By Nora Jacobs, Hennes Communications For organizations responding to sudden, catastrophic crisis events, one of the most challenging decisions to make involves determining what to say and when to say it. Wait until all the facts have been gathered and you risk not being part of the critical first news cycle, which often sets […]
Bruce Hennes, Chief Executive Officer of Hennes Communications, was again named to the 2022 Lawdragon Global 100 Leaders in Legal Strategy and Consulting, the definitive guide to the experts in management, marketing, communication and recruiting most valued by law firm leaders. Hennes Communications, founded in 1989 and located in Cleveland, Ohio, is one of the […]
It’s a simple fact: Controversies today are tried in the Court of Public Opinion more often than the Court of Law. News now breaks first on social media, with traditional media sweeping Twitter, Facebook and YouTube for leads. Whether your organization is immersed in crisis or dealing with a hot-button issue, your news can quickly […]
By Bruce Hennes, Hennes Communications Public officials, CEOs, executive directors and members of for-profit and non-profit boards have a responsibility to their stakeholders to plan for situations that will imperil life, limb and the ability of their organizations to fulfill their missions. In the immediate aftermath of a major incident, such as a mass shooting […]
Crisis communications is a sub-specialty of the public relations profession that is designed to protect and defend an individual, company, or organization facing a public challenge to its reputation. Crisis communications is aimed at raising awareness of a specific type of threat, the magnitude, outcomes, and specific behaviors to adopt to reduce the threat. […]
From Christopher J. Tennyson, writing for Crisis Quotient Blog – In the Early Hours of a Crisis, Getting Things Right Trumps Fast Response We’re all still processing the horror of last week’s mass murder in Uvalde, Texas. Continuing confusion about just what happened at Robb Elementary School that day is adding to the pain being […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]