Crisis Communications: The Definitive Guide to Managing the Message

by Steven Fink

The Definitive Guide to Communicating in Any Crisis

"When facing an already difficult crisis, the last thing a company needs is to make it worse through its own communications - or lack thereof. As one who has lived through a number of [business] crises and served as an independent investigator of the crises of others, I consider Steven Fink's book to be an excellent guide to avoiding collecting scar tissue of your own by learning from the scar tissue painfully collected by others."-Norman R. Augustine, former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Lockheed Martin

There are few guarantees in business today. Unfortunately, one of them is the inevitability of a crisis having a potentially major effect on your business and your reputation. When your company finds itself in the midst of a crisis, the ripple effects can disrupt lives and business for the foreseeable future if public opinion is not properly shaped and managed.

Skillfully managing the perception of the crisis determines the difference between a company's life or death. Because in the pitched battle between perception and reality, perception "always "wins.

Fortunately, there is a solution. Crisis communications and crisis management legend Steven Fink gives you everything you need to prepare for the inevitable-whether it's in the form of human error, industrial accidents, criminal behavior, or natural disasters.

In this groundbreaking guide, Fink provides a complete toolkit for ensuring smooth communications and lasting business success through any crisis. "Crisis Communications" offers proactive and preventive methods for preempting potential crises. The book reveals proven strategies for recognizing and averting damaging crisis communications issues before it's too late. The book also offers ways to deal with mainstream and social media, use them to your advantage, and neutralize and turn around a hostile media environment Steven Fink uses his decades of expertise and experience in crisis communications to help you: UNDERSTAND AND MANAGE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PUBLIC PERCEPTION AND REALITY CHOOSE THE BEST SPOKESPERSON FOR THE CRISIS PROTECT YOUR BRAND AND REPUTATION THROUGH CRISES LARGE AND SMALL MAKE WISE, VIGILANT, AND DEFENSIBLE DECISIONS UNDER EXTREME CRISIS-INDUCED STRESS TELL THE TRUTH NO MATTER HOW TEMPTING IT MAY BE TO MISLEAD USE SOCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS TO COMMUNICATE DIRECTLY TO THE PUBLIC ABOUT A CRISIS

The explosion of the Internet and, especially, social media, has added a new layer to the business leader's skill set: the ability to handle a crisis quickly and professionally within moments of its occurrence. Livelihoods depend upon it.

With in-depth case studies of Toyota, BP, and Penn State, "Crisis Communications "provides everything you need to successfully lead your company through today's rocky landscape of business-where crises large and small loom around every corner, and the lives of businesses and management teams hang in the balance.

PRAISE FOR STEVEN FINK'S "CRISIS MANAGEMENT" "Every major executive in America ought to read at least one book on crisis management. In this way, he or she might be better prepared to deal with the disasters striking organizations at an ever-increasing rate ... The question is: 'Is Steven Fink's book one that busy executives ought to read?' The answer is a resounding yes."-"LOS ANGELES TIMES," FRONT PAGE SUNDAY BOOK REVIEW

Genres: Nonfiction, Business, Communication

305 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Annet · Rating 3 out of 5]

In short, never go "radio silent in a crisis"...

So I'm writing an assignment about crisis management and crisis communications for my master studies and saw this book in many literature lists. It's a book filled with crisis business cases (think of BP, Toyota, Wendy's etc...) and basically the learning is: be honest, be transparent, apologize and take appropriate action quickly and accurately, use a 'task force' or crisis team with competent people and good spokespersons and communicators, prepare a crisis plan as a basis for various sceniaros and hire external advice if necessary. Many companies, advised by big legal companies, do the contrary.... unfortunately.
What is a crisis according to the author? A crisis is a fluid and dynamic state of affairs containing equal parts danger and opportunity. It is a turning point, for better or worse. The Chinese have a word for this: wei-ji.
Interesting read though a bit me myself and I author and repeating things that have already been said. Good tips though to prepare crisis management for your company.

[Rūta Putnikienė · Rating 4 out of 5]

Patiko, yra gerai išanalizuotų case’ų, nors jie ir senokai vykę, bet juk principai nesikeičia. Paskutiniame knygos trečdalyje autorius jau pilstė iš tuščio į kiaurą tarsi dirbtinai daugindamas puslapius, tačiau pirmi du trečdaliai tikrai verti skaitymo

[Allie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unlike many crisis communications books, he does a good job separating crisis management from crisis communications. I didn’t love all the chapters, but I’m definitely going to make a one-pager from some of his ideas. I wish I had read this book in grad school.

[Micki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though some of the topics feel a little rusty now, this is an excellent approach to managing a crisis sans jargon. It does not necessarily spoon feed you a step-by-step guide, but it does give you the tools to construct your own approach.

[Mallory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Required reading for my Leadership in a Global Crisis course for my EdD program. Excellent book! Well written with a lot of examples and practical advice.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book on how to manage a crisis, well be prepared to handle a crisis. Parts got a bit repetitive but overall worth the read.