Grand Childrens' Park, Seoul
I was walking around Seoul the other day and noticed the cherry blossoms in full bloom. Usually I am too busy to really notice, but on that particular occasion I took the time to appreciate the cherry blossoms. I vowed to remember how beautiful the trees were as well as the park I walked by. Sometimes, when we are too busy we fail to remember the little things that make life magical.
From a risk management standpoint, sometimes we get caught up in the moment and fail to remember the processes and procedures that were put in place by our predecessors or colleagues to ensure that the corporate strategy of the company is properly implemented. And, of course sometimes, during a major crisis we are so busy that we fail to remember to follow or implement those processes that have been created just for that occasion. Many companies have in fact created processes to implement a crisis management strategy, but then go about business never remembering to actually test the crisis management strategy or simulate a crisis to determine the viability of the strategy that has been developed. Maybe the processes or policies were just filed away in a filing cabinet with no one remembering such polcies even existed.
Does the crisis management strategy work?
Has it been tested?
Did anyone remember to run crisis scenarios with management involved?
If your company has already created a list of risks that it may face in a crisis scenario with plans to address them, has anyone remembered to fully vet them. A company and its management will be under a great deal of pressure once a crisis occurs- remembering to implement the crisis management team that was created in the past or remembering to implement the crisis communication protocols that were discussed last year may not only help prepare management for such a pressure filled situation but will help prepare the company to properly manage the crisis.
Companies that successfully manage crises have used four or five basic steps to prepare for a crisis to the extent possible. They include the following steps:
Other companies have used a variety of steps to handle crises, including:
Notice that successful management of crisis usually involves preparing for a crisis through preparation or planning, avoiding the crisis through proactive steps and learning from the experience of managing a crisis. All of these steps require remembering what has been done in the past whether successful or not, acting proactively or using processes that have already been planned or implemented.
When facing a crisis today, many companies are suffering from the employee turnover caused by the 2008-2009 financial crash. It may have impacted a company’s ability to handle a crisis. The risk management institutional memory may have been reduced or in extreme cases no longer exist. With layoffs happening today, maybe policies develped 5 years ago have been forgotten. What risk managers and in house counsel (or management) must do today to circumvent the negative impacts of a crisis is to remember what was done in the past. What worked- use. What didn’t work- don’t repeat! If a crisis management plan was created- use it or at least re-examine it. Use what was implemented if possible. Under a high pressure situation dont try and re-invent the wheel.
In other words, a company’s risk management department must not only remember if crisis management policies exist but also to remeber to use them or at least re-examine them. In other words, risk management or legal must remember to remember!
Closed business
Crisis Management- What is Your Communications Plan?
In the past I have commented on crisis management and the tools needed to handle such crisis in today’s business environment. Failure to properly handle a crisis may lead to the business closing its doors as in the picture to the left. Of course what companies are finding out is that international crisis are harder to handle than domestic ones. Why? In today’s world, many companies do business internationally. (more…)
When Managing Risk- Change Matters
One of the main drivers of my success over the years has been the ability to “change”. If you look around you, change is everywhere. In fact it is the only constant in life. Everything changes whether we like it or not, just as in the picture showing the new Seoul Train Station and the old one in the background. (more…)
Just when the financial industry thought it was safe to go back into the water, the French bank- Bank Pariabas announced it was pleading guilty to federal charges of violating US sanctions and hiding $$Billions of transfers from sanctioned countries including the Sudan and Iran. The fine Bank Paribas agreed to pay- $9 Billion. The news of course was all over the media, with the New York Times devoting a major article on the matter, and Attorney General Eric Holder holding a news conference.Even the French Government got into the act by claiming the fine was excessive and could damage the European economy or at least the European banking community. Undoubtedly, the negative press will have a negative impact on the Bank Paribas brand. How can it manage such a crisis?
Major crisis like the one mentioned above, must be properly managed. As today's society has become very anti business ( and perhaps with some justification) because of the various mega crisis that have impacted people around the world, a simple PR or marketing statement no longer suffices. A full fledged crisis management operation must be put in place . Sometimes, damage control involves the use of an outside crisis management consultant such as an outside Crisis PR consultant. Normally, PR consultants that handle crisis or help risk managers or in house lawyers manage a crisis are those who have years of experience with the media. A good PR consultant will know what the media wants from the company, will know the players involved in the media and will also understand how to minimize the media's appetite for bad press. A good PR consultant will help the company embroiled in a crisis navigate the dangerous communication currents of the crisis management ocean . It can help save the business reputation of the company and improve media relations.
There a few well known crisis media consultants or PR managers. These consultants, if used in a timely fashion, can help a company weather the crisis storm. Normally, they need to be brought in at the beginning to effectively do their job. I suggest therefore, to have one on retainer if and when a major crisis develops. One such PR consultant is Gillott Communications. Their blog website address is as follows: https://
Remember, an effective crisis management plan must be implemented within 24 hours of the crisis event ( or as some say within several hours because of the explosion of social media platforms) or the company may not survive. As a legal risk manager or in house counsel, you need to develop an effective crisis management strategy prior to the crisis itself. You will need to use all of the risk management tools available, including outside consultants that can help manage and even resolve potentially negative events that result in major attacks on the company. Unless managed, a crisis can and often does lead to catastrophic results that not only damage a company' s brand value but its very existence. Using a Crisis Management Consultant skilled in media relations is one of the most effective ways of managing and minimizing risk.
During the lazy days of Summer, companies or organizations tend to slow down. People go on vacation, customers or vendors go into Summer mode, business slows and organizations think less about crisis risk management and more about company picnics or other fun events. People start thinking business is uneventful- maybe everything is calm and serene like the Buddhist Temple in the picture. (more…)
Entrance Gate of Sejong University, Seoul, Korea
Lately, the news has been filled with stories of data theft especially involving credit card users or retailers having their systems hacked. (more…)
