Guia Ciefectiva Crisis

Comunicación Interna en Chile
TOP TIPS: The 10-point guide to effective employee

communication during a company crisis
Whether a business crisis is accidental, financial, legal or otherwise, all affected

companies need to maintain effective communication with external and internal
stakeholders, as well as a successful managerial and operational response. Here
are 10 practical steps to help ensure effective employee communication in times
of crisis.
by Oliver Schmidt, Managing Partner, C4CS
Employees are a key stakeholder group that must be communicated with during a business
crisis. Any company that fails to do so puts the entire crisis response at risk. The following
tips are designed to help decision makers at all levels manage potentially crippling adversity
and actively preserve and even enhance the company’s reputation and competitiveness.
1. Plan ahead and be prepared

A successful response to a business crisis typically demands making and effectively
communicating far-reaching and emotionally difficult decisions while under pressure and
perhaps lacking complete or fully accurate information. Proper crisis preparedness planning
therefore inevitably calls for putting the necessary organizational structure, processes and
tools in place before a crisis hits.
Develop, implement and continuously improve a crisis communication strategy and matching
crisis communication plan tailored to the company’s needs. Assign responsibilities and
thoroughly train the designated employees and their back-ups. Put communicators on the
corporate and, if applicable, the regional and local crisis management teams. Conduct
vulnerability audits and use the findings to build realistic crisis scenarios upon which
recurring media training and crisis management drills are based.
Effective employee communication is indispensable to

minimizing crisis-related damage.
Remember that effective employee communication is a crucial component of any
comprehensive crisis management strategy and indispensable to minimizing crisis-related
damage, seizing the opportunities a crisis may present and converting resulting
organizational change into competitive advantages.
2. Maintain ongoing dialogue

You have a much greater chance of achieving your communication objectives if there’s
already an ongoing and constructive dialogue with your stakeholders long before a crisis
occurs. Unfortunately, many companies fail in this and also lack an issues management
program and a risk-communication strategy.
In-depth stakeholder analysis is a prerequisite for compelling and targeted stakeholder

communication. Use automated Internet and intranet monitoring to identify and better
understand stakeholder needs and customize your external and internal crisis communication
accordingly.
If employees are used to regular communication through certain channels, use them in times
of crisis along with communication tools that were developed for specific crisis situations.
3. Talk to employees first

Whenever possible, internal crisis communication should precede external crisis
communication. It’s vital employees don’t hear negative crisis-related news from outside
sources first, as it may alienate them and hinder the successful crisis response and recovery.
Engaging in honest dialogue fosters better understanding

and employee support.
Engaging in an honest dialogue with as many employees as possible also fosters better
understanding and employee support for possibly unpopular yet necessary steps company
leadership may have to take to manage the crisis and secure the future of the business.
Whichever method of internal crisis communication a company may choose, the more
upfront management is about what is happening, the better-informed and more entrusted
employees feel. Those employees who are communicated with in an open, timely and
truthful way are not only able, but also often willing to represent their company and support
its goals internally as well as externally. This is especially true in a crisis.
4. Eradicate uncertainty
Underestimate the importance of effective employee communication during a crisis and you
may suffer significant economic damage due to, among other factors, a lack of trust, low
morale and the subsequent loss of trained and dedicated employees.
In a crisis situation, it’s necessary to increase the internal communication frequency since
employees have a high demand for updated information as well as the desire to provide
continuous feedback. Ask these questions before communicating with employees during a
crisis and as part of the post-crisis evaluation and ongoing crisis preparedness planning:
• What is the desired outcome of the communication?

• What will be communicated?
• Who will initiate the communication?
• Which groups of employees will be communicated with?
• How and / or where is the communication going to happen?
• When will the communication take place?
Ask these questions after communicating with employees during a crisis and as part of the
post-crisis evaluation and ongoing crisis preparedness planning:
• Was the communication objective met?

