Generic College

Crisis Communication Plan

Department of External Relations and Crisis Management

Date of Development: November, 2011

Date of Last Revision: November 27, 2011

Developed by: Lindsey Landolfi

Table of Contents

1. Purpose, Intent

2. Crisis Defined

3. Scope

4. General Objectives

a. Prepare for Crisisb. Organized Communication Plan c. Review Effectiveness and Install Improvements

5. Public Relation Objectives

6. Pre-Crisis Preparation Steps

a. Selection of Spokesperson b. Selection of Information Manager c. Selection of Communication Channelsd. Employee Crisis Communication Traininge. Gather Contact Informationf. List of Leaders g. Distribute Crisis Communication Plan

7. During Crisis

a. Where to Direct Crisis Inquiries b. Assessment of Situationc. Preparation for Public Released. Release of Information to Publicse. Continuing Communication f. Conclusion of Crisis

8. Review of Crisis & Improvements to Plan

9. Appendixes

a. List of Roles and Contactb. List of Communication Channelc. Information Collection Formd. Sample Press Release

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1. Purpose, Intent;

The procedures outlined in this document provide a flexible guideline to assist in crisis

preparation and response. The plan is designed to foster timely and successful emergency

resolutions for a variety of crisis situations specifically to;

a. To prevent rumors during a crisis;

i. Rumors during a crisis can lead to false information being acted upon, a

sense of distrust for the college or authorities, and endanger the safety of

those involved in the crisis.

b. To protect public and employee safety;

i. The safety of the public and of college employees is paramount. A clear

chain of command and clear spokesperson is necessary to convey

messages.

c. To protect confidence and trust in the college;

i. If the public and employees are to follow the instructions of the person in

charge of the crisis they must have confidence that the college is working

for their best interests.

2. Crisis Defined;

“Organizational crisis is a low-probability, high-impact event that threatens the viability of the

organization and is characterized by ambiguity of cause, effect and means of resolution, as well

as by a belief that decisions must be made swiftly.”

Center, S., Broom, A., & Cutlip, G. (1999). Effective public relations. Lebanon, Indiana: Prentice Hall.

3. Scope;

This policy is applicable to all Generic College employees and at all Generic College locations.

Designated authorities will specify the levels of involvement for each location, department, or

personnel depending on the crisis scenario.

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4. General Objectives;

a. To prepare for a crisis;

i. Preparing for a crisis should be done well ahead of any possible crises, it

will assists with rapid crisis response and resolution. Preparation should be

done by the team outlined in the Disaster Recovery Plan.

b. To establish an organized communication plan during a crisis;

i. The Generic College Crisis Communication Plan is organized as a set of

steps, or an outline to be followed during the crisis. It should be used as a

guide during the crisis but the steps may not be appropriate in all

situations. It is up to the Spokesperson and Backup Spokesperson to

decide if the steps outlined will not meet the intended purpose of the guide

and make changes where necessary.

c. Review effectiveness of the plan and improvements for future;

i. The Generic College Crisis Communication Plan is a living document and

should be reviewed annually for updates in technology, social changes

and/or legal changes.

5. Public Relations Objectives;

a. To mitigate and limit any negative reputational, financial, or legal damages to

Generic College while resolving the emergency crisis.

i. To uphold an image of credibility with the public.

ii. To maintain investor confidence.

iii. To keep the public informed.

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6. Pre-Crisis Preparation Steps;

a. Selection of Spokesperson and Backup Spokesperson;

i. The selection of a Spokesperson and Backup Spokesperson (to take charge

should the primary spokesperson be unavailable) shall be made prior to a

crisis. A Generic College executive with prior PR experience and an open

communications approach is recommended. These spokesmen shall be

made aware of their role in the event of a crisis and possess excellent oral

and written communication skills. The duties of the Spokesperson and

Backup Spokesperson will be to work with the person in charge of the

crisis as outlined in the Disaster Recovery Plan and directly interface with

the public to provide guidance during the crisis.

b. Selection of Information Manager and Backup Information Manager;

i. Information manager's duties will be to collect, organize, time/date stamp

and disseminate information that is gathered from multiple sources. The

Information manager will report this information not just to the

spokesperson but to others listed in the Disaster Recovery Plan.

