Public Relations - ouch
Is it just me or is PR taking more hits than usual lately? Perhaps I am over-sensitised because I have been watching the BBC series Absolute Power (sorry, can’t find a working link), there is an electoral event (that’s for you, Roger) going on in Canada and PR and communications seem to be in the news constantly lately - and not in a good way.
I recently stumbled across Absolute Power while mindlessly channel surfing late one night. As I passed by BBC Canada, something caught my eye that turned out to be this 2003 (I think) sitcom about a PR firm in the UK. I have since watched a few episodes with equal amounts of horror and amusement. I have to admit that the show is extraordinarily funny (well, at least to my weird sense of humour) but is also a stinging indictment of the PR industry. If you have never seen it, dig up an episode or two and take a good look at the “dark side” of our industry, you know, the elephant in the room that rarely gets recognized, let alone acknowledged.
All too sadly, recent incidents like the Lincoln Group getting busted - for a second time - in a pay-for-play fiasco (see story here) only serve to reinforce the common stereotype of PR being all about the spin. Now would be a good time for everyone to review their codes of ethics and take a really good look at what they’re up to. (See IABC Code of Ethics here) Are your activities consistent with the code? Would your activities stand up to media/public scrutiny? Would your mother approve?
Speaking of spin, it’s my head that’s spinning from the onslaught of political ads and news reports being generated by the federal election in Canada. It’s always interesting to see desperate politicians falling all over themselves making promises to every special interest group that moves. And, is it just me, or has the staged announcement/photo op had its day? Why must every speech/announcement be accompanied by props, special background graphics, representatives from said special interest groups, etc.? Somehow it just seems to dumb down the entire political process - which I suppose goes hand in hand with the dumbing down of news in general. And we wonder why voter turn outs are dwindling. If I have learned one thing over my career as a communicator it is that the general public is much, much wiser than we usually give them credit for. Perhaps the political handlers, policy wonks and PR machines in the back rooms would do well to remember that.
Add all of the above together with the Sago mine communication disasters yesterday, and what have you got? A bad week for PR/Communications for one thing but perhaps a call to action as well. What are you doing today? Would your mother be proud?
January 5th, 2006 at 10:15 am
In what I’ve seen so far, the blame for the initial mixup seems to fall on various directly-involved people on the scene, not - for once - the mine’s PR person or president.
The interesting part for us is the NEXT decision, where they didn’t know for sure that the no-they-are-not-safe report was true. What to do? We could all face that kind of decision.
January 5th, 2006 at 12:11 pm
You’re right, Tim. That is the next interesting question in this particular case. Having been through a number of different crises in my day, I have been watching this story unfold with great interest.
There appear to be a number of “classic” crisis communication principles in play here. My experience - based on a number of crisis communication seminars and front-line experience - is that you always communicate what you know. If that means saying, “We just don’t know at this time,” then that is what you say. Of course in your next breath you follow up with the exact steps you are taking to find out and a commitment to share the information as soon as it is practical.
Any communicator who has been through a “crisis” will feel for everyone involved in the Sago incident. It is not easy. In fact, it is damn difficult to get it right in the middle of a media frenzy while everyone around you is consumed with addressing the incident itself, including the myriad of emotions that go along with that. Remember, at the end of the day, we are all human and communication is an intensely human endeavor.
While this was an extraordinarily unfortunate incident - on every level - we all need to learn from it. Here’s my take on what we should learn. First, every organization MUST have a crisis communication plan. Second, everyone involved needs to clearly understand their role in the plan. Third, the plan needs to be practiced. Fourth, the plan should be reviewed and updated regularly (perhaps quarterly).
When I do my Top Ten Things Communicators Should Be Thinking About presentation, crisis communication is on my list. I urge each person to return to their company or organization and immediately look for the organizational crisis plan (and business continuity plan hopefully) to ensure that it includes communication. I tell them to become a champion for developing an organization crisis plan if they don’t find one and to make sure, at the very least, that the communications team has a plan.
If communicators are looking to add real value to their organizations, I can’t think of a better place to start.
January 5th, 2006 at 6:50 pm
Hello - Mr. Bickford - I was wondering if you could recommend courses (educational routes) for a career in communications. I have a Bachelor Degree in Mgmt w/s in Marketing. I am looking for a communications program that is either a diploma or an advanced certificate. I have found what I need from a PR perspective - although I am not sure of all of the course content so and I am not sure if employers will look at my (future) education in PR as the requirement for future communication roles within an organization. My desire would be a program that gives the proper focus to communications as I am not sure if the PR programs will deliver that. I have not
received the course content - and even that information is miniable so it is hard to determine if these courses will be enough.
