By Alan Mariasch
All organizations are subjected to go through situations of abnormality and tension of greater or lesser degree. Therefore, crisis management is an activity that aims to minimize, reduce or if possible eliminate the impacts caused by these adversities, so the company has the lowest financial and reputational damage possible.
Crisis management is a wide process that involves all areas of the company and its managers. In situations like this, a committee is created and a leader is identified to coordinate the team during the emergency. This group will define the next steps to be taken, whether in the area of communication, legal, work safety, supplies, etc.
In the specific case of the role of communication in times of crisis, it is important to emphasize that the company must be as open as possible with the press. This means to announce the opinion of the organization about an issue in an agile and objective way, aiming to eliminate possible controversy. In general, silence is the worst attitude in these moments.
The media training, which is the training for spokespeople to deal with the press, is essential in crises situations. With trained executives, the communication with journalists will be more effectively and this can make a big difference in delicate periods like these.
* Alan Mariasch is a PR account manager at Race Comunicação
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