The Current 5 Crises to Prep for…?
Each year, the Institute for Crisis Management publishes The ICM Annual Crisis Report – a valuable tool compiling annual news, crises analysis and trends, industry assessment and lessons on crisis prevention. The 2018 data, released this year, included five noteworthy crisis categories; some indicate a growing area of concern. If your company isn’t prepared for these types of crises, we encourage you to take note and, more importantly, take action! Mismanagement. As is most often the case, mismanagement once again topped the list as the most frequently reported crisis. With smoldering crises accounting for 65% of the incidents ICM analyzed, this tells us that leadership is aware of potential issues (or the cause of them!)…but are not adequately addressing leadership issues in a timely fashion. Cyber. Cybercrime news increased by 65% over 2017 – yet another reminder to ensure you have the proper cyber policies in place…and, consider investing in cyber insurance! Sexual Harassment. This past year, #metoo and #timesup dominated headlines. Therefore, it’s no surprise to see sexual harassment and assault incidents increaseing to nearly 10% of all crisis news. Are YOUR company’s employees protected from predators? Executive Dismissals. While still a comparatively small category, 2018 saw the most executive dismissals in the past decade. Widely-known executives who stepped down for inappropriate behavior include Papa John’s founder John Schnatter and Intel CEO Brian Krzanich; those fired for sexual misconduct include CBS’ Les Moonves and Disney’s chief creative officer John Lassiter. Labor Disputes. 2018 was “the biggest year for worker protest in decades” due to teacher strikes across the U.S. Internationally, Brazil experienced a trucker strike that impacted shipments of $1.2 billion, and western European travel experienced a significant disruption due to French rail workers walking off the job. While the digital age makes it possible for crisis to strike within seconds, ICM also reports the number of organizations with a crisis management/crisis communications plan is only at 50% worldwide. Believe us, anyone with a smart phone can wreak havoc on your brand! As you’ll often hear us say, it’s not “if” crisis will strike – it’s “when.” Learn more about our Crisis & Issue Leadership services or contact us today.
Three Life Lessons Learned from Rodney the Rabbit
Guest blog authored by Gina Brelesky. This past year, I co-authored a children’s book about resiliency called “Rodney Makes a Friend.” The book features Rodney the Rabbit – a shy rabbit who learns how to overcome the challenge of making new friends. Since the book’s release, I have learned so much from parents and teachers! It has been great to hear from educators and care givers about how they are using Rodney to teach children social intelligence skills. As I listen to their experiences, I’m reminded that we can ALL benefit from the life lessons Rodney shares…here are my top three takeaways I invite you to keep in mind and share with both the adults and children in your life. Lesson 1: The Golden Rule of Friendship reminds us to treat others the way THEY want to be treated vs the traditional saying to treat others as WE want to be treated. Dr. Janet Little shared with me how she and her son, Payton, read the book over several nights. Payton loved the deliberate pauses built into the story and was able to make connections from the story to his own life. His mom shared, “My son and I read this book together. It’s a great fable about teaching kids and adults alike to never give up. My son learned about the “Golden Rule” to treat others like they want to be treated and has been able to apply that in his everyday life. This book has so many insights on keeping a growth mindset, an important lesson to learn when you are young and a great reminder for us all.” Lesson 2: We need to remember to take other’s perspectives into consideration. When we teach children the Golden Rule of Friendship, treating others the way they want to be treated, we are teaching them perspective taking. Being able to take the perspective of another is an essential life skill which supports the building of social/emotional intelligence and resiliency. Perspective taking will serve children now as they navigate all that makes up childhood and, in the future, as they enter the muddy waters of teenage-hood and ultimately adulthood. Lesson 3: It’s never too early or too late to improve our social and emotional intelligence. I must admit I was really excited to learn that fourth grade teachers could use “Rodney Makes a Friend” as part of their social and emotional health curriculum! Mrs. James sent me this after her class read the book together, “My fourth graders loved this book! It was a perfect read for them at this age. There are wonderful talking points which led to some great conversations!” For many children, fourth grade signifies the end of elementary school, which means navigating a new middle school and making new friends. The more teachers, parents and caregivers can talk with kids about the things that make them nervous and practice with them these social skills, the more confident and comfortable children will become when faced with the actual situation. As adults, we can continue to apply social intelligence skills as we begin new jobs, interact with new clients, attend business networking events, and more. Thank you all for supporting “Rodney Makes a Friend” getting into the little hands that will benefit from reading it! After all, shouldn’t our goal be to raise socially intelligent and resilient kids? I sure hope so! And, let’s not forget to apply these lessons to our own lives. To learn more, visit www.ginabrelesky.com. _____________________________________________________________________________ Gina Brelesky is an author, international trainer, talent coach and corporate educator with more than 25 years of extensive experience in training diverse groups of people in both hard and soft skills. Gina’s purpose is to support individuals, leaders, and teams to develop a growth mindset and achieve success. Through a strong partnership with her clients, Gina gains insight into their unique business culture, learns their perspective on success, and guides them through a process for achieving their goals. Gina is passionate about supporting people in building the skills and self-awareness they need to grow towards their full potential. She believes that as individuals progress along this journey of growth and awareness, they provide progressively greater levels of value to their teams and companies. Gina holds a Master’s degrees in Public Administration and Education. She has a Certificate of Advanced Study in Resilient Leadership and is DDI and DiSC certified. Gina is a trained coach through the Neuroleadership Institute in Brain-Based Coaching.
