Planning Behind: Why Are We Still Waiting to Prepare for Crises?

A room full of crisis professionals is bound to yield compelling stories. Katie Hill's decisive leadership during the NFL's response to Damar Hamlin's injury in 2023 and Judy Smith's insights from her tenure in the Bush White House were highlights from last month’s PR Week Crisis Conference.

But the hallway discussions stood out most. The chatter around the conference was that many brands still lack solid crisis plans. Most companies only begin to address crisis planning when the warning signs are flashing. Sometimes, companies only act after irreversible damage - a significant drop in stock value, loss of customer trust, or even legal implications - has occurred. This reactive approach leaves leaders scrambling for clear messaging and defined roles, which only amplifies the reputational, operational, and business fallout.

Executives acknowledge the risks and costs associated with inaction. Business leaders consistently cite cybersecurity threats, employee engagement challenges, and the shifting social and political landscape as significant risks to their reputations and operations. Yet, they remain largely unprepared to tackle these challenges head-on.

Why? Cost is a common reason, but an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Some smaller organizations mistakenly believe they are less susceptible to public crises, while others don’t think they’re suited to add another function to their already stretched resources.

These concerns are understandable, but miss the critical point: while planning is imperative, the traditional crisis playbook is losing its effectiveness. I often hear executives dismiss playbooks as outdated or irrelevant, commenting, "As soon as something hits, this is going out the window." Such attitudes do nothing but fuel the crisis.

Gone are the days of relying on lengthy, rigid communication playbooks. Today’s fast-paced and complex landscape demands a fresh approach: a modern crisis playbook does more than just fill templates with logos and key contacts. It requires a thorough assessment of current strategies, pinpointing gaps, creating new channels and practices, and putting everything through a rigorous stress test with relevant teams.

A playbook must marry the right people with the right processes rather than attempting to plan for an endless list of possibilities. A process-oriented playbook will be usable in any crisis and spare leaders and communicators from drowning in a sea of hypothetical scenarios. These 'right people' include senior executives, communication professionals, legal advisors, and other relevant stakeholders. Moreover, the playbook must be actionable and tailored to your organization's needs.

It's also essential for this to be a living document; your landscape changes frequently, so your plan must evolve with it.

Results will differ between organizations, but the goal is unequivocal: implement the right people and processes to effectively address crises and foster a culture that identifies and mitigates issues before they escalate.

As you evaluate your organization's crisis response capabilities, you must confront some hard questions:

• Do you have a crisis response playbook? Is it effective?

• When was it last updated?

• Do you have a dedicated team to lead crisis response?

• Have you pinpointed the top reputational threats your organization faces?

• How does your company address issues proactively before they escalate into crises?

If you're unsure about your answers or find them lacking, it's time to take decisive action and overhaul your crisis planning.