Introduction:
What do the 2010 British Petroleum spill, the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH 370, and the financial crisis of 2008 have in common? They were all unexpected crises that rocked the world and created seemingly insurmountable Public Relations (PR) challenges for the organizations involved. This course provides participants with the opportunity to identify how a crisis can impact an organization and what should be done to mitigate its effects. The course focuses on how to prepare the communication function to respond rapidly and effectively in the event of a crisis to be able to manage perceptions in the media and online.
By attending this course, you will learn best practices in crisis communication management, situation analysis, risk assessment, crisis team formation and responsibilities, protocols, and resources to be used such as crisis manuals and communication tools.
Targeted Groups:
Managers, Supervisors, and Team Leaders of Public Relations sections as well as any staff member who may be involved in managing communication and media issues during a crisis.
Course Objectives:
At the end of this course the participants will be able to:
- Identify the different types of crises and their aspects
- Learn how to recognize and prioritize the issues that are most likely to affect corporate reputation during and after the crisis.
- List the various principles of crisis communication
- Devise crisis management processes aimed at mitigating potential crises in their organizations
- Demonstrate the benefits of using the media in a crisis
- Evaluate and prioritize the dimensions involved in crisis communication management
- Analyze and interpret results achieved through crisis communication management
Targeted Competencies:
- Evaluate your organization's risks and vulnerabilities
- Verbal and non-verbal communication
- Influencing audiences
- Motivating subordinates
- Organizing and leading projects
- Crisis managemet
- Media management
Course Content:
Unit 1: Introduction:
- Definition of a crisis
- Overview of communication
- Various types of crises
- Key aspects of a crisis
- Evolution of a crisis
Unit 2: Principles of Crisis Communications:
- Setting your clear objective
- Responding quickly
- Accepting responsibility
- Appropriate messaging
- Profiling your audience
- Showing and maintaining credibility
- Coordinating with others
- Continuous monitoring
Unit 3: Crisis Management Process:
- Pre-crisis phase
- Crisis Management Plan (CMP)
- Crisis Management Team (CMT)
- The spokesperson's role
- Crisis event phase
- Initial response
- Reputation repair
- Post-crisis phase
- Lessons learned
- Follow up with communication
Unit 4: Crisis Communication and Media:
- Media and communication
- Media as a partner in crisis response
- Social media and crisis communication
- Social media as a beneficial tool or a challenge
- Dynamic use of social media in crisis communication
Unit 5: Dimensions of Crisis Communication Management:
- Standard operating decisions dimension
- Victims management dimension
- Trust and credibility dimension
- Behavior dimension
- Professional expectations dimension
- Ethical dimension
- Lessons learned
Unit 6: How to Measure your Results in a Crisis:
- Measuring outputs
- Measuring impact
- Measuring outcomes
