How Setting Realistic Expectations Prevents Crises

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Clashes create conflict One of our challenges as a crisis management firm is helping clients have realistic expectations about what we can accomplish for them. For example, if a situation can’t be “fixed” but only balanced enough that the lasting damage is limited, we’d be asking for trouble if we …

The View’s Nurse Bashing Backfires

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, reputation management Leave a Comment

Another failure to live up to expectations creates a reputation threat The hosts of The View created a code red situation after dropping disparaging comments about Miss America contestant and nurse Kelley Johnson. The backlash was immediate, and came from not only nurses and their families but the general public, …

More Politicians Run Afoul of the Hot Mic

Erik Bernstein Crisis Prevention, media training Leave a Comment

Busted by a boom Hot on the heels of British Prime Minister David Cameron’s mic slip comes another politician stepping in it. Quipping back and forth with his fellow Australian, PM Tony Abbot, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton cracked wise about the very real fear mounting among Pacific Islanders of rising …

Ashley Madison Hack: Many in Sensitive Positions Open to Extortion

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, Crisis Response, cyber security, cyber threats, data breach, reputation management Leave a Comment

Fallout from this case is evidence of dangers from others As predicted, outed Ashley Madison users are being targeted for extortion. Although the reported cases thus far have been of a widespread spam-based attack, it would take very little digging for someone interested in a more personal attack to find …

Reputation Risk – Creeping Out Your Customers

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

Are companies going too far in trying to provide the ultimate customer experience? Would it creep you out if your flight attendant walked up to you and wished you a happy birthday out of the blue? That’s precisely what a Gawker article claims is happening on United Airlines thanks to …

Crisis Management Quotables…on Outdoing Negativity

Erik Bernstein crisis management, crisis management quotables, crisis management quotes, Crisis Prevention, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

Create a cushion of goodwill to protect your reputation Typically we try to avoid using words from unknown sources for our Crisis Management Quotables, but given the ease with which so many reputations are being put into jeopardy either by minor issues or manufactured/baseless outrage these days this gem was …

Another Scary Wireless Car Hack

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, cyber security, cyber threats, information security Leave a Comment

More evidence connectivity is outpacing security Hot on the wheels (sorry, couldn’t resist!) of the uConnect hack comes another concern-causing car finding. This time, researchers at the University of California San Diego announced their discovery of a method that allows them to to hack thousands of different vehicles from a …

Is Lack of Preparedness Putting Your Organization at Risk?

Erik Bernstein crisis management, crisis preparation, crisis preparedness, Crisis Prevention Leave a Comment

A look at how few are truly prepared to face a crisis head-on While virtually all leaders will readily admit that crises which endanger reputation and the bottom line can happen at any time, far fewer are actually prepared. The infographic we’ve shared below, created by consultants at Deloitte based …

NHTSA Probes Uconnect Hack

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, recall crisis management 2 Comments

Investigation widens, bringing more systems under review Fiat Chrysler’s recall of 1.4 million vehicles due to a flaw in its Uconnect “infotainment” system that could allow hackers to remotely control braking and acceleration was big news thanks to the scare factor and widespread nature of the problem, but it may …

Brinks Safe Cracked – actually Hacked – Wide Open

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, information security, reputation management Leave a Comment

A scary series of security flaws raises serious questions Brinks has a reputation as a trusted name in security, but the findings of a pair of security researchers may crack that wide open. Daniel Petro and Oscar Salazar of security company Bishop Fox decided to take a look at Brinks’ …

Crisis Management Quotables…on Confidence and Complacency

Erik Bernstein crisis management, crisis management quotables, Crisis Prevention, reputation management Leave a Comment

Success brings dangers of its own English playwright, poet, and literary critic Ben Jonson was considered second only to Shakespeare for his contributions to the stage in the late 1500’s and early 1600’s. He was also a cunning humorist, and, as so many others who are talented in the comedy …

Crisis Management Best Practices to Combat Cyberbullying

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, cyberbullying, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein Leave a Comment

Jonathan Bernstein shares his take on the intersection of crisis management and cyberbullying Whether it’s nuisance behavior like derailing social media conversations or more serious attacks such as releasing personal information and sabotaging review sites, cyberbullying can, and does, create crises. In a video presentation for the American Veterinary Medical …

O Magazine’s Crop Top Crisis

Erik Bernstein Crisis Prevention, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

A self-inflicted crisis for O, The Oprah Magazine Failing to meet stakeholder expectations is an almost-certain way to create a crisis. O, The Oprah Magazine, found this out firsthand after creative director Adam Classman responded to a reader’s question, “Can I pull off a crop top?”, by writing, “If (and …

Cyberbullying – a Crisis Management Issue

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, Crisis Response, cyberbullying, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein 1 Comment

A growing concern among business owners Cyberbullying has grown from a niche subject into a hot topic over the past few years. While initial discussion of cyberbullying focused on interactions between young people, today businesses can be, and are being, cyberbullied on an increasingly regular basis. What does cyberbullying look …

Sometimes People Die

Erik Bernstein Crisis Prevention, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein Leave a Comment

Losses are best handled with a plan made in advance People die. It’s an uncomfortable reality, but that doesn’t mean you can ignore it. When you’re putting together crisis management plans you have to face a number of unhappy thoughts, and one is that you’ll need to carry on if …