubles could
be down the
road.
Your obligation
to protect
personal data
could be, and in
many cases is,
greater than you
think. Crisis Prevention: Guarding Personal Info in the
Workplace
explains this
risk and how to
best mitigate it
for your
organization.
Ransomware
attacks will
continue to be
popular as long
as they're
profitable. With
no sign that
they're going
away, it's time
to focus on Mitigating the Impact of Ransomware Attacks.
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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Business Announcements
(aka blatant self-promotion)
New:
Survey-Based
Vulnerability
Audits
A
comprehensive
vulnerability
audit is one of
the most effective
ways to spot
current or
potential issues
that could lead to
damaging crises,
and now we've
figured out a way
to significantly
reduce both the
time and costs
associated with
traditional
in-person audits!
Our
new
survey-platform-based
comprehensive
vulnerability
audit is designed
around a
customized
platform which
allows us to
deliver our audit
questions to the
right people via
online survey. The
process is
completely
confidential,
while allowing
participants to
respond on their
own schedule - to
include being able
to save and return
to the survey -
and even allowing
if/then direction
of respondents to
certain categories
of questions based
on their
positions/access
to different types
of information. A
demo is available
on request.
Are
There Any Holes
in Your Crisis
Planning?
Your organization may well have crisis prevention
and
response-related
plans in place -
but are you sure
they're going to
cover all the
bases? Bernstein
Crisis
Management's
Crisis Document
Audit is a
low-cost,
flat-rate
service which
will quickly
provide you with
a comprehensive
analysis of your
existing plans
and
recommendations
for improvement.
We're
Giving Away Keeping
the Wolves at
Bay and
other crisis
publications!
Several
new items have
been added to
our FREE crisis
management
library,
including Keeping
the Wolves at
Bay, the
widely used
media-training
manual published
by Jonathan
Bernstein.
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.
Social
Media Crisis
Training
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.
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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:
Erik
Bernstein is
vice president
of Bernstein
Crisis
Management, and
editor of this
newsletter.
Working in
crisis
management since
2009, Erik has
watched the
internet and
social media
change the
field. Today, he
brings that
experience to
bear assisting
clients to
protect and grow
their
reputations
using tactics
based on
real-world
knowledge and
experience.
Write
to Erik at:
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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
any errors or
omissions. All
information is
provided "as is"
without warranty
of any kind.
Bernstein Crisis
Management and
Jonathan
Bernstein make
no
representations
and disclaim all
express,
implied, and
statutory
warranties of
any kind to the
user and/or any
third party
including,
without
limitation,
warranties as to
accuracy,
timeliness,
completeness,
merchantability,
or fitness for
any particular
purpose.
Unless
due to willful
tortuous
misconduct or
gross
negligence,
Jonathan
Bernstein and
Bernstein Crisis
Management shall
have no
liability in
tort, contract,
or otherwise
(and as
permitted by
law, product
liability), to
the user and/or
any third party.
Under
no circumstance
shall Bernstein
Crisis
Management or
Jonathan
Bernstein be
liable to the
user and/or any
third party for
any lost profits
or lost
opportunity,
indirect,
special,
consequential,
incidental, or
punitive damages
whatsoever, even
if Bernstein
Crisis
Management or
Jonathan
Bernstein has
been advised of
the possibility
of such damages.
A
service of this
newsletter is to
provide news
summaries and/or
snippets to
readers. In such
instances
articles and/or
snippets will be
reprinted as
they are
received from
the originating
party or as they
are displayed on
the originating
website or in
the original
article. As we
do not write the
news, we merely
point readers to
it, under no
circumstance
shall Bernstein
Crisis
Management or
Jonathan
Bernstein be
liable to the
user and/or any
third party for
any lost profits
or lost
opportunity,
indirect,
special,
consequential,
incidental, or
punitive damages
whatsoever due
to the
distribution of
said news
articles or
snippets that
lead readers to
a full article
on a news
service's
website, even if
Bernstein Crisis
Management or
Jonathan
Bernstein has
been advised of
the possibility
of such damages.
Authors of the
original news
story and their
publications
shall be
exclusively held
liable. Any
corrections to
news stories are
not mandatory
and shall be
printed at the
discretion of
the list
moderator after
evaluation on a
case-by-case
basis.
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