Crisis communication is high stakes work. For communications managers and PR professionals, it's likely to be the most stressful time of their working life. Crisis Communication Strategies is a must-have handbook which covers the whole span of the crisis from preparing and laying the groundwork before it occurs, during the incident, and the aftermath, including the move to recovery. It guides readers through each phase, providing details of what to consider, what should be done, and tips and checklists for improved responses. Crisis Communication Strategies equips readers to deal with any kind of crisis - whether caused by internal error, customer action, natural disasters, terrorism or political upheaval. Supported by case studies and examples from responses to events including the 2011 Norway terror attacks, the 2018 British Airways data breach, the 2017 Pepsi advert and the 2005 Hurricane Katrina New Orleans floods, the book explores the role of leadership in a crisis and developing a crisis communication response that has people at the heart of it. Crisis Communication Strategies is the essential guide for PR and communication professionals to protecting your company and building true, long-term resilience.

Senior management and leaders within companies embroiled in crisis, have learned the hard way what happens when the unthinkable becomes a reality - an accident results in death or injury; a failed company takeover causes share prices to plummet; or toxic food, medicines and drinks leads to mass hysteria. All attention focuses on the guilty parties - and the media can be expected to make this crisis headline news within a matter of hours. No company or organisation is immune to crisis. Everyday, organisations run the risk of being affected. However, a crisis does not necessarily have to turn into a disaster for the business or organisation involved. Crisis Communication provides readers with advice on how to limit damage effectively by acting quickly and positively. Moreover, it explains how to turn a crisis into an opportunity by communicating efficiently, through the use of successful public relations strategies. Providing information on accountability; crisis communication planning; building your corporate image; natural disasters; accidents; financial crises; legal issues; corporate re-organisation; food crises; dealing with negative press; media training; and risk managers, Crisis Communication is a thorough guide to help prepare your organisation for any future calamities. Including international case studies, crisis communication checklists and sample crisis preparation documents, this book ensures that you are fully prepared for the absolute necessity of proactive crisis communication and proper planning, should you be confronted with a crisis.

The Definitive Guide to Communicating in Any Crisis “When facing an already difficult crisis, the last thing a company needs is to make it worse through its own communications – or lack thereof. As one who has lived through a number of [business] crises and served as an independent investigator of the crises of others, I consider Steven Fink’s book to be an excellent guide to avoiding collecting scar tissue of your own by learning from the scar tissue painfully collected by others.”—Norman R. Augustine, former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Lockheed Martin There are few guarantees in business today. Unfortunately, one of them is the inevitability of a crisis having a potentially major effect on your business and your reputation. When your company finds itself in the midst of a crisis, the ripple effects can disrupt lives and business for the foreseeable future if public opinion is not properly shaped and managed. Skillfully managing the perception of the crisis determines the difference between a company’s life or death. Because in the pitched battle between perception and reality, perception always wins. Fortunately, there is a solution. Crisis communications and crisis management legend Steven Fink gives you everything you need to prepare for the inevitable—whether it’s in the form of human error, industrial accidents, criminal behavior, or natural disasters. In this groundbreaking guide, Fink provides a complete toolkit for ensuring smooth communications and lasting business success through any crisis. Crisis Communications offers proactive and preventive methods for preempting potential crises. The book reveals proven strategies for recognizing and averting damaging crisis communications issues before it’s too late. The book also offers ways to deal with mainstream and social media, use them to your advantage, and neutralize and turn around a hostile media environment Steven Fink uses his decades of expertise and experience in crisis communications to help you: UNDERSTAND AND MANAGE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PUBLIC PERCEPTION AND REALITY CHOOSE THE BEST SPOKESPERSON FOR THE CRISIS PROTECT YOUR BRAND AND REPUTATION THROUGH CRISES LARGE AND SMALL MAKE WISE, VIGILANT, AND DEFENSIBLE DECISIONS UNDER EXTREME CRISIS-INDUCED STRESS TELL THE TRUTH NO MATTER HOW TEMPTING IT MAY BE TO MISLEAD USE SOCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS TO COMMUNICATE DIRECTLY TO THE PUBLIC ABOUT A CRISIS The explosion of the Internet and, especially, social media, has added a new layer to the business leader’s skill set: the ability to handle a crisis quickly and professionally within moments of its occurrence. Livelihoods depend upon it. With in-depth case studies of Toyota, BP, and Penn State, Crisis Communications provides everything you need to successfully lead your company through today’s rocky landscape of business—where crises large and small loom around every corner, and the lives of businesses and management teams hang in the balance. PRAISE FOR STEVEN FINK’S CRISIS MANAGEMENT “Every major executive in America ought to read at least one book on crisis management. In this way, he or she might be better prepared to deal with the disasters striking organizations at an ever-increasing rate ... The question is: ‘Is Steven Fink’s book one that busy executives ought to read?’ The answer is a resounding yes.”—LOS ANGELES TIMES, FRONT PAGE SUNDAY BOOK REVIEW

Responding to the era of crises in which we now live, The Crisis Manager offers wise counsel for anticipating and responding to crises as well as taking the steps required to reduce the impact of these events. Spotlighting the reality of crisis at levels ranging from local to global, author Otto Lerbinger helps readers understand the approaches and ways of thinking required for successful crisis management in today’s world. As no organization or individual is immune from crisis, he guides managers to make good decisions under conditions of high uncertainty, and to consider the interests not only of stockholders but also of a wide variety of stakeholders. With a focus on the threat of crises to an organization’s most valuable asset – its reputation – The Crisis Manager covers: Preparation for crisis, including crisis communication planning Physical crises – natural, biological, and technological "Human climate" crises, stemming from targeted attacks on an organization’s policies, actions, or physical holdings Crises due to management failure, including mismanagement, skewed values, deception, and misconduct New to this second edition are the use of social media in crisis management, and chapters on image restoration strategies and crises stemming from mismanagement, as well as a comprehensive updating of the entire work. Real-world case studies provide examples of what worked and what did not work, and the reasons why. Written for present and future crisis managers in all types of businesses and organizations, this resource will be required reading for students in public relations, business, and management, as it prepares them for their crucial roles as decision makers.

Over the course of recent years, in countries with high crisis expectation and risk probabilities, such as Turkey, a significant rise in the number of crises has been observed. Since current crisis practices are incident-specific, the role of public relations is largely overlooked, and, furthermore, crisis communication studies in non-Western cultures are scarce; this book fills these gaps through two distinct studies. The first highlights crisis management types and strategies by reflecting on interview responses collected from 35 different sectors and sub-sectors in Turkey. While interview findings are used to inform strategical know-how regarding the shift from crisis to opportunity during times of turbulence, the elicited responses reveal how practitioners perceive and respond to crises in the contemporary media landscape. The second analyses the recent upheaval caused by Watsons Turkey as a case study to stress the vital role of public relations in times of crisis.

This timely book explores crises as an inevitable part of modern society, which causes ramifications not only for organisations, but also for a diverse range of stakeholders. Addressing the need for organisations to be guided by a stakeholder-oriented approach throughout all phases of the crisis communication process, the author draws upon various business disciplines and covers the management of issues, risk, reputation and relationships. Covering all stages of crisis communication, from pre-crisis to post-crisis, stakeholder engagement is analysed through a series of case studies, with a particular focus on the role of social media. Scholars of corporate communications and business strategy will find this new book undoubtedly useful, and it will be of particular interest to those involved in crisis communication and management.