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The CEO's Imperative:
What is more pressing then your company not living up to its value proposition, delivering the service its customers expect? I know from experience that leadership when operations go "off normal" is when reputations are made.
So, my advice is simple: Don't hide. It is not a time to be "silent"
and hunker down. Be open and recover. Indeed, by doing so, you can
earn long-term credibility. For many CEOs, this seems
counterintuitive. When things go south, who wants to be open about it
and look bad to management, stakeholders, even neighbors? I contend,
however, moments like this are tremendous opportunities for earning
trust and stakeholder respect. They are the stuff of case studies.
The nuclear and defense industries now get it, (after some huge hits).
Odwalla, of course, is another success example. Wall Street...it is
still floundering through scandal after scandal.
Strategy:
This is a time for
what I call "ultra-fast" business communications. A sense of urgency.
Immediately create a Communications SWAT Team. Staff it not only with
PR, but also management and operational experts. Give it the authority
to act and coordinate with the key stakeholders it needs to involve.
Legal counsel should be involved, but not at the risk of creating
"paralysis by analysis." Forming a Team sends a powerful message by
itself. I've lead such Teams from "NORAD-like" rooms, with more than a
hundred people. I've also lead two-person teams from a conference room
we borrowed during our "off-normal" event. The Team's makeup and
duration obviously will depend on your firm's size (and the impact to
your customers or the public).
Tactical Thought:
Give
the team a "war room," with the resources and support needed to
succeed. Develop timely messages for both your customers and your
employees. Send your messages through all your communications channels
-- e-mail, web site postings, phone calls to key stakeholders, press
releases, all-employee meetings, even an 'Open Letter to Our Customers'
in the local newspaper, if warranted. Err on the side of over
communicating. And be honest vs. slick or vague. Your customers
already know about the problems, anyway. So, why risk putting them off
even more. Admit the obvious. Apologize. Provide updates. Be
available. Set up an online "hotline." Working the problem is not
enough; communicate your efforts, too.
By the way, here are the latest key messages from my technology provider on its failures: I
want to thank you all for the patience and loyalty so many of you have
expressed to me. And I want to make it clear that we understand and
share the frustration and anger some of you have been feeling. We are
doing everything in our power to avoid ever having a problem on this
scale again. That said, problems sometime will happen, but I promise;
We will continue to work hard to lower the risk of you being affected by any problems that may happen behind the scenes.
If you are
affected by a problem that we were not able to protect you from, we
will clearly and proactively communicate the problem and our estimated
time to resolution.
We will work after the problem to analyze its cause, and
whenever possible, eliminate the weakness that allowed it to affect
you.
Finally, I always appreciate hearing from our customers, especially in times like these. Feel free to email me at Barakb@sixapart.com. I read all these mails and reply to those that need a reply."
This CEO clearly steps up to the plate. My
only critique is that this should have gone out more quickly. (I was
already contacting customer-service experts trying to figure out what
was up by the time this communications was issued.) If they fix
things, they earn my loyalty. If not, they lose me. Their
commmunications tell me they are on top of it.
Key Message:
Whether
you are the CEO of a small-, medium- or large-sized firm, a problem is
an imperative for leadership. In the words of Lee Iaccoca, who led an
automaker out of a financial meltdown, "If I knew then what I know now that the ability to communicate is everything."
I agree. That is why your media relations person can be a great Team
leader. I know. Big issues, small issues, even classified events.
I've done it. It's powerful how the ability to communicate swiftly and
effectively actually pushes operations to recovery faster. Also, the
ROI from the communications during a successful recovery -- the
publicity for doing what's right by your customers -- is measurable,
frequently free and something strapped marketing departments can not
afford. I mean, I just got this firm some free PR. |
The technology firm I rely on to maintain my online relationship with you recently experienced a severe service failure. The firm is in the middle of what I call an "extended, nagging-crisis."
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