Like it or not, when someone’s represented your company publicly for many years that association sticks around after they retire. That’s a lesson Starbucks is learning the hard way after former CEO and chairman Howard Schultz announced that he …
Crying Wolf Pt. 3 – How to Prevent the Situation from Spiraling into a Crisis
Posted on: 16, Jan 19
[Editor’s note: This compelling blog series comes to us from international crisis management expert and Bernstein Crisis team member Tim Scerba.] How to Prevent the Situation from Spiraling into a Crisis Once a situation exists that has the potential …
Crying Wolf Pt. 2 – The Elements of a Crisis
Posted on: 13, Jan 19
[Editor’s note: This compelling blog series comes to us from international crisis management expert and Bernstein Crisis team member Tim Scerba.] The Elements of a Crisis A key part of crisis preparedness and issues management planning is remembering that …
How to Spot a Crisis 101: What is a Crisis?
Posted on: 18, Jul 18
Spot a crisis early to minimize damage How do you spot a crisis? Clients are frequently surprised when they bring us in because of what they’ve deemed a “potential problem” and we inform them they’re heading straight for a full-blown …
Too Close to See: Why Amazon’s Handling of Whole Foods Could Lead to Crisis
Posted on: 02, Jul 18
It’s a common occurrence for a crisis management pro – you’re brought into a case, start asking questions, and immediately spot red flags so blatant it seems impossible they were missed. Yet, more often than not, there’s no willful ignorance …
The Very Hard Truth About Your Next Major Natural Disaster
Posted on: 11, Jun 18
A discussion of some tough-to-swallow disaster preparedness truths, by Jonathan Bernstein If you’ve been denial about disaster preparedness, this may be a good time for you to avert your eyes, because you’re not going to like what I have to say. …
When advertising is created without crisis management consideration
Posted on: 29, May 18
Why you have to consider the negative when making ad decisions How did an Australian clothing company wind up sending thousands of customers a marketing email that threatened to release compromising photos of them “everywhere”? While the idea is shocking, …
The #MeToo Backlash — The Crisis is Just Beginning
Posted on: 07, Mar 18
Why every organization is vulnerable to #MeToo allegations When humans are oppressed and repressed long enough and finally find a channel for venting their feelings, for finding justice, we sometimes overreact. Riots occur, with innocent individual and businesses damaged (or …
Elon Musk’s flamethrowers walk a fine line between publicity stunt and PR nightmare
Posted on: 29, Jan 18
Why is this product particularly risky for Musk and The Boring Company? There’s no doubt that Elon Musk is a technical genius and a great thinker. And, while his latest venture has the kid in me shouting “woohoo!” it’s also …
“How Much Pain Does It Take?” Revisited
Posted on: 26, Oct 17
The below post was written by Jonathan Bernstein on April 2, 2015. Since then, we have seen countless severe crises where the damage could have been prevented, or at least reduced significantly. Some of them are still in the headlines today. …
How Your Daily Decisions Could Spawn a Crisis
Posted on: 24, Oct 17
Everyday choices can create serious issues I can’t count the number of crises I’ve seen during my career that started with an operational decision that seemed like a good idea at the time — but which was fatally flawed from …
Four ways to lie and why they’re a crisis management risk
Posted on: 25, Sep 17
Don’t let dishonesty creep into your communications Lying is a funny thing. While it’s widely accepted that purposely stating something that isn’t true is classified as a lie and wrong to do, people convince themselves that other forms of lying …
Major Mistakes in Crisis Management
Posted on: 08, Sep 17
Avoid the items on this list and up your crisis game Crisis management is often a game of mitigation. That means you stop damage where you can, and reduce the impact where it can’t be stopped completely. Creating additional risks …
Glittler, or Why an Outside Perspective is Critical to Crisis Prevention
Posted on: 04, Aug 17
We tell clients to get an outside perspective on things like new products or services whenever possible. When you’ve been close to a project you tend to only see what you want to see, and not what the savage eyes …
The Case of the Swastika’d Soles
Posted on: 16, Jan 17
Mistake steps on profits for footwear distributor Score another one for sharp-eyed Redditors, and another financial loss for a company that failed to spot an issue before it created public problems. California-based Conal Footwear found itself in bad spot after a Reddit …