When to Begin Brand Building
I recently traveled to London for an early vacation. Amongst my adventures, I visited the beautiful town of Windsor, where Prince Harry and Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle reside. As sheer luck would have it, the day I explored Windsor is the same day baby Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor (what a mouthful!) was born. News crews lined every street, and the pubs filled with excited citizens yearning for the reveal of baby Archie on TV. Two days later, Meghan (postpartum in a white dress and heels – bless her) and Harry proudly showed off baby Archie on live TV. As Twitter flooded with reactions, I couldn’t help but think, “Wow, this baby’s brand literally began at birth.” As part of the British Royal Family, he will always have to be “on” – and can expect to be in the news on a regular basis. The same principle applies to business. As a new company is born, so is its brand. A first impression can last for many years to come, so it is important to develop effective, ongoing branding goals, strategies and tactics along the way. What does brand construction entail? After establishing your brand goals, there are multiple building blocks to reach them, including: Establishing a digital presence through social media and your website Creating community partnerships and customers Sharing positive news about your business with the media All of these efforts create initial deposits into your reputational piggy bank. But, what do you do if your brand is stagnant? Or, even worse, your reputation has been damaged? Even mature businesses can experience a re-birth – you can re-build and positively change your brand’s image in the court of public opinion. Whether you’re starting a new business or need a refresh, Fallston Group can help. Learn more about our strategic marketing & PR plans, media training and crisis leadership by exploring our website, or give me a call at 410-420-2001.
Four Social Media Trends to Watch & Adopt in 2019
By Patrick Seidl Each year, Hootsuite releases an annual report on the global trends in social media. Their latest edition incorporates feedback from 3,255 of its customers (from large enterprises to small agencies), interviews with industry analysts and exhaustive research that helps businesses and organizations frame their social media activity and alignment toward achieving key business goals. Here are four of the key social media trends Hootsuite identifies for brands to watch and adopt in 2019: Rebuilding Trust – Social crises in 2018 have diminished the public’s trust; 60% of people no longer trust social media companies and front-runners like Facebook have witnessed a shocking 66% drop in consumers’ trust. According to the report, trust on social media has reverted back to immediate friends, family members and acquaintances on social media. The takeaway? It’s important to leverage your brand’s PEOPLE to help establish trust in your brand. If you’re not humanizing your business by promoting your staff and leaders, now is the time to start. Pro tip: Consider hosting a Facebook Live event where you can position your brand’s experts in front of your followers to answer questions and talk about future endeavors. Storifying Social – Stories across all social platforms (Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram) are growing 15 times faster than feed-based sharing. According to Hootsuite, brands can no longer rely on page updates to connect with your followers; it’s imperative to incorporate stories into your social media strategy. Relatively new to the story market is Facebook; currently only 9% of brands surveyed post stories to the platform. Pro tip: If you’re not utilizing Facebook stories, now is the time to start – the company continues to push the feature and adopting early can get you ahead of the curve in terms of reach/engagement. Pro tip #2: less polished, organic and “in the moment” stories perform better than produced ones. Closing the Ads Gap – It’s no secret that platforms like Facebook and Twitter have become increasingly more “pay to play” – meaning if you want to connect with your audience, you need to incorporate paid ads and boosts into your social media strategy. This is evidenced in the death of organic reach, especially