c. Selection of Communication Channels;

i. A selection of communication channels shall be made and kept on file,

including any persons in or outside the college required to access the

communication channel (ex. a reporter for a news outlet)

1. Pop-up desktop alerts

2. Pagers/cell phones/SMS

3. Generic College Crisis Communication phone line

(1888-222-1234)

4. Generic College Website & E-mail system

5. Generic College Loudspeaker/Paging system

6. Public access news outlets (ex.TV/Radio/Newspapers)

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ii. The selection of each medium and media vehicle will depend on a cost-

benefits analysis. Depending on the target audience and desired message

the efficiency and effectiveness of each medium and vehicle is evaluated

and the budget will be properly allocated to the chosen communication

channels

iii. Regularly monitor communication systems to ensure that they are

functioning properly.

d. Training on Crisis Communication for Employees;

i. All employees shall receive mandatory training upon hire and periodic

refresher training every 3 years on the proper ways to communicate during

a crisis.

ii. Designated spokespeople shall receive additional media training.

1. Conduct internal rehearsal media sessions in order to prepare the

spokespeople to successfully engage in question based media

relations ex. press conferences

e. Gather Employee and Student Contact Information;

i. Upon hire or student registration the contact information shall be collected

for employees and students and kept on file. This information will be kept

with other information protected in the Disaster Recovery Plan to ensure it

is accessible in the event of a crisis.

ii. Contact information shall be updated on a regularly scheduled basis.

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f. List of Leaders during a Crisis;

i. A list will be maintained in the Disaster Recovery Plan on contact

information on those who will be in charge of a crisis. The list will define

the individual responsibilities of each leader during crisis response. If

different people will handle different types of crisis maintain a table of

which person will handle which crisis. Refer to the Disaster Recovery

Plan.

g. Distribute the Generic College Crisis Communication Plan to those who will deal

with crisis, Spokesperson, backup Spokesperson, Information Manager and

backup Information Manager

7. During Crisis

a. Have all personnel direct inquiries to the spokesperson;

i. No person who is not authorized should release information.

ii. No information is to be released "off the record".

iii. Internal and external call-logs with contact information and the purpose of

the call should be kept on file during a crisis in order to assist in an

incident organized response and evaluation.

b. Assessment of situation;

i. Gather time/date stamped information on the crisis from the information

manager

ii. Communicate with legal department for potential legal pitfalls ie. liability

issues. Favor public safety over legal caution.

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iii. Determine scope/severity/population levels affected;

1. One classroom, one building, whole campus

2. One student, group of students, entire student population

iv. Determine best course of action for the public (if appropriate)

1. Contact appropriate publics in priority order

v. Determine if the public or media should be allowed on campus;

1. Dependent on the scope and severity of the incident the public

and/or media should be welcomed on campus and provided a

chance to gather information.

2. All efforts should be made to shelter students, employees and

victims (if any) from invasive reporting

c. Preparation for Public Release of Information;

Designated specialists should prepare public relations communication tools for

internal and external distribution for example, press releases and video news

releases.

i. Determine what facts should be publicly released;

1. Withhold private information on legal

proceedings/personnel/students except in situations where the

release of this information is vital to the safety of the public and

employees.

2. Withhold information on the condition or identity of victims until

the family has been notified.

3. Release information on only what is relevant to that part of the

crisis that the public needs to know.

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d. Release of information to key publics;

i. Initial release as soon as possible once facts are verified

1. The spokesperson should make an initial release as quickly as

possible. Any delay in releasing information may allow time for

rumors to spread and distrust for the college to form

2. Have a prepared statement to use when generating the initial public

response. (ex. a sample press release)

ii. Use pre-established communication channels;

1. The designated specialists should respond to and update the media.

The spokesperson may decide that an alternative communication

channel will be more effective than the pre-established options, but

should carefully consider the pros and cons to utilizing a new

untested and unproven channel.

iii. Assure public that leadership is appropriately remedying the situation

1. Assure the public that the person in charge of the crisis is dealing

with the situation and the safety of the public is the highest concern

for the college.

