What's been learned -- maybe? Ronnie
I'm going to touch on issues involving the Lisa Nowak situation and Jet Blue but one disclaimer -- I am a bit out of the loop as to what is required -- or even if we are supposed to blog on this. But since I am not in class, I thought I would post this anyway. So read on, if you like.
NASA has a new issue to contend with in terms of crisis communication in the aftermath of the Lisa Nowak affair. I am certain everyone here is familiar with the story of the now former astronaut who traveled from Houston to Orlando to confront her rival for the affections of another astronaut in a now famous or infamous showdown in the Orlando Airport.
A NASA crisis has usually involved some disaster in space – not on the ground. And its crisis communication skills have clearly improved between the time of the 1986 Challenger disaster and the 2003 Columbia explosion. Both tragedies involved multiple deaths; but when the Challenger blew up; NASA officials were evasive and secretive. Seventeen years later, NASA was open and upfront about what happened and its own investigations into the incident.
Open and upfront seems to the model that NASA chose to use in handling the Lisa Nowak incident. Immediately after Nowak was arrested, director Michael Coats issued a statement that said NASA was "deeply saddened by this tragic event.” Coats also made it known that Nowak was “officially on 30-day leave.” Since, then, of course, Nowak has been dropped from the astronaut program.
But NASA went further to divulge its plans to review psychological screen assessments of astronauts and to review procedures to determine if any changes need to be made. That was an obvious step to take given that if Nowak had engaged in similar behavior while on a space mission, the impact of her actions could have been even more devastating.
So in response to one of the questions raised by Jennifer -- What other important factors, other than commitment to stakeholders, would be important in handling a crisis and in helping an organization return to a “new normal” after a crisis? – This is what I have to add in regards to NASA. NASA has a wide range of stakeholders and it is important to assure all concerned of two things – that they had compassion for Nowak as a member of the NASA family and that they will take steps to keep this kind of personal imbalance on the part of a NASA public figure from occurring again. The first statement issued by NASA made reference to their concern for the “safety and well-being of Lisa,” a statement that showed public concern for her as a person. NASA’s new normal, of course, will be to show all its stakeholders that it is looking to see if there are any loopholes in NASA procedures that need to be closed so this type of incident doesn’t happen again.
On another note, and to look for an answer to one of the other questions raised by Jennifer on an organization which has had a crisis and whether information about poor ethical decisions prior to the crisis – what comes to mind for me is Jet Blue. I guess I would consider poor communications akin to an ethical dilemma in this day and age and that is definitely what nailed Jet Blue on Valentine’s Day were the hundreds of flights that were cancelled and the thousands of passengers who were left stranded on the tarmac for hours. The end result, of course, was many angry passengers and Jet Blue double and triple time to try and make up for the mistakes. Company CEO David Neeleman was everywhere – on talk shows, in the newspapers and even on his own Jet Blue blog to offer apologies and information about Jet Blue’s new passenger Bill or Rights. Some say Jet Blue lost this battle; in a white paper written by OneUpWeb.com, it was noted that Business Week Magazine dropped Jet blue for its list of “25 Client Pleasing Brands” Jet Blue had been fourth on the list.
NASA has a new issue to contend with in terms of crisis communication in the aftermath of the Lisa Nowak affair. I am certain everyone here is familiar with the story of the now former astronaut who traveled from Houston to Orlando to confront her rival for the affections of another astronaut in a now famous or infamous showdown in the Orlando Airport.
A NASA crisis has usually involved some disaster in space – not on the ground. And its crisis communication skills have clearly improved between the time of the 1986 Challenger disaster and the 2003 Columbia explosion. Both tragedies involved multiple deaths; but when the Challenger blew up; NASA officials were evasive and secretive. Seventeen years later, NASA was open and upfront about what happened and its own investigations into the incident.
Open and upfront seems to the model that NASA chose to use in handling the Lisa Nowak incident. Immediately after Nowak was arrested, director Michael Coats issued a statement that said NASA was "deeply saddened by this tragic event.” Coats also made it known that Nowak was “officially on 30-day leave.” Since, then, of course, Nowak has been dropped from the astronaut program.
But NASA went further to divulge its plans to review psychological screen assessments of astronauts and to review procedures to determine if any changes need to be made. That was an obvious step to take given that if Nowak had engaged in similar behavior while on a space mission, the impact of her actions could have been even more devastating.
So in response to one of the questions raised by Jennifer -- What other important factors, other than commitment to stakeholders, would be important in handling a crisis and in helping an organization return to a “new normal” after a crisis? – This is what I have to add in regards to NASA. NASA has a wide range of stakeholders and it is important to assure all concerned of two things – that they had compassion for Nowak as a member of the NASA family and that they will take steps to keep this kind of personal imbalance on the part of a NASA public figure from occurring again. The first statement issued by NASA made reference to their concern for the “safety and well-being of Lisa,” a statement that showed public concern for her as a person. NASA’s new normal, of course, will be to show all its stakeholders that it is looking to see if there are any loopholes in NASA procedures that need to be closed so this type of incident doesn’t happen again.
On another note, and to look for an answer to one of the other questions raised by Jennifer on an organization which has had a crisis and whether information about poor ethical decisions prior to the crisis – what comes to mind for me is Jet Blue. I guess I would consider poor communications akin to an ethical dilemma in this day and age and that is definitely what nailed Jet Blue on Valentine’s Day were the hundreds of flights that were cancelled and the thousands of passengers who were left stranded on the tarmac for hours. The end result, of course, was many angry passengers and Jet Blue double and triple time to try and make up for the mistakes. Company CEO David Neeleman was everywhere – on talk shows, in the newspapers and even on his own Jet Blue blog to offer apologies and information about Jet Blue’s new passenger Bill or Rights. Some say Jet Blue lost this battle; in a white paper written by OneUpWeb.com, it was noted that Business Week Magazine dropped Jet blue for its list of “25 Client Pleasing Brands” Jet Blue had been fourth on the list.
posted by Ronnie at
4/08/2007 01:42:00 PM
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