The Price of Complacency
By Jonathan Bernstein
 

complacency, n self-satisfaction accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiencies (Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary)

When terrorists killed thousands of Americans on September 11, I have no doubt they knew that they were also causing massive "collateral damage" to American businesses and other organizations. Overseas, anti-American speakers have crowed over the complacency of rich, fat Americans who thought they were invulnerable to such inhuman acts.

As I write this, two days after the attack, the crisis communications response of organizations in this country demonstrates that some were well-prepared, and most were not. That most were, as suspected, complacent.

Few organizations would logically plan to respond to a massive terrorist attack. But all organizations can and should have crisis communications plans that allow them to deal with scenarios such as:

• Service interruptions
• Events which traumatize employees
• Deaths of key employees
• Sudden loss of key suppliers or contractors

In my opinion, the most directly affected businesses, such as the two hijacked airlines, followed all of the important tenets of crisis communications. They were prompt, expressed concern and compassion, provided honest and accurate information, and gave customers and victims means for two-way communications.

I have heard from a small number of adequately prepared online retailers and other service providers expressing their regret that they can't ship orders as usual and what they plan to do about that. I knew that their service would be interrupted, of course, but their consideration in contacting me scored a lot of "PR points." On the other hand, there are a lot of obviously unprepared organizations from which I have not heard.

Some businesses -- PR Newswire comes to mind -- offered their services free to those most directly affected by the tragedy. A marvelous, humanitarian response -- and damned good PR.

And finally there are the exploiters, the ones offering us 10 percent off of survival gear, American flags -- or guns. They may sell more in the short run -- but at what cost?