VI Network:    461 Design   |   A Woman in the Mirror
Crisis Communication

A crisis is an event or series of events that prevent the normal functioning of an organization. These events may be either isolated incidents or patterns of dysfunctional behavior, which have spiraled out of control. Examples of possible crisis situations are shown opposite.
  • Natural disasters or other acts of God
  • Employee misconduct
  • Negative news coverage and damaging P.R.
  • Product or technology problems
  • Leadership problems and low employee morale
  • Below expectation financial results
  • Government probes and corporate lawsuits
Our Process
VI team members assist leaders in:

  • Implementation of an immediate crisis assessment process.
  • Ongoing development of crisis response plans to account for the crisis, daily operations, and future public relations.
  • Development of crisis communication plans to insure that key stakeholders are involved, informed, and receiving consistent messages.
  • Identification and development of internal and external resources to broaden the scope of assistance and information available to the leadership before, during, and after a crisis.
  • Assistance in the development and implementation of organizational change programs to recover from crisis and reclaim organizational growth and vitality.
What is Unique About VI?
Many crisis management firms follow a simple model, where they control the information flow around the organization in crisis. They basically assume a public relations response in order to maintain organizational credibility with the larger community.

The problem with this response is that there is no time spent actually identifying the causes of the crisis, rectifying the issues, and creating plans to cope with future crises. As a result, dysfunction can be embedded in the organizaiton.

This approach is likely to develop a culture with deep, long-term dysfunction. Thus, public relations success can lead to long-term failure. VI pushes leaders to engage the crisis productively and effectively, encouraging short and long-term response plans.
Clear Advantages
  • Multi-layered plan to account for deeper structural problems.
  • Communication plan with flex-focus message strategies to account for the needs of different stakeholder groups.
  • Proactive media assistance with a strong leadership component, to increase confidence and lower stress.
  • An assessment of the organizational culture to identify other issues that influenced the current crisis.
  • A focus on connecting and communicating with key stakeholders during the crisis to increase the likelihood of a full recovery.