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www.crec.org EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS: Best practices for managing crisis and emergency communications
Transcript of EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS: Best practices for ... Build Positive Relationships & Brand Association...
www.crec.org
EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS: Best practices for managing crisis and emergency communications
www.crec.org
Who we are… Aura Alvarado
Director of Communications & Community Relations
Julia Winer Interim Chief of Staff; Assistant Director;
Coordinator of Legislative Affairs
www.crec.org
CREC at a Glance
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization
Headquartered in Hartford, CT
Employ 3,000+ people
Operate 18 magnet schools, serving more than 8,500 students from throughout Connecticut
Offer 120+ programs for educators and paraprofessionals
Annual revenue of $350 million
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Background
Crisis management and communications planning are critical components of a district or school’s responsibility to its families and employees.
The primary goal in a crisis is to protect the district’s reputation, while providing accurate information to the appropriate constituencies at the appropriate time.
A crisis won’t necessarily destroy a school district’s reputation, but a mismanaged crisis can.
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Today’s Topics
Background
How to prevent a communications crisis Intentional communication, relationships with reporters and
community, a history of positive media
How to prepare for a communications crisis Policies, templates, talking points
How to respond during a communications crisis Communicating with parents and stakeholders, handling press
requests, managing in-person interviews
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What is a “crisis”?
A crisis incident is a major incident that threatens student or staff safety or sense of security.
Crisis communications refers to any incident of communication that may damage the school or school district’s reputation.
A crisis incident always requires crisis communications, but not all crisis communications is in response to a crisis incident.
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HOW TO PREVENT Communication, relationships, and history
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Potential Crises are Everywhere October 22, 2014:
http://www.courant.com/community/newington/hc-newington-no-halloween-20141022-story.html (32 comments)
October 23, 2014: http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/video/#!/news/local/No-Halloween-Parades-at-Newington-Schools (160 comments)
October 26, 2014: http://npsct.ss5.sharpschool.com/UserFiles/Servers/Server_3110749/File/Halloween%20Letter%20to%20Parents.pdf
October 27, 2014: http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/Newington-Schools-Receive-Death-Threats-Over-Halloween-Controversy-280529482.html
Example: Newington Public Schools “Cancels Halloween”
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Potential Crises are Everywhere
Poor general communication can quickly turn into a crisis communications situation
Assume anything you send to parents or students will be seen by the media
Always consider how a letter or announcement will be received by a parent or student
More so than ever, people are looking for their “5 minutes of fame”
News stations encourage parents and students to “tattle” (e.g. “News 8 is on your side”)
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Build Positive Relationships & Brand Association
Know the reporters. If they have worked with you, they will respect your brand/work.
Communicate the positive news regularly (press releases, social media, story submission)
Everything positive is newsworthy! Awards; recognitions; announcements; major events; published
documents or books; groundbreakings; ribbon cuttings; moves or construction; great results or data; new positions or a new hire; special visitors; or special student news, trips, or accomplishments, etc.
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Build Positive Relationships with Staff, Students, & Parents
Most of the time, the information that leads to emergency communications is given to the news by someone within your own community (staff, students, parents)
Having a positive relationship with each of these stakeholder groups is essential for preventing potential information leaks
Consider: Are we regularly and effectively communicating with all stakeholders? Are families and students our allies? Are we monitoring which situations might be difficult for families or
students? Are we providing a good product and good customer service?
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HOW TO PREPARE Policies, plans, templates, and talking points
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Crisis Comms Planning Steps
1. Write a crisis communications plan 2. Establish a crisis management team to be on call in
event of a crisis to develop communications 3. Provide the crisis team with formal media training 4. Conduct an audit of potential crisis scenarios 5. Draft a set of talking points for each crisis scenario 6. Prepare response templates 7. Identify all external communications channels (news,
social media, websites, school messenger, email) 8. Create a media kit
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Crisis Communications Plan
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and 5 minutes to ruin it.”
Warren Buffet, businessman and
philanthropist
What is the plan? What are the steps and
resources? Who is involved?
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Establish Media Rules
All schools need to be directed to follow a set of clear media rules. Who can speak with the media? Does the tone of the article matter? Do all media requests need to be approved by the
principal? Superintendent? What is the process for schools to request assistance in an
emergency?
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Anticipate
Have an early warning system (internal intelligence and media monitoring) Identify the most common issues
Bus accident Suicide Weapons at school Bomb threat Employee arrest/investigation Weather incidents Policy Changes
When do they typically happen?
