By Thom Fladung/Hennes Communications In 1982, Johnson & Johnson wrote the book on effective crisis response – literally. Chicago was in a state of panic. Within just a few days, seven people had dropped dead from cyanide poisoning. There was no explanation until investigators discovered the link: Tylenol. Someone had laced Chicago’s Tylenol supply with […]
By Nora Jacobs, Hennes Communications On September 5, the U.S. Department of Education announced it was fining Michigan State University $4.5 million for “a systemic failure to protect students from sexual abuse.” The fine is the latest fallout from the Larry Nassar scandal, which has embroiled MSU in lawsuits, a succession of high-profile firings, resignations […]
While the article below is aimed at personal and home preparedness, is your organization or business prepared for a disaster? According to the American Red Cross, 20% of businesses impacted by a major disaster end up going out of business not because they didn’t have enough insurance but because they didn’t have a disaster plan. […]
By Jim McKay, writing for Emergency Management: How the Medical University of South Carolina, a 700-bed medical center with six colleges, honed its crisis communications strategy and methodology and was able to continue operations during Hurricane Florence last September. As Hurricane Florence whipped through the Carolinas creating havoc last September, the Medical University of South […]
From Stephanie York, JD and VP of Hennes Communications: From Wikipedia: Public relations (PR) is the practice of deliberately managing the spread of information between an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) and the public. Public relations may include an organization or individual gaining exposure to their […]
From Victoria Cross, writing for ContinuityCentral.com: Fight, flight, freeze… or film? Evolutionary science tells us that when faced with a potentially dangerous situation, our sympathetic nervous system is activated and a primitive ‘fight, flight or freeze’ response kicks in. Our body is subsequently flooded with adrenaline and we are poised to make an unconscious decision […]
From Madelaine C. Lane, writing for the Grand Rapids Business Journal: It’s a story we see play out all too often on the evening news: An organization or one of its employees is hit with a search warrant, subpoena or a civil lawsuit. Before the receptionist, communications director or CEO can turn around, a microphone […]
By Thom Fladung/Hennes Communications Even in this era, when the news barrage can be numbing, the report that Jeffrey Epstein had apparently hanged himself in jail and the immediate flurry of conspiracy theories took a run at qualifying as “shocking.” The least surprising element: Much of it started and played out on Twitter. In an […]
Q. What do I do if the media wants to talk to me? A. Start by asking yourself what you think when you read or hear that the subject of a story – particularly a story in which others are critical of the person or the person’s organization – says “no comment” or that the […]
From John Schwartz, writing for the New York Times: Don Guckert’s job is keeping the buildings on the University of Iowa’s charming campus up and running, and safe. His most important lessons came from the worst days of his career, in June 2008, when the waters of the Iowa River washed across the campus, causing […]