How to communicate effectively during a crisis.

How to communicate effectively during a crisis. AS A SCHOOL LEADER, YOU MAY BE PUT IN A POSITION where yon have totake the lead in a crisis situation, and having the right tools andinformation will be critical. Every school, organization or businessshould develop a crisis communications plan and train employees on howto implement it. Such a plan is a strategy on how to communicate before,during and after a crisis--which could be wide ranging from violence oncampus to natural disasters or facility damage to changes in operations,such as budget cuts. People involved in the plan need to practice their different rolesso that each knows his or her responsibility. The plan should be conciseand lay out who has authority to implement the plan during a crisis.These plans are essential in communicating information to all audiencesin an effective and timely manner. (Note that a school district mayalready have a crisis communications plan for schools that should beadhered to.) Developing a Crisis Communications Plan There are strategies to develop a communications plan--which shouldbe continuously updated and flexible enough to address differentsituations as they arise. When developing a plan you must firstdetermine what constitutes a crisis, which employees should be involvedwhen there is one, and what roles they are to play. The Public RelationsSociety of America's The Strategist, in the Summer 2009 issue,focused on crisis communication planning as it provided tips fromprofessionals on what components should be included in the plan: * Leaders should speak in one clear voice. * There should be consistent messaging to internal and externalaudiences. * Establish ground rules and guidelines. * Coordinate with outside audiences and groups. * Monitor news and information. * Create Web site for the crisis. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] One of the first steps in developing a plan is to create a list ofpeople you contact during a situation, and it needs to include seniorofficials in your school or organization such as principals,superintendents and executive directors. During the crisis, you need toprovide senior leadership with regular updates, all the factualinformation you know, and any new developments. There should also bemessages for leadership to deliver to all audiences and the press.Stephen Davidow and Gerald Baron wrote an article in The Strategisttitled, "Pandemic Flu Communications: How to Prepare for a Crisisin a Web 2.0 World." They mentioned that a plan should also includea list of contacts from outside organizations and agencies that you mayneed to contact. These include police and fire departments, localhospitals, government offices, and public health departments. It'simportant to connect and coordinate with them ahead of time in case youneed to reach out during a crisis situation. Disseminating Information When a crisis happens it's important to disseminateinformation as quickly as possible, but also to ensure that all internalaudiences are aware of the situation. By educating your internal andexternal audiences, you are able to control your message and imagethroughout the situation. If you have a social media expert, he or sheshould be kept apprised of the situation so that messages can be sentout to those you wish to inform. Note that people are increasinglyturning to online forms of communication (i.e., Facebook and Twitter) toget their information. Along with developing communication guidelines, a school ororganization should develop a special crisis Web site that's readyto launch at the beginning of a crisis. The site should include basicinformation, questions and answers, and other details. Having such asite up and ready to go before there's ever a crisis provides theopportunity to identify potential issues before a crisis starts. In TheStrategist, Kyra Aufferman wrote an article titled, "It stillChokes Me Up," about how Northern Illinois University (NIU) handleda crisis situation. Melanie Magara, the school's assistant vicepresident of public affairs, notes in the article that depending on thesize of the institution, extra servers need to be made available tohandle increased Web traffic in the event of a crisis. Once the crisispage is "live," it should be updated on a regular basis, andit should have a list of questions and answers that are relevant to thesituation to keep the public informed. Don't Panic With any situation, it's important not to panic--time is ofthe essence, especially in today's world. In the event of a crisis,institutions need to monitor news and information being reported aboutthe situation so that they can be responsive. Throughout the crisis, besure to communicate clearly and openly, and ensure that messages arehonest and consistent. The key to surviving a crisis is being preparedand trained. After the crisis ends, it's critical that school leadersreflect on the crisis communications plan. During this time there shouldbe a discussion about what worked and didn't so that adjustmentscan be made. It's vital that institutions update the communicationsplan on a regular basis and keep staff abreast of the updates. Having aneffective crisis communications plan begins and ends with preparation. Resources "Spreading the Word: Messaging and Communications in HigherEducation" by Mark C. Sheehan and Judith A Pirani NIU's Crisis Communication Plan Outline:http://www3.niu.edu/newsplace/crisis.html 7 Must-have Elements in a Communication Plan:www.globalprblogweek.com/archives/7_musthave_elements_.php Crisis Communications for the Social Media Age:http://webworkerdaily.com/2009/06/01/crisis-communicationsfor-the-social-media-age/ "Pandemic Flu Communications: How to Prepare for a Crisis in aWeb 2.0 World." The Strategist:www.prsa.org/publications/strategist/index.html "It still Chokes Me Up," The Strategist: www.prsa.org/publications/strategist/index.html Sabrina Kidwai is ACIE's media relations manager. She can becontacted at skidwai@acteonline.org.