Crisis Prevention

If auto safety was like some crisis management programs, we'd be buying seat belts and air bags while our cars were skidding toward a wall at high speed.

Crisis prevention costs are always a tiny fraction of the losses that are typically incurred as a result of crises for which there had been inadequate preparation. There have been many Bernstein Crisis Management clients that incurred millions of dollars in legal, operational and public relations/marketing costs that could have been avoided with adequate preparation.

Crisis prevention, at its best, is the organizational equivalent of a medical full body scan. Bernstein Crisis Management offers and has often been a pioneer in the delivery of crisis prevention activities designed not only to prepare clients for potential crises, but also to make them crisis-resistant.

• Vulnerability Audit

  Jonathan Bernstein has been reverse-engineering crises for more than 25 years. He knows the "red flags" that can indicate the potential for future crises, or which can exacerbate existing issues. It is far more cost- and resource-effective to prevent crises, or minimize the chances of crises occurring, than merely to respond to them. BCM is a pioneer in the delivery of crisis prevention activities designed not only to prepare clients for potential crises, but also to make them crisis-resistant.

  A Vulnerability Audit is a multi-disciplinary risk assessment to determine current and potential areas of operational and communications weakness and strength, and to identify potential solutions, because weaknesses may result in emergencies or crises of varying magnitudes if not corrected. Ideally, we examine every functional area of a client organization to identify anything that could lead to a significant interruption in business and/or to reputation damage. The scope of a vulnerability audit can vary, depending on client preferences and needs. Some options include:

• Crisis Document Audit — a simple (typically 5-10 hours) review of existing client documents related to crisis preparedness and response, such as crisis communications plans, emergency response policies, disaster plans, etc. This audit includes creation of a written evaluation and recommendations for improvement.
• Executive Session Vulnerability Audit — a one-day session (typically 10-15 hours, inclusive of prep time) in which the client's executive team is led through a series of educational and thought-provoking discussions to uncover and begin to address organizational vulnerabilities that could escalate to crises. This audit includes a post-session written summary of findings and recommendations for improvement.
• Comprehensive Vulnerability Audit — a series of interviews with employees at all levels of an organization (typically 60-70 hours total, inclusive of prep time), each conducted in complete confidence so that the interviewee feels comfortable disclosing information he/she might not otherwise discuss. This is complemented by interviews with representative members of key external audiences, and concludes with preparation and presentation of a comprehensive audit report to the senior management team.
• Blended Vulnerability Audit — an Executive Session Vulnerability Audit as a starting point, supplemented by a limited number of selective one-on-one interviews (typically totaling 20-30 hours, inclusive of prep time).
• Online Reputation Management Audit — a comprehensive review of the client's current online presence, visibility and vulnerability to reputation attacks online, concluding in specific recommendations for significant improvement (typically 15-20 hours). The audit includes the use of sophisticated analysis and report-generating software. The detail is provided at a level useful to the organization's top executives in marketing/PR, web design and information technology.
• Crisis Communications Plans

  Based on some level of vulnerability audit, creation of a response structure and written plan that will guide and optimize reaction to future crises. This includes ensuring that there is close coordination between the teams involved in the operational and communications aspects of crisis response.

• Disaster/Incident Response Planning and Training

  Also based on a vulnerability audit, ensuring that an organization is prepared for the operational response to a crisis, complementing its crisis communications planning.

• Senior- and Mid-Level Staff Training About Crisis Management Fundamentals

  Prevention and/or response, from one-hour luncheon presentation to multi-day sessions.

• Media Training

  Comprehensive instruction and practice on camera, enhancing spokespersons' abilities to optimize results from both "good news" and crisis-related interviews. More details on media training are provided later in this description of services.

• Crisis Prevention & The Law

  All of Bernstein Crisis Management's crisis prevention services can include legal counsel to help clients more thoroughly evaluate multi-disciplinary legal compliance and factor legal considerations into crisis prevention systems and activities. The agency works with clients' existing legal counsel and/or can recommend national-caliber attorneys from its own network of contacts.

References available on request. Call (626) 825-3838
or write to jonathan@bernsteincrisismanagement.com for more information.