across Facebook. Did you know the average organic reach on Facebook today is roughly 6.4% in terms of page reach vs. page likes? But, what about smaller brands that don’t have the budget to put dollars behind each and every post? Pro tip: Hootsuite recommends taking organic content that breaks the 6.4% barrier and begin boosting those posts first. It’s important to test, test, test! Messaging Eats the World – Hootsuite’s study found that users are spending more time on messaging apps like WhatsApp and Facebook messenger and less time sharing personal updates on social media. This is important to consider because the study also found 9/10 consumers would like to use messaging to communicate with businesses. In fact, messaging on social media is the single most preferred channel for customer service. So long, emails and phone calls! Pro tip: if you’re not replying to your brand’s messages on social media, now is the time to start and the key is to be PROMPT. Nothing’s worse than receiving an answer to your question a week after it was initially asked, am I right? If you need help with your social media marketing and adaptation of best-practices to build your brand and move your business needle, give us a call at Fallston Group today at 410.420.2001. You may also drop us a line HERE. We look forward to hearing from you!
Four Simple Steps Tiger Took to Rebuild His Rep
When initially hearing about Tiger Woods’ major life and addiction struggles in 2009, winning a Masters green jacket a decade later was far from realistic, in everyone’s mind. In fact, Woods said at the time he would be taking an ‘indefinite break’ from golf. How did Woods achieve one of the most talked-about come-back stories? How did he regain public and corporate support while effectively nurturing a positive reputation? It wasn’t easy – but through guided steps in taking responsibility and implementing affirmative life changes, Woods was able to, again, win the Masters. Woods’ troubles began in November 2009, driving into a fire hydrant while under the influence. Sponsors such as Gatorade and AT&T immediately dropped the golfing legend due to his misbehavior off the green. Following his poor choices, he then tore his Achilles and didn’t play a full tournament until December 2016 at the Hero World Challenge. Woods’ first step towards his eventual 2019 green jacket was apologizing to fellow players and the public via US Weekly for his embarrassing decisions – step one: recognition and public apology. Through apologizing and announcing his remorse for his wrong-doings, it allowed the public to see he acknowledged his actions, and that he recognized was a dramatic need for change. Regardless of a company’s or individual’s position in the spotlight, mistakes do happen, bad choices are made and apologies can be accepted – as long as the person is truly remorseful and doesn’t repeat the bad behavior. Step two: taking action. As we all heard when we were young, actions speak louder than words. Woods apologized, and immediately completed a rehabilitation program which prompted the progress toward becoming the pro golfer we all love. This allowed fans to applaud Woods changing his moral outlook, correcting his mistakes and creating movement toward positive change. Step three: patience and persistence. Woods did not walk out of rehab and play his best 18 rounds of golf – it took time, a long time. Tiger Woods began playing in tournaments and losing – everyone thought he was finished. Effectively laying low, apologizing publicly, making efforts towards positive and sincere change and absorbing the heat of playing bad golf all enabled his eventual rebirth – adversity is advantage. This low point allowed Woods time for regrouping and confidence building as a private person and professional golfer. Step four: learn from mistakes. Woods is now coming off of his best week of golf – winning the 2019 Masters. He used his struggles as a building block in his career. He publicly discussed his come-back story and lessons learned. This created a sense of comfort and trust for fans and sponsors. Crisis isn’t easy – but if handled correctly, can be an opportunity for long-term, sustainable growth. There is no question, Tiger’s 2019 green jacket symbolized more than simply winning the Masters.
