Managing Bad News to Employees in Crisis

Employees and families must be told of a crisis first and fast.  Responsible crisis planning requires management to report on the importance of a critical situation to every level of the organisation quickly and efficiently.  

Rumour and innuendo need to be controlled with the same efficiency that an emergency crew uses to deal with a fire.  And it means a level of communication that many managers may not have applied before.  Sensitivity and strength of message will produce positive results.

In a world of social media, “tell ‘em nothing” or “we’ll let them know later” is a certain recipe for disaster.  Addressing employee issues first will enlist an army of support.  In the case of a company that is going through a major accident with fatalities in the workplace, the first people the media will seek out for information are employees.  If employees have a clear idea of what has happened, then facts lead the story instead of scandal and hearsay.

Employees form their own opinions quickly.  Will the crisis destroy the organisation and will they have a job?  Is the company responsible?  Having a plan of action in place to address employees’ concerns enables a company to move the message to its other stakeholders with the confidence that the whole organisation understands the situation.  It also assists in the recovery and business resumption process because employees are more willing to return to a normal work environment.  Also, if people are better informed, they are considerably more willing to assist in getting the company back on track again.

This is a highly sensitive communication area, and should be handled by company executives where company personnel are involved. 

Certainly there are trained counsellors who understand exactly how to approach the sensitive problem of communicating bad news.  This tragic and sensitive job is often handed to a young police officer who is usually ill-experienced and ill-prepared to present the bad news to a family. 

Neither is the police officer prepared to cope with what might follow in terms of a serious emotional response, physical collapse or at worst, an asthma or heart attack.

A lesson from a woman in a distant mining town who tells the story about a policeman waking her from a deep sleep in the early hours of the morning. 

Upon opening the door and recognising the local officer, he presented the news to the half-awake recipient: “Sorry to tell you that your daughter’s been killed in a road smash near the town and I’ve got to get back there fast”.  

The policeman had his job to do and couldn’t be in two places at once so he left the highly distressed and shocked woman to deal with this tragedy on her own, alone. 

She waited for the morning to come, and after pulling herself together, walked through the local supermarket looking for some contact with the people of the town. 

The few people in the supermarket avoided her with deliberation.  They had heard about the story but did not have the ability or the strength of mind to face this woman.  It wasn’t until later that day that real help arrived on her doorstep - some of the wives of the mining community got together and gave her the support that should have come hours before. 

 

It is law in most countries that the police are required to notify families regarding a fatality first. But this should not be left only to emergency services personnel, or, even worse, by way of news broadcasts, to deliver the bad news.  Companies need to send their own management team to employees' homes or the hospital to support police and emergency services regarding an accident in the workplace. Management training on counselling techniques should be undertaken.  Qualified counsellors should assist in the training process.  The following are suggested guidelines:

·                 Develop the message so that it is delivered sensitively.

·                 Two people should attend when delivering bad news.

·                 Deliver the message as quickly and concisely as possible.

·                 If possible do not allow the receiver of bad news to go to the scene of the incident.

·                 Arrange as soon as possible, monetary, welfare and counselling assistance. 

·                 Stay in contact with victims after the incident.

Remember employees and victims’ families must be told about crises first and fast. The first question media will ask is – “have you informed your employees’ families”? What will be your answer?

Catastrophes and best practice crisis management

Regarding the recent terrible flooding crisis in the UK, I have just returned from that country and seen first hand the devastating flooding as torrential rain has caused the worst weather in UK’s history, with much of the Somerset area that I saw looking more like an inland sea.

As The Guardian newspaper quoted then - “public anger has risen as inexorably as the filthy waters in thousands of homes.”  The Prime Minister, David Cameron, took a while to get there which presented the question in the court of public opinion of “why has he taken so long”?  Once there, he seems to have been very community active but he could have learnt a lot from the early leadership stance of then Premier, Anna Bligh, to the floods in Queensland, Australia. She walked and talked to the community from the start. Leadership spokespeople in crises must arrive early and say and make things happen.

2014 will see the timely launch of a new British Standard for Crisis Management for both business and government organisations and most applicable for strategic response to major events such as floods, fires, riots, explosions, critical accidents and major product disasters. 

The new Standard will be aimed very much at executive management and those with strategic responsibilities in developing crisis management capability within their organisation. To quote the British Cabinet Office Public Available Specification facilitated in advance of the new Standard, "crises present organisations with complex and difficult challenges that may have profound and far-reaching consequences, sometimes irrespective of how successfully they are seen to be managed.  These consequences can be very damaging, especially where it is perceived that the organisation failed to prepare for, manage or recover from a crisis."

