Crisis Communication Plan

A crisis can occur at any time, place and within any given organization. An organization relies heavily on the communications crisis team to apply their skills and knowledge to formulate an all-encompassing crisis communication plan. Communication professionals constantly have to sort out the issues and find a resolution that works well for the organization and the public. A crisis can escalate into a disaster in minutes, and could cost significant loss of life and create a bad reputation for an organization. This paper will discuss the importance of creating a crisis communication plan, and the purpose of being transparent with the public to resolve a crisis. The purpose of a crisis plan is to maintain good communication when a critical
The formulation of a crisis plan requires countless hours of preparation and strategizing with organization leaders, and enables all individuals involved to attend the media, employees, stakeholders, etc., in a professional manner (Fink, 2013). Conversely, deficient crisis communication plans and inadequate management skills can cause permanent loss for the organization while undergoing a crisis, and could trigger distrust from the public, loss of employees and a tarnished reputation for the organization. The public will remember how the organization dealt with the crisis after it is over (Fink, 2013, p. 9). Therefore, a good crisis communication plan must be placed to coordinate various responses and rescue activities in order to solve the crisis and meet the needs of the public and the
Withholding information can cause dire consequences for an organization. During a crisis, the whole story should be shared with the public. Information should be shared depending on what can help solve the crisis, not what can generate a larger predicament for the organization. An explanation of what caused the crisis should be shared with the public, as well as the steps that will be made to find a feasible resolution. If a mistake was made, it is important to admit fault and tell the truth, rather than hide it or blame others because it could give the organization a negative image once the truth is exposed. Being transparent avoids rumors and erroneous information from circling the crisis and making it more harmful. Establishing key facts and providing appropriate and truthful information in a timely and transparent manner is crucial to an organization’s success. Sharing information as soon as it is available and being accessible to answer questions from the audience shows