Communication during the crisis

-photo by Markus Winkler-

In the event of a business crisis, communication becomes a fundamental piece. After a disaster strikes, the first responsibility of a crisis management team is communication, especially to inform employees about what happened and the strategy the company plans to implement to deal with it. This can be as simple as sending a message that informs employees about the events that occurred that day.

Most companies can establish a communication system where each executive communicates with their team. The first 48 hours of a crisis are critical, and lack of information becomes a serious problem. If a crisis occurs and employees are not prepared, misinformation can spread and cause serious harm to the company.

In 2020, when one of the companies we work for faced an accident involving several of its employees, the crisis management team was immediately activated and the emergency response was quick and effective. The communications team drafted media materials to avoid speculation and provide a clear explanation of the situation. Another team was responsible for informing the families of those affected, one more for communicating with the local community and another for providing support to the victims. Everyone worked together in a coordinated manner to protect affected workers and appropriately inform the community, media, employees and their families. The crisis was successfully overcome, but this would not have been possible without the joint efforts of the teams.

The company subsequently organized informative talks on security management, published information in local media and on social networks, and expressed its gratitude for the prompt response of the entities involved. Confidence in the company remained strong, and the business was able to continue its expansion and growth.

It is essential to develop a communications plan that details who is responsible for communicating with the various parties involved and the key points that each person will address.