The Lost Art of Storytelling
Earlier this week someone told me, “Andrea, at times you’re quiet, but when you speak, it’s always a story.” Unbeknownst to them, that was a huge compliment, because at Fallston Group, telling our clients’ stories is part of what we do each and every day. When it comes to public relations and content writing, storytelling is truly an art – and in recent years, I’ve witnessed it fading. Ironically, my colleague sent me a sponsored LinkedIn post earlier this week, noting, “this isn’t how it works…” The opener was: GET MORE CLIENTS! Build credibility, authority & stand out from the competition… We guarantee that your story (custom-written by us) will appear on 300+ media websites across the United States. You’ll be able to legally use all their logos on your website and in your marketing in just a few days! Out of respect for the company, I won’t share the actual post, but my first gut reaction was, “Gross! How incredibly misleading!” Anyone with a computer can type up an article, and anyone willing to spend the money can capitalize on a variety of new “pay to play” media opportunities. Here’s the problem – it’s not storytelling/earned media – it’s paid ADVERTISING. To truly build reputational equity, you must go beyond paid media…and, work harder than simply distributing a press release. The real art in storytelling involves building meaningful relationships with news outlets, pitching a story, securing print, radio or TV interviews, and (every PR storyteller’s dream) in the best of scenarios securing a significant feature in a publication that is targeted and important to a client. This is news which can also be repurposed and shared across many digital platforms. Fallston Group is not a typical PR firm! I say with full confidence that we work to secure meaningful and scalable stories for clients. What is “meaningful” varies by company and what their unique goals happen to be. Some may only raise the awareness they need via a story in the local news – others need international coverage to make an impact and move the business needle. I am proud to pitch our clients’ stories, because they have news to share that truly makes a difference for their customers…and if something isn’t newsworthy, we have an honest conversation about it while continuing to farm within the “good news factory” we’ve established. If you’d like to discuss storytelling for your company, feel free to email me at andrea.lynn@fallstongroup.com, call 410.420.2001 or visit our website. Remember our mantra – “If you don’t tell your story, someone else will. And, if someone else tells your story, it certainly won’t be the story you want told.” Rings true for us every day!
The Lasting Effects of Shots Fired
By Leah Fertig Active and mass shooting events have been filling our news feeds recently both nationally, such as the New Zealand shooting at two mosques on March 15, and locally, including the most recent school shooting at Frederick Douglas High School in Baltimore, MD on February 8. According to published crime statistics, there were 340 mass shooting incidents in our nation last year; a total of 373 people were killed and 1,347 were injured. One would like to think that once the shock of the tragedy is over and loved ones are laid to rest or those injured are released from hospitals that the effects of mass shootings end there. Sadly, that’s not the case; there are long-lasting, negative emotional effects that continue for weeks, months and lifetimes. When it comes to mass shootings, it’s important to realize it’s not only those directly connected to a tragedy who feel the long-lasting effects. For example, the Frederick Douglas High School shooting in Baltimore did not only affect the victim who was injured, but also the entire student body and the institution’s staff, faculty and administrators. Trauma comes in many forms and is unique to each individual and how they, and their families, cope. The National Center for PTSD explains there are four phases following mass violence: Impact, Rescue, Recovery and Reconstruction (Long-Term). They state, “While the majority of affected individuals will see a lessening of distress over time in the long-term phase, vulnerable populations such as those with injury, severe disaster exposure or ongoing adversities, may continue to suffer for years after a large-scale disaster or mass violence event.” This March, we lost 3 lives to suicide that were all connected to school massacres and post-traumatic stress. Some may wear their pain on their sleeves while others may bottle it up and outwardly project that they’re not struggling inside – a struggle that has the potential to evolve into a future tragedy. There seems to be no limit to the location in which an active-shooter tragedy can occur; they happen in places we should feel the safest, such as places of worship, malls, movie theaters, concerts and schools. It is imperative for businesses and institutions to understand that although not all crises can be prevented, you can certainly prepare for those worst-case scenarios, such as an active shooter. Have you done all you can to protect your people, secure your assets and strengthen your brand? Call or email today to start building the organizational muscle memory you need to give employees the tools and confidence to survive a very high stress, sudden and volatile event. There is no question, lockdowns save lives; you must be prepared as the first order of leadership is to provide a safe place to live, work and raise a family.