2. Keep the public calm, enforce order, and maintain confidence in

Generic College and its leadership.

a. Address issues through the public perspective placing the

public’s health safety first.

iv. Honest and timely dissemination of information;

1. Release times/dates on all facts

a. Use times/dates when releasing facts or events to prevent

rumors over duplicate crises or misinformation. 9, Landolfi

b. Meet the need of the media; be mindful of news/media

deadlines during information deliverance.

2. Present information in a clear format to the public that needs to

know

a. All releases should be worded clearly and remove as much

ambiguity as possible.

b. Convey a unified voice to the public by projecting a

coordinated public relations campaign and intergraded

marketing communications.

e. Continuing communication as the crisis progresses;

i. Ensure constant communication internally between involved crisis

resolution parties.

1. Spokesperson gets information directly from person in charge of

the crisis and information manager

ii. Reinforce unified and constant messages with external publics through

various Medias.

iii. Continual assessment of the crisis;

1. Scope of impact to public/employees/students

2. Effectiveness of communication channels used

3. Effectiveness of information released

f. Conclusion of Crisis;

i. Final public statement of resolution

ii. Release of any remaining relevant information

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8. Review of Crisis and Improvements to Plan;

Within two weeks of the conclusion of the crisis, the team responsible for crisis communication

shall hold a post-crisis meeting to determine the effectiveness of the plan and make any

improvements to the plan.

a. Evaluate the effectiveness of selected communication channels;

i. Were the communication channels accessible during the crisis?

ii. Were the facts/instructions distributed to the communication channels

retransmitted accurately?

iii. Was there a significant delay between distribution of facts/instructions to

communication channels and transmission over the communication

channels?

iv. Did the public/employees receive the message over the communication

channels or did they favor a different communication channel?

b. Evaluate the effectiveness of facts/instructions released;

i. Did the facts released provide the information they needed to be safe?

ii. Were any of the facts/instructions misconstrued or lead to confusion?

c. Evaluate the effectiveness of the spokesperson;

i. Was the spokesperson or backup spokesperson able to clearly assess the

situation?

ii. Was the spokesperson able to keep the public calm?

iii. Did the spokesperson work well with the person in charge of the crisis?

d. Evaluate the effectiveness of departmental and personnel involvement and the

coordinated efforts of various involved parties. For example, the communication

between spokesperson and person in charge of crisis11, Landolfi

e. Install recommended improvements to plan;

i. Installed precautions will help to prevent the reoccurrence of negative

issues experienced while following the Crisis Communications Plan.

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Appendix A - List of Roles and Contacts

Role Name Phone Address

Primary Spokesperson First Last 443-888-0000 123 My Street, City, STATE

Backup Spokesperson First Last 443-888-1111 123 My Street, City, STATE

Primary Information

Manager

First Last 443-888-2222 123 My Street, City, STATE

Backup Information

Manager

First Last 443-888-3333 123 My Street, City, STATE

Primary Crisis

Commander

First Last 443-888-4444 123 My Street, City, STATE

Primary Facilities

Contact

First Last 443-888-5555 123 My Street, City, STATE

Computer Systems

Administration

First Last 443-888-6666 123 My Street, City, STATE

Appendix B - List of Communication Channels

Channel Contact Name Contact Phone Contact E-Mail

College Website Jim Fowler 443-888-6666 jimfowler@college.edu

E2Campus Text

Messaging

Dave Tarkin 1-800-555-5678 support@e2campus.com

Channel 13 News Chris Pumphery 410-987-6543 cpumphery@wjz.com

Appendix C - Information Collection Form

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Date: Time: Source:

Subject:

Information:

Received By:

Appendix D - Sample Press Release

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Headline - -

Sub-headline in a sentence format.

DATE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CITY, STATE --  

A (clear and concise incident description) occurred at Generic College involving (crisis

participants) today (date) at (time).

Additional incident related information will be featured in supporting paragraphs (approximately

4-6 paragraphs). If possible, use direct quotes from crisis spokespeople.

The incident is under further investigation; all pertinent information will be released to the public

as it becomes available.

Generic College synopsis (approximately one paragraph).

For media inquires please contact:  

Name: First Last

Email: first.last@GenericCollege.edu

Phone: 443-888-0000

Web site: www.GenericCollege.edu

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