Any suggestions,
Located in Calgary AB
Online programs would be an option.
thanks in advance
greg
January 6th, 2006 at 8:03 am
Not to disagree with my illustrious compadres, but the company clearly could have managed this info better.
1. establish media command post away from the mine. Just because the media wants to shoot the pictures there doesn’t mean they will get their official info there.
2. Start with the statement that all official info is coming from the command post — fire and police will welcome the chance to do their work and report progress to one touchpoint.
3. Do an update hourly — at 11:45 when the rumor/cell phone mill kicked into gear and the wires/broadcast folk began to report, issue immediate statement that there are rumors, and caution everyone to wait for official word — and say why (why? just look at what happened)
4. Continue that update! Why did the company remain silent? In the absence of news, people make up their own, and media reports cite each other. That leads to “they must know something” and before you know it the governor is talking. Remind everyone of the facts - one person is on the way up. We have not confirmed anything else and we shouldn’t speculate out of respect for these families… ETC.
It’s the 3-hour gap in communication that bugs me the most. (I’m aware that hindsight is always… yah. And I know others might have a different opinion, and that getting politicians and governmental officials to cooperate with the company would be tough, =yah! But a good crisis plan should have been compiled well before the actual crisis — had that been done, everyone would already have agreed on the strategy…) G-d bless those poor families.
January 6th, 2006 at 8:40 am
All excellent points, Sean. Communicating during a crisis is not “business as usual”. It requires a specific plan with specific tactics to ensure that information is getting where it needs to be when it needs to be there. I have been involved in enough crisis situations to know that it is often up to the communications person to push the senior leadership, legal beagles and regulators - hard - to make sure that information is flowing in an appropriate and timely way. When a crisis hits is not the time to start thinking about how you are going to communicate. There simply is not enough time. You need to hit the ground running and that requires a well-tuned crisis communication plan.
January 8th, 2006 at 1:37 pm
Greg, I’m going to suggest a bunch, but you’ll have to take a look at them to see if it’s what you really want. I think you want a communications course, but not a PR one?
Try http://www.athabascau.ca/programs/outcomes.php?program=bpacmns. I think U of C has a Master of Communication Studies program as well. Mount Royal and Royal Roads both have PR programs.
January 9th, 2006 at 5:56 am
Greg, below please find the announcement about another option. (CPRS Toronto scheduled a number of focus groups with Terry Flynn last winter and I attended one of them. IABC/Toronto members were invited to participate as well. The program sounds quite interesting and IMHO Terry is a great choice to develop the program and lead it.)
New Masters of Communications Management Program
For the first time in Canada, public relations professionals will have the opportunity to convert years of frontline experience in a new executive aster’s level program in communications management. Building on the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications’ 10-year history of delivering North America’s most advanced professional executive public relations education, the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University has developed the first ever master’s degree in communications management. This new degree will provide professionals with at least five years of experience in public relations or a related field an opportunity to achieve mastery of communications and business management knowledge necessary to compete and excel in this demanding global economy.
For more information on the DeGroote/Newhouse Masters of Communications Management program, contact
Dr. Terence Flynn, APR, industry professor - communications management, DeGroote School of Business, at 905-525-9140, ext. 26977 or tflynn@mcmaster.ca.
January 9th, 2006 at 10:17 am
Dear Warren and Judy,
I’m very pleased to announce that we will be admitting our first class of executive masters students into our new “Masters of Communications Management” degree program in September 2006. This program is both innovative and unique. First it is a limited residency, distant learning program where public relations practitioners with a minimum of five years of experience will attend classes at McMaster for one week each semester over the course of the two-year program. The remainder of the course work is conducted online using a student management system known in the academic halls as Blackboard.
The other great news is that this is a joint degree program with Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications — who created this program 11 years ago. I’m a graduate of that program as are about 15 other Canadians. The program was designed by managers and public relations practitioners and is designed to take public relations managers to the next level — courses include advanced public relations (taught at McMaster by Syracuse professors), MBA classes (taught by DeGroote MBA professors) and then electives taught by a mix of public relations scholars and industry experts.
Each cohort will start in September (exact dates to be confirmed) and will be limited to 20 students per year.
If you would like more information about the program, we have a temporary placeholder on our DeGroote website (www.degroote.mcmaster.ca) — right hand side see Masters of Communications Management. You can also contact me at tflynn@mcmaster.ca
All the best and thanks Judy for continuing to plug this new and exciting program.
Terry