Tag Archives: crisis counseling

"Three Tough Q's" Interview Series

Three Tough Q’s: Hilka Klinkenberg

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Perhaps you’ve heard that the Chevy Nova once lacked sales in Latin America companies because the automobile’s name translates to “doesn’t go” in Spanish?  Although that story isn’t really true – it’s an iconic example of the perils of remaining ignorant of cultural sensitivities when doing business across borders. 

When companies face more serious cross-border crises, there’s usually a lot more than lost sales on the line.  Thus, I remain amazed at how many multinational businesses do not incorporate “cultural risk management” into their ongoing issues and crisis management programs. 

Understanding and addressing cultural risk is the realm of Hilka Klinkenberg, who is one of the senior members of the Global Coaching & Consulting Group.   

 Hilka and I connected back in 1994 when we explored whether she can lead a workshop at one of the Ketchum global director meetings.  Over the years, we’ve shared thoughts on client crisis situations that involve many a cultural faux pas.  We recently re-connected and Hilka has graciously agreed to address these Three Tough Q’s:

 

Q1:  Do multinational organizations need to “press their hands against the hot stove” before taking cultural risk management seriously?

No.  However, that seems to be the preferred modus operandi.  Cultural risk avoidance should be incorporated into the enterprise risk management of any large or small organization doing business outside its national boundaries.

Cultural risk arises when individuals or organizations are unaware of the basic values intrinsic in other cultures.  Consequences range from mild insults that can affect the tenor of a relationship – to possible imprisonment and huge financial losses.  Cultural crises can affect a global company’s product development and production, legal and political issues, human resources and relocation, marketing and advertising.  And, in today’s virtual world, any flashpoint can go viral in an instant. Continue reading Three Tough Q’s: Hilka Klinkenberg →

crisis response

Tourism Pro Questions on Crisis Management

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Recently, I led a breakout session at the Florida Governor’s Conference on Tourism.   My topic was “effective crisis management foundations” – a condensed version of a training program that we’ve built at Ketchum.  It’s our belief that you cannot have strong crisis management approaches, nor plans or systems, without the foundation of a strong crisis management leader.   SALES PITCH:  If you’re ever interested in learning more about this leadership training opportunity from Ketchum, drop me a line. 

During the Q&A session, the tourism pros asked questions that may yield lessons for others, so I’ve captured those here.  Disclaimer:  Everything below is paraphrased from memory, since I couldn’t take notes during the session. 

  

Q:   When an organization faces a determined critic, when should criticisms be ignored, and when is it time to address the critic? 

A:    This is difficult to answer specifically because so many factors need to be considered.  However, in general, begin by analyzing the critic…and the criticisms.  Is the critic credible to your audiences that matter?  Is the critic making an impact on your business?  How much traction might the critic or criticisms gain through social media?  Are the criticisms easy to defend, or do they require deeper explanation?  If the latter, is there a way to tell your side of the story in a compelling way?  These are just starter questions, of course – there are many more factors to consider before “getting down in the mud,” if required. 

  Continue reading Tourism Pro Questions on Crisis Management →

crisis response

Poll: Is it really Legal vs. PR in a crisis?

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Great timing!  I scored my first-ever quote in The New York Times this morning, in the middle of my mother’s visit to Charlotte.  (She wanted to post it to the fridge.  Old habits die hard.)

The full article is linked here and, in my opinion, journalist Peter S. Goodman strikes a nice balance in the article.  Here’s the rip-quote with my thoughts:

“Companies that typically handle crises well, you never hear about them,” says James Donnelly, senior vice president for crisis management at the public relations colossus Ketchum, who — like many practitioners contacted for this article — required elaborate promises that he would not be portrayed as speaking about any particular company. “There’s not a lot of news when the company takes responsibility and moves on. The good crisis-management examples rarely end waving the flag of victory. They end with a whisper, and it’s over in a day or two.”

Not bad.  The first quote could have been tighter (“…you never hear much about crises that are well managed…”), but I think readers will get the gist.

***  Poll featured below the jump…   ***

Continue reading Poll: Is it really Legal vs. PR in a crisis? →

crisis response, planning and prevention

Tips to Mitigate and Respond to Workplace Violence

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E. DeGasero/AP Photo

When workplace violence hits your company or community, statistics do not matter.  The community of Manchester, Connecticut and employees of Hartford Distributors probably know that all too well after yesterday’s tragedy. 

For the rest of us who follow these situations and wonder if lessons are evident, the statistics provide some context.  According to the U.S. Department of Labor, workplace homicides have fallen 52 percent between 1994 – 2008.  Yet, nearly 2 million U.S. workers still fall victim to workplace assaults.  And 70 percent of U.S. workplaces do not have a formal program or policy in place to address the problem.  (See page 14:  http://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/osch0033.pdf)   Thus, while most experts concede that workplace violence cannot always be prevented, there is clear room for improvement from the private sector. 

Eventually, the media cycle in Manchester will lead to questions on Hartford Distributors’ values, corporate environment (indeed, early reports suggest some racial intolerance directed at the suspect) and its overall focus on workplace safety.    Time will tell if the company had adequate measures to protect their employees.  Companies that do have best-practices to help minimize these situations typically: Continue reading Tips to Mitigate and Respond to Workplace Violence →

crisis response

NYIT asked, I answered

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New York Institute of TechnologyBack in April, I was happy to lead a session on “Managing Online Crises” for a group of students at the Manhattan campus of the New York Institute of Technology. As usual, the best part of the session was addressing some really great questions.  Student-organizer David Shaulov was gracious enough to send a recording of the entire session and I edited clips with some of those great questions, such as:

Following are the remaining edited clips: 

I hope you find these useful.  They’ll also be made available through the Video Clips link above, under About J.D.

Comments?  Questions?  I’d love to hear from you, below.