This is very relevant as countries and organisations around the world develop their crisis management capability at a more high-level context to respond to catastrophes. Malaysia Airlines and the Malaysian Government are experiencing this level of executive response under the microscope regarding their missing 777 aircraft where airline officials and government leaders are presenting information with very mixed and misleading messages.

When is a crisis plan out-of-date?

Recent oil spills, product recalls and natural disasters have identified major critical gaps in crisis planning processes. Systems change, authorities shift, equipment ages, new equipment is installed and, importantly, key people move.

A rapid response will save lives and property and should ensure minimal operational interruption, but there are a number of reasons why this may not be possible:

* ownership of the crisis management program have changed
* organisational changes have occurred across the business
* management expectations of crisis preparedness have altered
* emergency and crisis interface have not been tested recently
* new threats/risks have not been incorporated into the plan
* key stakeholders need reconfirming
* internal communication systems have not been validated recently
* loss of contact with essential agencies - fire, police, medical
* new employees are not familiar with contingency plans
* impact of "social media" in crisis has not been considered
* reputational and brand issues have shifted

A regular, formal crisis audit needs to be applied to confirm that all subsidiaries and contractors maintain the currency of their crisis plans. People become lazy about preparedness for crisis and live training exercises are the only way to ensure that crisis plans are functionally up-to-date.

Qantas explosion communication

Qantas has just come through one of the toughest critical events in the airline's history. The airline has handled a mid-air explosion with professionalism, speed and sensitivity. One of Qantas' Airbus A380's four Rolls Royce engines failed in flight, not far from Singapore, on the way to Sydney. "I just heard this massive bang like a shotgun going off," a passenger said on Australia's Nine Network news. "Part of the skin had peeled off and you could see the foam underneath. Pieces of broken wire sticking out." The aircraft landed safely in Singapore and all 459 people on board were unhurt.

A strong message of incident control was delivered rapidly across the media about the escalating situation, first by the aircraft's Captain, and then by the CEO to qualify the facts. Qantas made sure the passengers got a chance to tell their story.

Qantas Captain, Richard Champion de Crespigny, was given accolades for his communication skills and the way in which he explained the incident on board. When the engine exploded he spoke to the passengers immediately. "I do apologise. I am sure you are aware we have a technical issue with our number two engine...I am sure you are aware we are not proceeding to Sydney at this stage...the aircraft is flying safely at this stage...thank you for your patience."

In fact part of the engine had come away and torn through the left wing. Indonesian media showed Facebook pictures of debris that had fallen from the aircraft onto an island. Qantas has grounded its fleet of A380s as safety regulators and investigators from Rolls Royce and Qantas carry out tests to determine the cause.

Alan Joyce, Qantas' proactive CEO, moved forward with the company's response. "This was a significant engine failure," he told a press conference. "We are not underestimating the significance of this issue."

Earlier this year, Alan Joyce told Business Review Weekly: "We have a fairly refined crisis management team and crisis management process, probably more so than many other companies. It’s what my predecessor, Geoff Dixon, calls the ‘constant shock syndrome’. We plan on a steady state and then we plan scenarios and risks around that.”

Qantas has never had a fatal accident and there have been no fatal accidents involving the A380.

Managing crises overseas

The growing interest in investment abroad means that many of the world’s largest companies are continually moving into new areas offering a broad range of opportunities.

Growth for US and UK companies in oil, gas, mining and construction continues, as do the areas of manufacturing, telecommunication, retail and financial services. The fastest growing new development areas are China, South America and Eastern Europe.

As companies go global, the threat to the security of people, technology, information and assets gains in impact. Doing business in foreign countries does have crisis connotations and can mean a life or death difference for an organisation.

Dealing with the problems of a changing political arena, threats of bribery, sabotage, vandalism, theft, having to deal and negotiate with irrational customers in distant locations, being faced with problems of armed intrusion or trespassers and the growing international problem of drug abuse, are all threats that need to be recognised and planned for.

A crisis in another country often does not fit into any known framework. The organisational response, therefore, has to deal with the problem of finding people to manage the problem at the same time as anticipating the escalation factor and providing support for the most exposed aspects of the business.

There is simply little time for planning, organising, equipping or training once the crisis is imminent.

