Seminars and conferences

The Ritz Carlton, Kuala Lumpur, July-2021

1 Day Conference, and 1 Day Crisis Simulation & Table Top Exercises x 3

Synopsis:

What is a Crisis?

A crisis can be a career ender or an opportunity to excel; it can also be an opportunity to the organization’s PR function to build credibility or destroy whatever had accumulated When the crisis occurs it’s too late to start planning for it. This is when all the months of prior planning and relationship building pay dividends. When a crisis erupte you must already know and understand your media Perhaps more importantly, you must have the confidence of the organization’s “dominant coalition” and be a member of it.

Following are some keys to being prepared:

Regardless of the source of crisis be it a natural phenomenon, human activity or inactivity, no matter what type it is destructive or not, it goes through several stages. The number of those stages differs, ranging between three and five. But the former are unanimous in that crisis management involves all procedures, initiatives and activities carried out “before”, “during” and “after” the crisis event

A key word in crisis management is “prevention” and concentration of primary intellectual, moral, social and technological efforts during the period before the crisis. The main goal is to prevent the effects which are negative for people.

The skill of managing crisis focuses simultaneously on their prevention and the possibilities for the management once they have become a reality

Designated Spokesperson

One individual should be designated as the primary spokesperson to represent the company, moke official statements and answer media questions through out the crisis.

A back-up to the designated spokesperson should also be identified to fill the position in the event that the primary spokesperson is unavailable.

The spokesperson is:

Comfortable in front of a TV camera and with reporters. Preferably skilled in handling media, skilled in directing responses to another topic, skilled in identifying key points, able to speak without using jargon, respectful of the role of the reporter, knowledgeable about the organization and the crisis at hand able to establish credibility with the media, able to project confidence to the audience, suitable in regard to diction, appearance and charisma, sincere, straightforward and believable, accessible to the media and to internal communications personnel who will facilitate media interviews, able to remain calm in stressful situations, in addition to the designated spokesperson and backup, it can be anticipated that other parties involved in the crisis; police, fire department.

Practicing Tough Questions

CRISIS situation is always difficult when dealing with the media. Therefore, tough questions and rehearsals are necessary to help the spokesperson prepare.

Prepared Statements

If you don’t communicate immediately you lose your greatest opportunity to control events