Coombs, W.T. (2016, July 5). How to Communicate Effectively During Operational and Reputation Crises. Institute for Public Relations. https://instituteforpr.org/communicate-effectively-operational-vs-reputation-crises/
During crisis, an organization’s response should be informed by whether the crisis is operational or reputational. Operational crises are situations where a company’s operations are disrupted or could be disrupted. This type of crisis tends to present danger to employees or customers, so safety should be the primary concern when responding, and secondarily, the need to maintain or restore operations. Reputational crises present risk of damage to an organization’s reputation. For instance, an activist’s accusation of organizational wrongdoing could be a reputational crisis. Not every accusation is a crisis, though, so organizations must be able to distinguish what is and is not an actual threat. When a crisis response is warranted, reputational crises don’t always need to be handled by a special crisis team. They can often be handled by managers close to the concern. Unlike operational crises, reputational crises can be refuted. While a crisis can be both operational and reputational, it is important to understand these two categorizations in order to strategically respond. As organizations plan for crises, operational planning should still take precedence, as these concern human safety. However, reputational crises are becoming more and more frequent as social media platforms continue to grow, so these must also be planned for.
Working in social media, I’ve played a role in responding to both operational and reputational crises. Looking back, it is interesting to note the different approaches were taken for each, even though I didn’t know these crisis types by name at the time. It was interesting to read in this article about the importance of distinguishing between what is a reputational crisis and what isn’t, as that has been a major part of my work as a social media director. I constantly monitor social media conversations for potential threats to the organization. I can mitigate some threats on my own, simply by providing a specific response or offering support to a person. Sometimes, I have to escalate reputational threats to my colleagues in public relations or other parts of the organization for a more robust response. This article will help me approach my work of identifying and responding to crises from a more informed perspective.
Learning Outcome 2: Demonstrate the ability to assess complex organizational environments and achieve communication goals.
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