Importantly, the crisis management approach needs to ensure that the various operations and projects of an international operation are in a constant state of readiness and that crisis teams know what to do and how to do it.

Basically, the objectives of any plan should be to protect the company’s people and assets. International operations crisis management objectives:

1. Protect the life of employees and their families.
2. Protect assets and earnings by restoring normal operations rapidly.
3. Protect the local community and environment.
4. Minimise damage to corporate reputation.
5. Retain effective relationships with government of the country

Product recall crisis fatalities

Not planning for a product recall escalating to crisis leaves a corporation, its brand and reputation extremely vulnerable. We have seen this in massive pharmaceutical, automotive, food, children’s toys and even pet food recalls.

No-one can forget the shockwaves that came out of the Tylenol Paracetamol cyanide poisoning in Chicago back in the 1980s when two mothers, two sisters, a bride, a 12 year-old girl and a stewardess all died from deliberate poisoning. The product crisis was immediate and tragic. Johnson & Johnson recalled Tylenol and, working with the Federal Drug Administration, developed a tamper-proof package for redistribution at a cost of $150 million.

Globally, there is a tightening of product safety controls. Regulators are looking for thorough, fast response to recalling a faulty or contaminated product in terms of consumer contact and recovery of products. The fact is, incidents of product recalls escalating to crisis are occurring with greater frequency than ever before.

Corporations need to establish crisis teams that can respond fast to a critical product recall. Threats need to be identified in advance. Product recall processes need to include a crisis trigger.

Deliberate contamination or threats to a product that might kill or injure are crises that require the immediate involvement of law enforcement agencies.

Running regular product recall and integrated crisis exercises will anticipate and deflect or reduce the impact of the worst case scenario.

Demise of crisis management planning in top corporations

BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico; the deaths of leading mining executives, all on one plane in Africa, and the resignation of a major retail CEO in the wake of sexual harassment claims - the crises keep coming. And the management of these critical events is under the microscope. What is the brain of these corporations doing to ensure crises will be managed?

BP continues to struggle with the crisis management of, and recovery from, one of the world's worst environmental spills. This is long after the global learnings that came from the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska, and the devastating Piper Alpha explosion in the North Sea. The BP oil spill carries with it major safety concerns related to response capability, ongoing communication problems, particularly from the CEO, and an early loss of stakeholder trust from the general public to the US President. An extraordinary response from a company that in 1989 was at the forefront of international crisis management planning.

The deaths in a plane crash of the Sundance Resources mining executive Board in remote Africa is a tragic crisis. Debate continues regarding the gigantic risk of so many key personnel flying together on one aircraft. Not only a loss of life but a serious loss of intellectual capital and corporate leadership. This event occurring only months after the catastrophic Polish air crash that killed 96 VIP passengers, most of whom were part of the Polish Government, including the President. Both these disasters needed to have been mitigated against in pre-crisis planning.

Sexual harassment, another high-level threat to corporations, is at the centre of the shock resignation of retail giant, David Jones CEO, Mark McInnes. He acknowledged that he committed "serious errors of judgement". The resignation led to $81 million being wiped off the market value of David Jones. As The Australian newspaper reported: "The resignation and the reasons given are unprecedented in corporate Australia". A parallel to this is the recent top-profile resignation of the CEO and President of Penguin Canada, David Davidar, who quit his post and later admitted that the publisher had sacked him after a sexual harassment case was filed against him by a former female colleague.

High impact, low probability critical events are a reality, and high-performing corporations must be prepared to face these events with a proactive and well-rehearsed strategic crisis management response. This requires a continual review of best-practice crisis management planning and should be an essential ingredient of an organisation's corporate governance.

Cutting crisis management chaos

Deciding on the structure and composition of a crisis team on the day of a crisis simply does not work. Effective performance during a crisis relies very much on team members' prior understanding of their roles and responsibilities in responding to an escalating event.

Organisations that know what to do, who is going to do it, and in what sequence, are more effective during a crisis. A prepared organisation can respond faster and better with reduced decision making time. Cooperation between team members enhances effectiveness and this experience through pre-training, discussion and planning will increase response.

A crisis team that is used to working together under clear leadership moves into their operational function with a more positive approach particularly in chaotic situations. Shared knowledge of the team organisation produces a capability far greater than the sum of individual members.