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Prepare Information
Develop a press kit so that you don’t have to worry about collecting the information during a crisis. Include: General information about the district/organization
Specific information sheets on each school/program
Frequently Asked Questions sheet
Contact information for communications staff
Links to websites and social media
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Prepare Talking Points and Letter Templates in Advance
In a crisis, timing is key – the sooner you can get something out, the less likely it is that rumors or misinformation will get out ahead of you
Create templates that allow you to quickly plug in the relevant information and disseminate Talking point templates for phone calls or in-person interviews
Letters to families
Press statements
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Practice! Do mock media interviews with a colleague. Scenario 1: Mark Davis of WTNH is outside of the building waiting for the board
of education meeting to end to ask a couple of questions about the school district. The meeting is abrupt, but WTNH has been hear grumblings that parents are upset with the recent release of district’s standardized testing scores. There is a sentiment that the district hasn’t been doing as well as the surrounding towns. This is our opportunity to respond and get our key messages out to the public. Mark has only on question: Can you comment on the claim that your
public schools are not effectively preparing students to compete with their peers?
Follow-up question: What is the district’s plan to improve this situation?
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HOW TO RESPOND Communication with stakeholders and the media
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Crisis Response Steps 1. Collect as much information as possible. 2. Define and refine the strategy for your response .
How quickly do we need to respond? Who will be involved? Is this a crisis incident? A crisis communications situation? Or a potential
situation? 3. Tailor the message.
Start with your premade templates and talking points; refine them to match the situation and message
4. Deliver the message. Who is impacted and what is the best way to involve/inform them? What are the best channels? Press release, email, web post, phone calls,
social media, etc. In what order will we inform stakeholders?
5. Document progress/success. Maintain appropriate records and keep a database of information
distributed and actions taken.
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Identify your key messages
Key messages: Given the crisis, what do you want everyone to know about your
district? Write out your talking points (with help from the team) If possible, find out who the reporter is, how informed they are about
your issues, and what they have previously written Visualize how you would ideally like the article and its headline to read
or be seen tomorrow and work backward from there Anticipate questions and prepare responses
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Examples of Key Messages Assault
We take the safety of our students very seriously. We are working with the police and will take whatever action we
need to as a result of their investigation. We are ALL hoping for a speedy recovery for the student
involved. Missing Student
Our staff is working with local police officials to provide as much background information as possible to assist in the search for the child.
We are all extremely concerned, and we hope that she is found safe – and soon.
Our leadership and staff are dedicated to making sure all schools have a safe environment for students.
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Communicating with Stakeholders
Whenever possible, communicate with all stakeholders simultaneously: Communication to families Communication with staff Communication with board of education Statement to the media
Make the communications appropriate to the audience, but they should all have the same underlying themes
Assume that anything you send to parents, staff, or board members will be seen by the media.
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Be Cautious About
Don’t let one story tie into others. Keep each case isolated, to the best of your ability, otherwise the media will make this into a theme (there are safety concerns in our schools).
Don’t say/repeat negative words like “explicit pictures” or “beat up”.
Try to keep it to a written or verbal statement. Avoid on-camera interviews if you can.
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Phone Interview Tips
If you’re not expecting the call, find out what they’re calling about before you start the interview.
Don’t talk if you aren’t prepared: “I have someone waiting in my office, can I call you back when I am done?”
Never stray far from your message. Think of your core message as an island; reporters will try to
push you off your island; your job is to continually find tactful ways to get back on the island where you are comfortable and safe.
If you think you’re being too repetitive, you’re doing it right!
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Live Interviews
Preparation in key – know the topic and what you want to say Anticipate questions and formulate answers Do a mock run-through first Know your audience – are they a friend? Or enemy? Watch similar events/situations Watch your tone and demeanor – stay calm and focused, even if you feel
things aren’t going your way Have prepared remarks, but don’t read verbatim Make eye contact Mistakes happen – calmly correct yourself and move on, don’t continue to
worry about it See Spokesperson Do’s and Spokesperson Don’ts
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After a Crisis
Complete a review of the situation. Determine if you need to make any adjustments to your plan or process.
Assess whether the story/piece reflects your expectations based on how you responded and your key messages.
If appropriate, follow-up with reporters or families. Keep a copy of everything that you sent (to parents, to press,
to board members) – these become templates for future incidents.
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Example Crisis Situation A communication recently went out from our school district’s health
services director via school nurses to all families in the district. The letter was strongly worded and informed parents that due to the growing number of children with allergies to nuts, starting January 1, 2016, students and staff were prohibited from bringing nuts or products containing nuts into school. It informed parents that any foods found to contain nuts would be confiscated. The letter was sent without the superintendent’s approval and without a review by the communication's office. We became informed when the central office received an onslaught of phone calls from dissatisfied parents and staff. Soon after, the Hartford Courant contacted us asking if we had “banned nuts in our schools.” You do a bit of research and find out that no other district in the state has initiated a nut ban.
How do you respond? What are the key messages? Who do you need to communicate with?
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QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, THANK YOU!
Aura Alvarado: [email protected]
Julia Winer: [email protected]