Top Business Reputation Tips
Whether or not you had the chance to attend our most recent Business Reputation Panel in person, every leader can benefit from our expert panelists’ top tips to preserve and protect your company’s reputation. James “Jef” Fagan, Principal Attorney at Offit Kurman advises businesses to not only pick a primary spokesperson – but to make certain your employees know who that spokesperson is. Legally, employees need to understand if the media calls, they should not answer any questions. If a crisis occurs, employees should be given a script for answering the phone, and direct callers to the primary spokesperson. Scott Canuel, Executive Director and Market Team Lead at J.P. Morgan explains employees must know what to expect in terms of protocol BEFORE a crisis occurs. Employees should be updated on your company’s crisis plan on a regular basis, and training must be consistent. (Fallston Group tip: this establishes organizational muscle memory and reduces stress when a crisis does occur!). Rachael Lighty, Public Relations Manager for Amazon Operations stresses that “your reputation is not a shot in time.” Your reputation must be worked on alongside your relationships with your customers and trusted advisors every single day. Think about your reputation during your everyday business decisions – it is an active ongoing process. Kai Jackson, Co-anchor at WBFF-TV Fox45 News tells us from the media’s perspective, “please know I have a job to do just like you do.” When a crisis occurs, it is extremely helpful for your company to have a point person to go to for information who can speak MEANINGFULLY about the issue. The media’s job is to report professionally and respectfully. The more substance your business can provide, the better the media will be able to represent your story. Ed Norris, radio personality and actor gives personal advice from the heart: build your relationships TODAY. And not just with your company and board’s executives, but with all of your employees. Every person matters. These relationships will benefit you in the long-term, and those people will have your back not if, but when things go sideways. Rob Weinhold, chief executive at Fallston Group, urges leaders to understand reputation leads to trust, and trust leads to valuation. And, not all currency is financial. Your reputational equity must be built BEFORE crisis strikes; your business must always be ready to make a withdrawal from your reputational piggy bank. For more information about crisis leadership strategies, how to understand your risk and how to better prepare for a crisis, contact Fallston Group at info@fallstongroup.com, call 410.420.2001 or visit our website.
When the world relies on you, how do you manage crises and continuity of care?
By Leah Fertig From birth to our final day, there may never come a time we aren’t dependent on a compassionate healthcare provider. Like the fragility of our lives, healthcare institutions are challenged with many risks that may take their focus off of critical patient care. This is unacceptable, mainly if you or your loved one is reliant on critical attention during the distraction. According to The Joint Commission, the top reported sentinel event of 2017 was unintended retention of a foreign object (URFOs), with a total of 116 cases reported. In April 2017, a California woman had abdominal surgery that resulted in an emergency return approximately two weeks later after experiencing extreme pain. During the emergency visit, doctors found the 8-inch surgical forceps inside her abdomen from the previous surgical procedure, and her small intestine looped through the surgical forceps handle. The woman had to have 18 inches of her small intestine removed. While stunning to most people, not entirely new news to those who work in the healthcare profession. As a result, a lawsuit requesting medical and incidental expenses, loss of past and future earnings, and more claims were filed by the patient. It’s not just the isolated, event-specific financial impact that’s concerning, the long-term reputation of the institution and the healthcare providers are at stake. Not only are lawsuits public record, but named parties may also eventually reach the court of public opinion where judgment is rendered on a moment’s notice. Crisis isn’t a matter of “if,” but “when.” There are thousands of law firms that focus exclusively on medical malpractice because it is considered a preventable mistake, which can ultimately lead to a wrongful death suit. While tragic on many levels, the posture of the healthcare institution and its legal counsels will impact reputation. The stakes are high as the decisions leaders make today will be judged by many for years to come. To learn more about how healthcare organizations can reduce their points of exposure and effectively lead during life’s most critical times, email info@fallstongroup.com and one of our experts will connect with you. Remember, 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!
Organizational Muscle Memory – Why It’s Imperative!
