Today’s “The Day”
By Patrick Seidl, Strategic Communications Coordinator Today’s the day that you’ve been working so hard toward for months. It’s the day of your biggest fundraising or other business event. You’ve spent hours marketing your event beforehand – from e-blasts, to scheduled social media content and submission of your pre-event press releases – you’ve done everything right. You’ve even achieved your ticket sales goal. Hooray! Your catering order and bar selection were confirmed far in advance and you’re positive that there’s something for everyone. You’re excited. You’ve neatly packed away all your event supplies in clearly marked bins. Your name tags have been stuffed into their clear plastic holders and they’ve been alphabetized to ensure they’re easy to find. You’ve got everything covered! Mr. & Mrs. Jones arrive 45 minutes early, but the rest of your guests arrive right on time. They’re not waiting too long in line, things are going smoothly, and everyone is in high spirits. “This is going really well,” you say to yourself as you run across the room to make sure your VIP guests have everything they need. “Almost perfect,” in fact! Your cocktail hour ends, your guests are ushered to their seats and your programming goes off without a hitch. Your speakers stuck to their dedicated four minutes of air time and your chicken Chesapeake arrived piping hot. People are truly enjoying themselves. Dinner ends, and before you know it the event is over. All your hard work came to fruition. You’re so happy, and exhausted! Then it hits you. Despite your greatest intent of posting to your company’s social media accounts throughout the event – from pictures of your top sponsors to your elegant and thoughtfully planned tablescape – you simply forgot… and you know it’s too late now. Face palm. In today’s marketing world, utilizing social media is critical – especially when documenting events. It brings excitement and shows people who “forgot” to purchase their ticket to your event what they’re missing out on – something they WON’T do next year because, you know…FOMO (fear of missing out). I think back to one of the very first projects I worked on when starting at Fallston Group: dedicated social media for an amazing conference in College Park that celebrated professional women in banking and finance. The client had it all figured out and knew beforehand that they would need some social media support to help tell their story throughout the day. With an early 7 a.m. start, my fingers were afire as I posted updates to their Facebook account and Tweeted out live commentary on the spot from my smartphone. I was their social media correspondent. The best thing about it for our friends who put on the event? It was something they never had to worry about and were able to achieve fabulous results by delegating the to work to Fallston Group. What results, you might ask? During that event, we were able to live stream a video that was the company’s top-performing post OF ALL TIME on Facebook. An achievement they were very excited and proud to hear about. If you have an upcoming event and you want to make sure you don’t “drop the ball” when it comes to social media, feel free to contact us for a bit of advice. We can be reached via phone or email. You can also shoot us a message on social media and we’ll get back to you.
It Can Happen to You: Why Workplace Violence Insurance is the “New Normal”
By Frank Giachini, PSA Insurance & Financial Services The Capital Gazette, Sandy Hook, Las Vegas, the Colorado Cinemark—active shooting incidents are becoming more frequent every year. In 2017 alone there were 346 mass shootings in the United States, compared to 270 in 2014. And as of July 31 of this year, we’ve had 202 incidents. An active shooter event is just one type of workplace violence for which your business is vulnerable. Every year, 2 million American workers report having been victims of workplace violence. The cost to organizations is staggering. A single incident can have serious consequences, including lost lives, psychological trauma to victims that can manifest or last months or years after an incident, physical damage to your building, and lost productivity. If workplace violence does happen in your business, resuming your normal operations after a traumatic attack can be extremely difficult (if not impossible). You would likely face questions such as: Will the police investigation delay my ability to access the premises? How long will my operations be down? Is temporary security needed? When will employees be healthy enough to return to work so business can resume? Will I recover lost business income if I cannot continue operations? Even if you get satisfactory answers to most of these questions, relying on your standard business insurance policies to cover your losses might leave you paying the bills. If you think your standard business policies will cover these expenses, you may want to think