CEO crisis manager

Good to see Qantas Chief Executive, Alan Joyce, extolling the virtues of crisis management in Business Review Weekly magazine. "Flexibility and adaptability is really key," says Alan Joyce, the diminutive, Irish-born Chief Executive of Qantas, without any hint of irony. "We have a fairly refined crisis management team and crisis management process, probably more so than many other companies." Joyce was talking about a broad range of threats including the volcano turmoil where Qantas lost $10 million during the threat to air travel. "It's what (my predecessor) Geoff Dixon calls the constant shock syndrome...we plan on a steady state and then we plan scenarios and risks around that. But the volcano would not have been on the risk register." (BRW May 6-12,2010 - Managing the Unmanageable)


There is determined growing recognition among CEOs that crisis management is part of day-to-day planning. The process, its respondents and its leaders need to have matured either in an arena of real crises or with the experience of test runs. Best practice is practice. CEOs and crisis teams need to practise together. Organisations never know when the worst case scenario can happen but they can be prepared to handle adversity and minimise the impact when it does.

CEO crisis leadership

As we can see from current global crises, there is no hiding place for the CEO in a crisis. And when the big one hits, it is the CEO who will end up facing the music.

It is inevitable the CEO will be pursued for their views and opinions. What did they do? What did they say? Every stakeholder involved in the organisation knows that the company stands the best chance of surviving if the leadership is from the top and on top.

Ensuring the cultural approach to managing a crisis must have the imprimatur of the CEO. It is they who should proactively oversee the corporate crisis management strategy that will work in a crisis situation. However, the levels of unpreparedness, inexperience and defensive reactions that still exist in many organisations generally indicate that many lessons have not yet been learned.

To see the CEO walking the talk in crisis planning is a statement of strong leadership that will direct the organisation to the high ground when the worst case scenario happens.

In the end, the buck stops at the top. In rapid escalation, the sooner the CEO leads the agenda, the better.

Social media for crisis response

Major corporations and government are faced with the reality that frontline crisis communication is now being seriously influenced by social media. The use of Twitter, Facebook and blogs is a paramount tool in taking the high ground.

Treading the proven path of communicating with key stakeholders through the usual internal and external media continues to be a priority but it is essential to listen to and talk the language of crisis conversation on the web.

Don't wait to deal with social media until a crisis occurs. Get your social media strategy together before the worst case scenario so as to gain maximum social media optimisation. Be sure you have the language of conversation right too - social media needs to be delivered with open dialogue and the process linked to the most effective internet search engines. Social media requires careful monitoring so that the key issues related to the crisis are being identified and dealt with as they occur.

Remember - news editors, producers and journalists are watching the web to read conversations in every crisis. Social media has to be part of your response strategy.

Mining crisis next-of-kin

It's rare for a US President to directly blame a company and government for a major crisis. President Obama has blamed the country's worst coal mining disaster in 40 years on the Massey Energy Company and government mismanagement. The explosion in West Virginia on 5 April killed 29 men and injured two. The President said: "Owners responsible for conditions in the Upper Big Branch mine should be held accountable for decisions they made and preventative measures they failed to take."

Only four years ago at Sago Mine, also in West Virginia, 12 miners died in another horrific mine accident. This event will long be remembered for the devastating media coverage where it was stated "12 Miners Found Alive" when in fact 12 miners were later declared as fatalities.

Common to both these disasters were the sad and tragic faces of family members searching for information and confirmation. A scene too often presented in these industry emergencies.

Ahead of any major emergency or crisis, a number of essential actions will prepare an organisation to communicate with employees and next-of-kin. They are:

* designate who is accountable for coordinating communication with families
* pre-arrange internal training to deliver bad news to families
* make provision for counselling rooms to manage enquiries from families
* establish detailed records of families' names, addresses and phone numbers
* arrange protection of families from the media and outside stakeholders
* establish guidelines on communication with contractors
* develop a message strategy for spokespersons to update information
* establish a dedicated family call centre and train telephonists

Organisations will be judged on how they treat people in a crisis. Effective communication is the key.

Crisis prevention is not enough

In an ideal world, most crises can be prevented and there are many risk-based solutions in place to achieve this. Some crises can be prevented through better warning systems, improved safety standards, regular risk and threat analysis, strategic issues management, best practice emergency and security standards and efficient product recall.

But certainty seldom exists. Crises will erupt to disrupt and destabilise an organisation. Prevention is not the only cure, and one thing is for certain - a strong, tested crisis plan can control the chaos when it happens.

It takes years to build a successful organisation and only minutes to pull it apart. Containment is the key and with a crisis plan, you can.