Alaska Airlines’ CEO Just Taught a Master Class in Crisis Communication

By Minda Zetlin for Inc. – Facing a raft of cancellations, Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci did something highly unusual–perhaps unprecedented. He sent a video message to all of the airlines’ employees and frequent flyers apologizing for the problem and explaining what the company is doing to fix it. It’s a brilliant piece of crisis communication that every entrepreneur or business leader can learn from.

Minicucci sent out his video in response to a large number of flight cancellations in April and May. Some airlines have blamed weather for their multiple cancellations. And a pilots’ picket may have caused some of Alaska’s cancellations on April 1. Even so, Minicucci places the blame squarely on the airline’s own poor planning. The video is at the bottom of this article. Here are just a few of the lessons you can draw from it.

1. When things go wrong, take responsibility and apologize.
Here’s the first thing Minicucci says to his customers: “For many years, we’ve taken pride in running a strong operation. However, we aren’t living up to that commitment right now and for that, I’m deeply sorry.” For the rest, click here.

Photo by Free Stock photos by Vecteezy