Stories by Seth Arenstein

Each month we ask communicators to unload their toolkits and tell us what falls out. In other words, what technologies and tools do they find most effective as they do their job? This month we talk technology and tools with Tejas Totade, head of emerging technologies at Ruder Finn, and Andrew Cross, VP, PR, at WalkerSands. Totade says voice will be the next big business technology.

Their edited responses to our questions about technologies and tools they use at their business and how they’d improve them are below.

This month our regular roundtable feature asks senior communicators about how titles in the industry are changing and in what ways are communications teams reorganizing themselves.

Our slide feature this month offers a look at how Dell Inc. uses a 5-step approach to managing PR crises.

Coming up with a PR crisis management plan is not particularly difficult. The steps are well known: move promptly to accept responsibility (this might include someone losing her/his job) and be transparent about what occurred;… Continued

There still are plenty of PR pros who think of measurement as a necessary evil, while others ignore measurement totally. For Dan Beltramo, CEO of PR data firm AirPR, the reluctance of PR pros to embrace measurement is due largely to a false sense of freedom. Ironically, Beltramo says, measurement can be liberating.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) took what some consider a bold first step in response to the PA grand jury report on sexual abuse in the church earlier this week. While it’s far from clear whether or not the USCCB is acting on its own or in coordination with the Vatican, it’s the second time in recent weeks that the bishops have spoken out about sexual abuse scandals.

Mention the crisis FEMA is dealing with at the moment and most people probably think you’re referring to the agency’s work to assist residents of the Carolinas as they battle flooding from Hurricane Florence. Instead you could be thinking of the travel scandal challenging FEMA administrator Brock Long. Part of Long’s problem is a PR issue: the government administrator brand is tainted.

Several principles of PR and crisis communications can be applied to the situation involving Judge Brett Kavanaugh and his accuser, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford. Now that Dr. Ford has identified herself, the issue has moved from the Senate to the court of public opinion, a venue where facts and legal arguments are sometimes immaterial. In this court, public perception is king.

It may be difficult to separate personal feelings from professional ones when considering the story of Stephen Bannon, the former Trump White House strategist, being dis-invited to appear at the New Yorker Festival next month. Nevertheless, the incident provides several timely lessons for communicators in these uncertain times.

For many communicators, September is the traditional kick-off for budget season. With this in mind, we departed from our usual roundtable format of a single question and asked senior communicators to discuss budget best practices and budget priorities and expectations for 2019.