This sounds counterintuitive – how on earth is it possible that media attention, protests and anger can be helpful?
It all comes down to the response.
In the panic that can envelop organisations when a reputational crisis hits, it is critically important to remember that the eyes of your stakeholders are on you. The people who have stood by you, your customers (past, present and future), your staff – they want to see you act in a manner aligned with their beliefs and values..
A crisis for your company is an opportunity – to come out of it bigger and better than when you went in.
You simply have to live your values, demonstrably and overtly to those who are important to you.
No company’s organisational values suggest it will do the minimum necessary, that it will deny accountability, or that it will pursue legal means to protect itself in the event something goes wrong. But all too often, through the actions taking in the middle of the fray, that’s the message sent.
Living your values in a time of crisis will enable your organisation to position itself for the future out of the crisis.
Pull your vision statement off the wall (and in the event you don’t have one – get one in place fast, that recognises the organisation you are and want to present as). It will drive your actions, your activity and your message – anchoring everything you do and say, in what may appear to be your organisation’s darkest hour.
And remember heroes don’t defend themselves, they protect others – through this approach, you will successfully ride out any storm. And it will give you the strong platform you need when the worst is over, and the seas are calm.
Don’t you want to be in the best place possible at that time – not just having survived, but positioned your organisation for an even better future?
Micomm Consulting 