again. As an insurance and risk management professional, I’ve thoroughly analyzed traditional business policies and have found a number of shocking and expensive gaps in coverage. Workers’ Compensation, Business Interruption, and General Liability insurance are usually insufficient for fully paying all costs related to a workplace violence event. But, there is good news. Workplace Violence insurance is becoming increasingly available on the market to help your organization recover. Below, I detail some of the most prevalent gaps in various traditional policies, and offer some insights on how those can be covered with Workplace Violence insurance. Workers’ Compensation If an employee is severely injured—whether by gunshot or other means—that employee will typically be covered by Workers’ Compensation. But what about employees who witnessed their coworker getting shot? Will they have the equanimity to work without fear, to return to everyday life without psychological scarring? Depending in which state your business is operating, Workers’ Compensation might not cover psychiatric care without a physical injury. Think of the Pine Kirk Nursing Center shooting, which happened just last year: employees barricaded themselves in rooms to hide away—a traumatic experience in which they feared for their lives—while gunshots rang throughout the nursing center. The state they worked in, Ohio, does not provide Workers’ Compensation for mental trauma unless that trauma is caused by a physical injury—so these employees, who remained physically unscathed, had no coverage for the psychiatric care they likely needed. This is where a good Workplace Violence policy is a must. Regardless of what state your business is in, you would have coverage for the psychiatric medical bills of your employees. Business Interruption If you experience a loss and therefore can’t conduct business, you’ll be covered under the Business Interruption section of your Property policy, right? Not necessarily. What if an event is so horrific that you have to close your business despite the lack of any physical property damage that would force you out of business? That’s a business decision—not a covered loss under the Business Interruption policy. The Pulse Nightclub, for example, closed in 2016 due to its horrific shooting incidence. They didn’t close because they couldn’t conduct business; they closed because the shooting was so emotionally devastating for employees and patrons. In this case, Business Interruption coverage was limited at best. It doesn’t matter what your reason was to close your business, Workplace Violence insurance would pay for lost business income up to your policy limits. General Liability General Liability insurance won’t automatically cover third parties. But why should you care? Their expenses are irrelevant to you, right? In most cases, no—you should care very much about the impact this type of event can have on your business partners, vendors, and clients. In addition to being compassionate and a good citizen, covering third parties makes good business sense to avoid lawsuits and protect your reputation. Lawsuits If hurt on your premises, third parties are not prohibited from bringing an action against you for negligence. They may allege you didn’t take proper precautions to keep them safe. Lawsuits can last for years, and if they win, your General Liability policy will likely pay for covered damages and expenses up to the policy limits—but you will still likely end up paying for additional expenses that are not covered by General Liability. However, other than possibly defense expenses, the General Liability policy will not pay damages unless you are negligent. Hence, you would be much better off having Workplace Violence insurance, which is more suitable for covering a wide range of violence-related exposures to third parties. For instance, if you have a Workplace Violence policy, it will be used first to provide coverage before your General Liability insurance applies, and it protects you whether you are negligent or not. It will allow you to pay medical and funeral expenses, as well as a variety of other third party expenses, immediately following the incident. This may provide quick and compassionate relief to victims. Goodwill You should care about the third party’s well-being and want to respond in a positive way, as it also impacts your reputation. If you have Workplace Violence insurance, the crisis management services will help manage the chaos during the day of the incident and provide medical benefits to third parties who happened to be on your premises at the time. The alternative—leaving medical bills and funeral expenses to victims and their families—can be much worse, causing a public relations nightmare and permanent damage to your brand. For example, in the wake of the Colorado Cinemark 2012 shooting, while victims were reeling in the painful aftermath
C-Suite, It’s Time to Get Social!
