By Stephanie York, JD, Hennes Communications Quick – What’s the single highest priority for a superintendent, head of school or board president? It’s not education. It’s safety. And just one part of that safety net is making sure you have a pre-written crisis communications plan at your fingertips – or at least the phone number […]
There are scores of reasons why your district can be thrust into the news. Lawsuit…sports controversy…social media threats…active shooter… board-superintendent clash…criminal accusation…discrimination complaints…diversity issues…FERPA or HIPAA violation…fiscal mismanagement…protest… sexual misconduct…student newspaper story…challenging conversations… testing controversy…union grievance/strike… Suddenly, there’s a TV crew in the parking lot, your local newspaper is on Line One and the situation […]
Business leaders, who have increasingly waded into social issues like racial equity and voting rights, now face whether to comment on abortion. A recent New York Times story talks to corporate executives, business professors and others about that decision and provides examples of what some businesses are choosing to say. From Emma Goldberg, Alisha Haridasani […]
From Lindsey Ellefson, writing for lifehacker… Uh-oh: You have to go to court. Whether you’re a plaintiff, defendant, lawyer, or witness, the results of your trial might depend, at least in part, on how you conduct yourself in that stress-inducing room. As anyone who’s been tuning into the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard trial knows, courtroom behavior […]
From Mitch Mitchell, writing for Security Magazine… History has taught security teams that crisis situations can happen at any time and more frequently than anyone can anticipate. However, when a crisis does occur, organizations find themselves in a situation where survival is the main focus — the unprecedented disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic being […]
From Jonah Bryson, writing for PRNews… The 24-hour news cycle drowns countless stories that deserve attention. Stories cannot land press coverage without a tasty soundbite, as Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson describes them. Hence it is paramount to design, deliver and circulate soundbites strategically. Here are two that have stood the test of time: “The only thing we have […]
A Crisis Can Occur Anytime & Anywhere In the immediate aftermath of a major incident, such as a mass shooting at a mall, restaurant, school, or faith-based location, the police chief and other first responder agencies will likely be lead spokespersons. But “major incidents” could turn into multi-day or multi-week events. Some of those include […]
By Bruce Hennes, Hennes Communications… A reporter wants to interview you, but you don’t want to be identified as the source of the information. What do you do? The first thing to do is to ask yourself if the risk is worth it. Even if you follow everything we suggest below, what might the repercussions […]
Introduction by Howard Fencl, Hennes Communications Whether it’s a staff meeting on Teams, a webinar on Zoom, a private conversation on FaceTime or a short training video you record on WebEx, it’s not just what you say, but how you say it. It goes without saying that as a presenter, you must rehearse your material until you have it […]
From Randy Labuzinski, writing for Law.com… The Russian invasion of Ukraine sheds new light on the pattern of law firms speaking out about social causes and events with significant societal implications. A law firm’s actions can have PR implications, particularly when it comes to what is or is not communicated to stakeholders and the media. […]