Crisis Management

This case study on Trader Joe’s shows how quickly organizations, even those with very good reputations, can find themselves in a PR mess, particularly when leadership seems out of touch with stakeholders and the forces of social media and public opinion become involved

There are a number of organizations that are not in tune with their constituencies. The most obvious recent example is the European Super League, which went from a press release to dissolution in four days. It took longer for all the problems plaguing the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) and its signature awards, the Golden Globes, to emerge. But both PR disasters resulted from being totally out of touch with stakeholders.

The idea for this month’s Crisis Dialogue springs from something we hear often from crisis pros: ‘That person/company is difficult.’ So, we talked with Chanel Cathey, founder/CEO, CJC Insights, LLC, and Daniel Roberts, a corporate crisis specialist, about handling uncooperative executives during a crisis.

On April 17, two men were killed in an autonomous Tesla crash in Harris County, Texas. The company has so far stayed mum—perhaps because no PR pros were around to pick up the phone. There’s little question as to why Tesla has stayed so silent: The company disbanded its PR team in October 2020.

PR pros and the media face a critical situation. They must get the J&J vaccine narrative right, informing the public about risks while not inducing undue concern and spurring more vaccine anxiety. It’s also an opportunity for government, the medical community and media to regain public trust.

The odds seem long for Rep. Matt Gaetz to clear his name and reputation, although this story changes daily. His task is not impossible, though. If Gaetz beats the allegations, he can restore his reputation by focusing on the basics of crisis response and strategic communication.

Deb Hileman outlines her top 15 fundamental principles of crisis management for communicators to keep top of mind.

In this issue, we answer the question, how do you counsel a leader to issue a heartfelt apology, particularly when the person is reluctant to admit culpability? What best practices do you recommend for preparing communicators to handle these situations?

Mark Machin, who headed the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) until Feb. 26, and his partner flew to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where Machin cut the vaccine line to receive his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. As we do each month, we ask crisis communicators if this crisis was averted based on the response.

It’s a loaded question to ask when a PR crisis ends. With some crises, reminders last indefinitely. In other cases, the actual crisis lasts for months. We begin a series that updates crises mentioned in previous editions of Crisis Insider and offers additional insights.