I recently had the pleasure of attending an executive communications conference in Washington, D.C. My biggest takeaway? Company executives’ social media presence is no longer optional – it’s critical to success from a business practices perspective, as well as employee engagement. CEOs have a measurable impact on society’s trust in their company. If you haven’t reviewed the 2018 Edelman Trust Barometer global report, I highly recommend giving it a read. Results revealed a whopping 79% of participants believe a CEO should be personally visible in business situations such as ensuring the company is trusted, speaking out on government decisions and social issues and communicating regularly with the public. The most visible outlet nowadays? Social media platforms. Social media allows an executive to translate their in-person personality online, thereby humanizing their role and company. In opposition to fallacies such as, “Our executives don’t have time for this” or “CEOs engaging on social channels is too risky,” survey results from BRANDFog’s CEO Social Media Survey indicate a high level of interest from the public for hearing directly from business leaders. However, as speaker Stacy Elliott, director of executive communications at Microsoft pointed out at the conference, a great communications person needs to be behind every great executive brand. It is important to view your social media presence as part of your company’s marketing strategy…and to do so with authenticity. As Stacy explained, you have to “crawl before you walk before you run.” Establishing a social executive voice TAKES TIME! But the juice is worth the squeeze – 73% of consumers agree that social media engagement makes CEOs more effective leaders. And research by Hootsuite and LinkedIn found a 40% increase in employee engagement as a direct correlation to C-Suite social involvement. I saw firsthand the success an authentic executive voice can bring – we heard from Steve Handmaker, CMO for Assurance, whose company currently rates as having 98% employee engagement versus the national average of 34%. His top tips? Set clearly defined goals and be transparent. I loved his advice to avoid perfection…for example, using contractions and distributing cell phone videos translate as more genuine than a produced and polished product, and their company has also seen tremendous success through referencing pop culture and using real-life personal stories. My favorite words of wisdom were his pointing out that fun and humor doesn’t make you “less smart.” I completely agree! If your CEO isn’t comfortable personally posting on social media, that’s okay. Use your company accounts to post ABOUT them and share their story and views – and be certain to empower other members of your executive team to be brand ambassadors and represent your C-Suite on social. If you’re interested in learning more about building, strengthening and defending your reputation, please feel free to give me a call at 410.420.2001 or contact me. In all fairness, I can’t end my thoughts without taking my own advice, so here’s a fun fact you may not know about me, personally: one of my biggest passions outside of the office is music. I began performing publicly in the fourth grade, and grew up singing in musicals, as the lead in my church’s band in high school and as a member of multiple choirs. I also played classical piano for more than a decade. Ultimately, while performing in college both in choir and independently, I was faced with the decision to pursue a career in music or major in something with a bit more job assurance…which, of course, eventually led me to my role at Fallston Group today! However, I still sing for fun (while admittedly a bit rusty!), including on an online karaoke app connecting millions of users around the globe – I hope you enjoy a silly video of me singing one of my favorite Disney songs with a fellow app user who joined me.
Crisis is a Growth Strategy!
Our team has been referred to as crisis leadership experts, operators and chief reputation officers. Nearly all the companies we’ve worked with want the same thing: for us to help them maintain control and weather the storm. That’s their definition of winning: to survive the crisis. But after decades helping people during life’s most critical times, we’ve come to realize that the real win is growth. Yes, we are saying what you think we’re saying: Crisis can be a growth strategy. We get it. You want to save your team, your partners, your shareholders… your brand. Even your vendors are depending on you to steer them out of the storm. You may have support, but really, it’s just you at the helm. You want to get to dry land as soon as possible. The last thing on your mind is how to grow your company. We want you to think differently. To get you out of the flight or fight mindset. Many in the marketplace confuse crisis management with surviving the next news cycle or spinning the current issue so that it looks good. I differ, you don’t spin your way through crisis, you lead your way through it. Crisis management is about leadership, strategy AND communications. Because, the decisions you make today will be judged by many for years to come. Crisis must be planned for, predicted and used as a springboard for growth. And if managed correctly, your organization will be bigger, faster, stronger than it was before that defining moment. Instead of merely surviving a crisis, your company could… Enhance operational efficiency. Become more profitable. Increase marketplace value. And, cement your long-term leadership legacy. Now that’s winning. For more information on how to build, strengthen or defend your reputation, contact Fallston Group today. Remember, the decisions you make today will be judged by many for years to come!
Lead Through Crisis; Don’t Spin!
What is Reputational Elasticity?