By Rob Weinhold, Chief Executive On the cold afternoon of January 15, 2009, Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger nosed US Airways Flight 1549 into the clear skies above New York’s LaGuardia Airport. Less than four minutes later, after a “bird strike” from a flock of Canadian geese knocked out two of the jet’s engines, he coolly and skillfully made an emergency landing in the frigid Hudson River that saved the lives of all 150 passengers and five crew members, earning him international acclaim and admiration. “Within eight seconds of the bird strike,” Sullenberger wrote in his book “Highest Duty,” “realizing that we were without engines, I knew this was the worst aviation challenge I’d ever faced. It was the most sickening, pit-of-your-stomach, falling-through-the-floor feeling I had ever experienced.” As to how he was able to focus and execute his duties during one of the most compelling dramas in modern airline history, the answer—personal heroism aside—was surprisingly simple. “My life is all about routine. It’s about checklists and procedures,” he said in a training video not long after his ordeal. “Be prepared for the unexpected by doing the little things day in and day out. You ready yourself for the big things…” Clearly, what Capt. Sullenberger relied on heavily during his ordeal is a concept that I teach and call organizational muscle memory. This applies to corporations and businesses as much as it does to everyday citizens in all walks of life. In the context of preparing for, navigating through or recovering from issues of sensitivity, adversity or crisis, there’s no question that—to use the old cliché—people play how they practice. And what Capt. Sullenberger and his co-pilot did in those nerve-wracking moments in the sky high above New York, was begin working their way down the checklist of airline emergency response procedures put in place for just such an event. They were doing what they’d been trained to do and followed the protocol as it was laid out to them and drilled into their heads for decades. Immediately after Flight 1549’s engines failed, Capt. Sullenberger took over the controls of the crippled aircraft from First Officer Jeff Skiles, who began handling the emergency checklist. Sullenberger quickly focused on the three general rules of any aircraft emergency: maintain aircraft control, analyze the situation and take proper action, land as soon as conditions permit. As detailed in his book, there is also a variation on those rules that pilots find easy to remember: “Aviate, navigate, communicate.” “Aviate: fly the plane,” he wrote. “Navigate: make sure your flight path is appropriate and that you’re not flying off course. Communicate: Let those on the ground help you, and let those on the plane know what might be necessary to save their lives.” Also aiding him was this: as a young pilot in the Air Force, he had studied aircraft accidents to learn from the experiences of the pilots involved. “Why did pilots wait too long before ejecting from planes that were about to crash?” he wrote in “Highest Duty.” “Why did they spend extra seconds trying to fix the unfixable?” Sullenberger’s many flights from LaGuardia in the past had also given him an encyclopedic knowledge of the terrain he was flying over, as well as the distances to the nearest airports should he attempt an emergency landing at one. In the end, his training, military experience and geographical knowledge would help him conclude that all four nearby airports (LaGuardia, JFK, Teterboro and Newark) were unreachable by the damaged aircraft. Not to be discounted in any re-telling of what happened to Flight 1549 that day is that Capt. Sullenberger had the perfect demeanor to handle the stress of the moment. When you think about leadership, you think about composure. This was a case study in pilot composure if ever there was one. As the aircraft flight lurched and dropped through the skies, Sullenberger would write in his book, the badly shaken passengers in the quiet cabin reacted in a variety of ways. Some prayed. Some texted loved ones. A U.S. Army captain and his fiancé kissed and told each other “I love you” and “accepted death together.” A management consultant from Charlotte, North Carolina thought about how he was his mother’s only surviving son, and that his death would no doubt kill his mom, too. A man who had survived a near-deadly incident on a plane some 20 years earlier took out a business card and wrote “I love you” to his parents and his sister and thought: “This could be the end of my life. In 10 or 20 seconds, I could be on the other side, whatever the other side will be.” But Capt. Sullenberger remained calm and focused on the task at hand, which was to avert a catastrophe either above or in one of the busiest cities in the world. In any crisis, people look for direction. Absent that direction, presented in a composed manner, chaos will ensue. But there was no sense of that on Flight 1549. As he continued to struggle with the damaged plane, Sullenberger radioed air traffic control and said, in a remarkably even voice: “We may end up in the Hudson.” In fact, the aircraft was already descending below the tops of Manhattan’s skyscrapers toward the wide, sparkling river. Too busy in the early moments of the emergency to fill in the passengers on what was happening, he now intoned: “This is the captain. Brace for impact!” Attempting to control the aircraft without critical engine thrust, he nevertheless guided it to a hard, slightly nose-up landing. After that, he supervised the emergency evacuation of shivering passengers out onto the wings of the sinking plane, where they were quickly helped into a flotilla of rescue boats. Perhaps as much as any pilot in history, “Sully” Sullenberger had proven to be prepared for the ultimate crisis of his career. “One way of looking at this might be that for 42 years, I’ve been making small regular deposits in