• How can we do better?
5. Tackle employees’ questions

Employees’ questions and concerns should be anticipated, identified and responded to on an
ongoing basis. Because employees’ trust in management’s ability to handle the crisis is
crucial, even those questions and concerns that seem unimportant or inconvenient should be
addressed.
Especially in cases where the company may be responsible for any harm to employees and
their loved ones, consider communicating regret and empathy as well as a clear explanation
of the steps the company is taking to deal with the situation and to prevent recurrences.
However, don’t base the messages on the views of management alone. Be sure to take into
account the perceptions, opinions and expectations within the different stakeholder groups.
Also bear in mind any legal and other restrictions on the dissemination of certain information
relating to the crisis.
6. Create communication allies

Don’t forget that employees have a vested interest in working with management to prevail
over the crisis – many are eager to put in extra time and effort to turn the ship around.
Guide employees in their effort to speak up for the company. Empowering employees to take
charge in times of crisis creates valuable communication allies who reinforce messages
internally and also carry them into the community.
Remember that despite the wealth of technology at the disposal of today’s communicator,
face-to-face communication between supervisors and their direct reports remains one of the
most effective tools.
7. Be consistent in messaging
With the goal of coherent messages and simultaneous communication in mind, many
companies implement a one-voice-policy: It means only appropriately trained and designated
employees, who are electronically linked with senior management and one another, may act
as company spokespersons.
The one-voice-policy may be difficult to uphold in times of crisis because employees have a
natural tendency to talk about stressful work-related events with family and friends, perhaps
criticizing management’s handling of the situation.
A disgruntled employee talking to the media may, however, pose a much more serious risk.
Not only would this behavior sabotage the company’s one-voice-policy, but it may also
threaten the entire crisis response.
8. Convince leaders on feedback

Employees appreciate and increasingly demand feedback options such as face-to-face
meetings and two-way intranet-based communication. But the best-laid crisis communication
strategy may not work if feedback is not included in management’s decision-making. Use the
following three arguments if you need to convince senior managers of the value of employee
feedback:
• Employee feedback allows you to track whether messages have reached the intended
groups of employees and achieved the desired results.
• It enables you not only to track employees’ opinions, perceptions and expectations, but
also may reveal what colleagues and external stakeholders are saying to employees.
• Employee feedback often contains valuable information and suggestions for minimizing
damage, seizing opportunities and preventing future crises.
9. Involve senior management

Business crises can cause immense pressure and uneasiness for employees. To prevent
rumors, false information and panic, senior management must be involved in providing
distressed employees and managers with relevant information, guidance and motivation.
Aside from communicating with employees through traditional channels, intranet-based crisis
blogs are becoming increasingly popular. Executive or CEO blogs are an excellent listening
tool that allows senior managers instant two-way communication with employees around the
globe. They can aslo easily be updated during a crisis and create an intranet-based record of
opinions and facts that helps to control rumors and speculation.
10. Consider external help

No matter how much emphasis a company places on crisis prevention, it will never be
completely safe because crises are part of the organizational lifecycle. The key to business
survival therefore lies in maximizing the company’s crisis preparedness. If you don’t have the
necessary theoretical knowledge or crisis communication experience, consider retaining
qualified external consultants. They can assist in boosting the company’s crisis readiness as
well as its ability to effectively respond to and quickly recover from business crises.

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Comunicación Interna en Chile

TOP TIPS: The 10-point guide to effective employee

Whether a business crisis is accidental, financial, legal or otherwise, all affected

by Oliver Schmidt, Managing Partner, C4CS

1. Plan ahead and be prepared

Effective employee communication is indispensable to

2. Maintain ongoing dialogue

In-depth stakeholder analysis is a prerequisite for compelling and targeted stakeholder

3. Talk to employees first

Engaging in honest dialogue fosters better understanding

• What is the desired outcome of the communication?

• Was the communication objective met?

5. Tackle employees’ questions

6. Create communication allies

8. Convince leaders on feedback

9. Involve senior management

10. Consider external help

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