Partial readings for January 23

I'm pasting this in anyway, but all the work I did in creating special spacing, margins, varying fonts sizes for section headings, and artsy fartsy bullet points, didn't hold once I imported the file into this field. It all kind of runs together. Just a warning.

LESSONS ON MANAGING CRISIS UNCERTAINTY
Chapter 2 in Effective Crisis Communication (moving from crisis to opportunity)
Ulmer, Sellnow and Seeger (2007).

Uncertainty – the inability to determine the present or predict the future
Organizational crisis – a specific, unexpected, and nonroutine event or series of events that
create(s) high levels of uncertainty and threaten or are perceived to threaten an
organization’s high priority goals

3 characteristics of crisis
Surprise
Threat
Short response time

Crisis communication demands
Manage uncertainty
provide consistent voice
identify cause of crisis
contact all affected
determine current and future risks
Respond to crisis
reduce uncertainty
coordinate activities
disseminate information
Resolve crisis
compensate victims
renew organization’s reputation
grieve and memorialize events (if appropriate)
Learn from crisis
enhance safety and prevention
review industry standards
enhance community dialogue

Crisis response
Not good (generally): routine procedures (i.e., firings, minimizing scope of event,
shifting blame)
Better: recognize and address uncertainty and novelty of crisis

Threat and uncertainty
Perceived threat contributes to levels of uncertainty during organizational crises
Managing uncertainty involves developing consensus among stakeholder concerning
potential threat

Stakeholders
Any group that has an interest, right, claim or ownership in an organization
Primary—those whose actions can be harmful or beneficial to an organization: employees,
investors, customers, suppliers, government, community
Secondary—those who can affect or be affected by the actions of the organization: media,
activist groups, competitors
Organization must communicate to stakeholders once crisis is defined

Short response time complicates uncertainty
Factors
Lack of basic crisis preparation
Novelty and magnitude of event affects information flow—slow to accumulate, assemble,

disseminate information

Crisis communicators should be prepared to answer:
What happened?
Who is responsible?
Why did it happen?
Who is affected?
What should we do?
Who can we trust?
What should we say?
How should we say it?
(I think these last two must be internal. I can’t imagine the public asking
these of an organization; authors a bit vague here)
There may not be answers for all questions, but messages should be consistent

Communication ambiguity
During and in the aftermath of a crisis, conflicting arguments in determining responsibility, courses of action, who is affected, and issues of compensation, coupled with regulatory and safety decisions made with regard to the crisis can create multiple interpretations of an event, termed by the authors as communication ambiguity
The authors’ statements on ambiguity (pg. 24):
Ambiguity is ethical when it contributes to the complete understanding of an issue by posing alternative views that are based on complete and unbiased data that aim to inform
Ambiguity is unethical if it poses alternative interpretations using biased or incomplete information that aims to deceive
(I would argue that ambiguity is a neutral construct. It’s a condition devoid of value. Adding to ambiguity by amplifying uncertainty is a course of action—that’s unethical. Ambiguity in and of itself is a benign condition.)

Ambiguity can arise from 3 areas after an organizational crisis:
Evidence – Whose scientific evidence should the public believe?
Intent – Did the organization knowingly commit the crisis?
Responsibility – Did the crisis originate within or outside the organization?
Crisis communicators should be ready and willing to defend their interpretation of a crisis,

and practice good, honest, ethical conduct before and after a crisis develops. They should

make sure they build a case for why the organization is not responsible for the crisis—if

indeed it is not

Organizational structures can deteriorate or collapse following a crisis
Crises “thrust people into unfamiliar roles, leave some roles unfilled, make the task more ambiguous, discredit the role system, and make all of these changes in a context in which small events can combine into something monstrous,” pg. 28
Organizations should implement training to prepare for uncertainty, threats, and communication demands
If crisis is extreme or severe, both organizational and personal belief and sense-making structures can collapse, leading to dramatic shifts in how organizations manage both unfolding and future crises

Chapter summary
Communicating in the midst or in the wake of a crisis is unlike communicating at other times. During crisis situations, tremendous constraints may inhibit an organization’s efforts to communicate effectively, yet the organization’s stakeholders need critical information in order to make informed decisions. Constraints may include lack of information about the severity of the problem, difficulty in identifying those affected by the crisis, and unavailability of accurate and appropriate information. Crucial decisions must be made under stressful conditions, while image and credibility is at risk.

Lessons on uncertainty and crisis communications
Organization members must expect the unexpected
Organizations should not respond to crises with routine solutions
Threat is perceptual
Crisis communicators must communicate early and often following a crisis regardless of the availability of critical information
Organizations should not purposely heighten the ambiguity of a crisis to deceive or distract the public
Crisis communicators should be prepared to defend their interpretation of the evidence surrounding a crisis
Without good intentions prior to a crisis, recovery is difficult or impossible
If the organization is not responsible for a crisis, communicators must build a case for who is responsible and why
Organizations must prepare for uncertainty through simulations and training
Crises challenge the way organizations assess and conduct their business

Mic Brookshire