Papa Johns, FOX News, Roseanne Barr, the Donald, Starbucks – all embroiled for different reasons. While Starbucks has had its challenges, with its most volatile crisis sparking in Philly just this past year, let’s go back a few years during a time that Starbucks had to make another withdraw from its reputational piggy bank. In 2012, Starbucks found itself taking a major PR hit in the United Kingdom. The gourmet coffee shop chain faced a huge public outcry, including a well-orchestrated boycott for not paying enough taxes despite making enormous profits. According to media reports, using a clever—and perfectly legal—dodge, Starbucks had paid only £8.6 million in taxes since opening its first store in the UK 14 years earlier. The figure seemed ridiculously low, especially when it was revealed the chain had amassed £3 billion in sales over that time. Boycotts and protests took place at over 40 locations. The chain was hammered unmercifully on social media. Facing a fierce level of competition in the industry, Starbucks saw its sales drop. Soon enough, it offered to pay even more in taxes than required. And as the months went by, it desperately spent inordinate amounts of time and money repairing its sullied reputation. The lesson in all this? Reputation matters. It’s estimated that over 60 percent of market value is based on reputation alone (Weber Shandwick). Reputation is one of the most important, yet often underestimated, aspects of doing business today. When a crisis occurs, time and money are spent very quickly, not only dealing with the situation at hand, but defending and then repairing the reputation as well. The fact is, consumers have access to more information about the products they buy and the companies they support than ever before. A simple product search reveals much more than company-controlled data on a website, and certainly more than the information provided on product packaging. Recent reviews, newspaper articles and historical information about the product on the Internet all influence the reputation of its company. Which brings us to the term “reputational elasticity.” Elasticity of Demand is an elementary economic concept that describes a consumer’s willingness to buy a good or service when the price of the good or service increases. Reputational elasticity is a product of demand, and it is in direct proportion to how many choices an organization’s stakeholders (consumers) have. In the coming weeks, we’ll take a closer look at reputational elasticity, what it means and how it impacts the marketplace.
Six Simple Steps to Begin Your Marketing Strategy
By Andrea Lynn, Marketing Communications Manager For many, the concept of creating a marketing automation strategy can be mighty intimidating! We all vaguely know we need one…hopefully someone is posting on social media and placing some ads, right? Effective marketing goes far beyond piecemeal efforts; to fully activate your channels, it takes true engagement, oversight and strategic thinking. Where to begin? By following these six simple steps, you’ll be well on your way to developing and implementing a true marketing strategy: Create measurable goals. What are your business goals? Be SMART. A S.M.A.R.T. goal is defined as one that is specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and time- bound. Keep your business goals simply written and clearly defined. Accountability is key! Assess your audience. Who is your business trying to reach and what is the call to action? Your message points should be tailored to each market and tied back to your business goals. Check out the competition. What are your competitors doing to achieve similar results? Pay attention to the marketing platforms they use – are they active on social media? If so, what channels? Are they in the news? Is their message consistent across social media, PR and their website? Create core messaging for your brand. When crafting your message, keep it short and easy to understand. Personalize it. It is important to connect with your industry’s audience. Remember, the most important message is the message received! Make your message worth sharing. Nowadays, the “human interest” factor is more important than ever, particularly in the news and within relation to social media algorithms. Why should your audience pay attention to YOUR message? Bring value and tell your story with relevancy. Not a sales pitch! Pick your platform. With ever-evolving technology, it is impossible for most companies to have a presence everywhere. Focus on the platforms that will help you influence your audience. For example, if you’re targeting C-suite professionals, LinkedIn will be a valuable marketing tool. However, if you’re looking to reach the media, you should use Twitter and email, and consider creating a press release…but, that’s another blog! I hope these steps begin to shape your thinking about laying the foundation for your company’s marketing strategy. If you need help, please feel free to contact me at andrea.lynn@fallstongroup.com or 410.420.2001. You can learn more about Fallston Group’s strategic marketing & PR services by clicking here.
Top Tips to Improve Company Safety & Security
By Frank Barile, Safety & Security Director of Fallston Group Being a leader in today’s business world is not easy. There are many things you need to worry about outside of business growth and profitability; safety and security is one of them. The first order of business leadership is to provide a safe place to work, both physically and emotionally. What are three simple things you can do to actually make your employees safer? We recommend you adhere to the acronym, SCAR. What does it mean? Quite simply, SCAR stands for: See the world around you — in today’s world we are distracted, and when we are distracted we are much more vulnerable. Pay attention to your surroundings at all times as your environment provides many clues about your level of safety. Control Access — as a business owner, you must be aware of who’s coming in and out of your building. Make sure your doors are secured, and all access points are tightly controlled. Restrict access — locking your interior doors and cabinets is an easy way to ensure not everyone has access to private areas within your business. Making sure your employees are properly credentialed, and that those credentials are displayed at all times, will help ensure violators can be easily identified. By following these three easy tips, you’ve already improved your company’s security! Want to take business safety and security to the next level? Schedule a conversation with our team by calling 410-420-2001, emailing info@fallstongroup.com or learn more about our services here.
One Crisis Espresso, Please!
by Rob Weinhold, Chief Executive of Fallston Group Social media attack, bad press, investigation, litigation, data breach, sex scandal, economic downturn, discrimination, mismanagement and, tragically occurring with greater frequency, active shooter situations…the list goes on and on. Life comes at you fast, and there’s one irrefutable certainty: the issue isn’t “if,” but “when” crisis will come knocking on your door. Crisis came pounding on Starbucks’ door recently, with sonic, viral velocity. When two black men were arrested in a Philadelphia Starbucks, chief executive officer Kevin Johnson didn’t pass the buck or glide over the incident as an unfortunate misstep. He promptly said, “I own it. This is a management issue, and I am accountable.” He went on to call the arrests “reprehensible.” But what does being accountable mean? After observing hundreds of organizations in crisis over the years, many opt to provide lip service and simply make it through the next day’s news cycle until some other company assumes the daily crisis crown. In fact, many leaders say and do nothing…a spiraling disaster. Note Fallston Group’s mantra: “If you don’t tell your story, someone else will. And, when someone else tells your story, it certainly won’t be the story you want told!” Johnson is choosing to tell the organization’s story, and often. Starbucks has given a strong response since the start of their crisis. Leadership is visible, on message, on many media platforms and passionate – their primary and secondary spokespeople are believable and appear staunchly committed to long-term change. Both Johnson and founder and chief executive, Howard Schultz, are withdrawing huge sums from their reputational piggy bank. By the way, Starbucks is a $22 billion company and so far, stocks have remained steady. This is a function of true leadership and aligned marketplace confidence. I firmly believe reputation equals trust, trust equals valuation. Starbucks’ leadership announced the closure of all 8,000 company-owned stores in the U.S. on May 29 to train 175,000 employees about racial bias. The best decision was engaging training guidance from former Attorney General Eric Holder and a key member of the NAACP. Even though Starbucks already has a very capable, diverse board, leveraging its outside network is a critical, effective strategy – inclusion enhances credibility. However, training is just the first step. The initial training should be followed by routine assessment, policy development, rigorous ongoing training and modeled behavior. All these elements must be coupled with inclusionary leadership development and decision-making. It’s about long-term organizational change. Crises cost time, money, customers and ultimately, your career. After decades helping people during life’s most critical times, I’ve come to realize that crisis is not to be feared. In fact, crisis can be a growth strategy. And growth doesn’t always show up in a stock price…in this case, this incident will be the springboard for a more equitable corporate setting and inclusionary customer experience. Once stabilized, crisis should not be relegated to the rear-view mirror with an exhale of relief. It is an opportunity to continue to climb the chairlift; this is where real substantive change is created. Remember: reputation equals trust, and trust equals valuation. When you understand this key component of leadership, crisis is no longer just something to “get through.” It is a unique opportunity for you to guide your company to a more brilliant and prosperous future. Everyone will be watching, Starbucks…so far, you are doing the right thing. But, don’t fall off the chairlift! To learn more about crisis & issue leadership offerings at Fallston Group, click here or contact us at 410-420-2001.
Demystifying Cyber Risk: Executives, Champion Your Cyber Risk Management
Written by Mike Volk, Cyber Specialist at PSA Insurance & Financial Services Effective cyber risk management involves every part of an organization. Cybersecurity policies guide employee behavior and shape culture. Cybersecurity training helps employees — from IT staff to administrative professionals to C-suite executives — understand and protect the organization from cyber threats. Technology helps enforce policies and provides essential defense and detection capabilities. But the success of any initiative on this scale — one that impacts the entire organization —will succeed or fail based on the vision and engagement of executive leadership. Developing and implementing an effective cyber risk management strategy is a vital element of your business’ success. Yet, for many leaders interested in improving cyber risk management, getting started can be one of the hardest parts. One crucial aspect of this strategy is ensuring compliance with ISO 27001, a globally recognized standard for information security management systems. Adhering to ISO 27001 compliance not only helps in mitigating cyber risks but also establishes a structured approach to safeguarding sensitive information, enhancing your organization’s overall cybersecurity posture. Today, I’ll provide foundational information on the nature of cyber risk. My goals is to help you and your Information Technology team be on the same page when discussing cyber risk and how it can potentially impact your business. Then, in an upcoming post, I’ll provide best practices you can follow to begin a cyber risk review, which will help you better understand your unique cyber exposures and aid in creating a high-level cyber risk profile for your organization. What Is Cyber Risk? Cyber risk is typically portrayed as a mysterious hacker hiding in the shadows, breaking into your network and infecting it with malware. In reality, your organization’s cyber risk is comprised of a variety of factors — some that are unique to your organization, and some that are pertinent to all businesses. The diagram below provides a simplified visual representation of a cyber risk equation that helps define cyber risk. Figure 1. Cyber Risk Equation Why Is Cyber Risk Different from Traditional Risk? The complex nature of cyber risk makes it unique compared to traditional risks. For example, one familiar risk category for most organizations is their physical property. On any given day, it is possible that your property could be destroyed by a fire, flood, storm, vandalism or other incident. In this instance, there is a maximum loss value associated with the property, making the risk linear and relatively predictable based on historical data and other known factors. In contrast, internet-connected technology creates a risk model that is fluid and unpredictable. By “plugging in,” each business, person, device becomes a node in a complex global system. In this system, cyber risk has the potential for exponential growth that is difficult to plot on a graph or predict with historical insurance models. For example, if the network of an organization is infected with a virus, it is possible that the virus could damage the enterprise’s network and spread to every vendor, client, individual or other third party that is connected to the infected network. The virus may also allow a criminal to steal money or sensitive data, leading to other financial and legal implications for the business. Physical damage, such as a building burning down, could be devastating and may impact other nearby buildings. However, it is not possible for the fire to spread to the buildings of every third party that interacts with your business or lead to other unpredictable consequences like those a business might experience after a major data breach. Effectively managing cyber risk is now a cost of doing business. It is important that decision makers begin building a baseline understanding of cyber risk, why it is challenging and how it impacts the organization. It’s also important to acknowledge that managing cyber risk is not free, and it requires a time commitment. Smart leaders are beginning to understand this reality and are facing the challenge head-on. The good news is that with the right information and approach most leaders have the skills to guide the holistic cybersecurity strategy for their organization, even if they are not technical experts or directly involved in implementation. As a leader, simply placing an emphasis on cybersecurity as an enterprise priority is a good place to begin. Armed with a foundational understanding of cyber risk, a cyber risk profile specific to the organization, and the right internal team and external partners, every leader can help reduce risk and position the organization to be more resilient in today’s complex technology-driven environment. In an upcoming blog post, we’ll outline the steps your organization can take to get started with a cyber risk review. In the meantime, if you have questions about how to increase your organization’s cyber resiliency, contact me at mvolk@psafinancial.com. Information contained herein is generic in nature and provided by sources believed to be reliable. It is for informational purposes only and is not guaranteed as to accuracy, may not reflect our current opinion, and is not intended to replace the advice of a qualified professional. All rights reserved. No reproduction in whole or in part is permitted without the express written consent of PSA. PSA Insurance & Financial Services, its affiliates and employees are not responsible for the content of other web or social networking sites. PSA Financial Advisors, Inc. is a Registered Investment Advisory firm located at 11311 McCormick Road, Hunt Valley, MD 21031, and may only transact business in those states in which they are registered or exempted from registration. Contact our office at 410 821-7766. To protect your privacy, do not send personal information via the internet.
