Internal and External Communications Considerations During Special Situations
This past weekend, the nation was shaken by an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. This event has dominated conversations both personally and professionally, and prompted organizations to quickly evaluate if and how they should communicate around such an event.
Such unfortunate and sensitive events reinforce the importance of businesses being able to quickly assess and act in a timely and respectful way that is appropriate for all of their audiences – including employees, customers and communities.
One of an organization’s most important constituents is its own employees. In the case of the recent presidential assassination attempt, companies had to consider a number of factors as they planned potential communications around the event:
– Mission, Vision, Values: A consistent core reference point, the company’s values should be front and center whenever both internal and external communications are being made. In addition to reinforcing your MVV, inform employees of actions leadership may be taking or any actions they as individuals can/should take.
– Employee Well-being and Expectations: Did the event, or could it, have an impact on your employees that needs to be acknowledged or addressed? Beyond that, would your employees expect to hear from their employer based on communications precedence, the company’s values, or the impact on their day to day work environment? Keep in mind that your employees may react to the event or be impacted differently, so demonstrate understanding and empathy.
– Business Impact: Is there a potential impact to your business – near or long term? If there is, clearly explain what the event or crisis means for the organization and direct implications (if any) it may have. For example, following the assassination attempt on Trump, the Dow surged due to investor reactions. Such market dynamics may directly impact your company or the work of your employees.
While the presidential assassination attempt was not cause for a lot of organizations to make public statements that directly addressed the event, there are important steps that can be taken proactively to manage and protect an organization’s brand.
For example, during such sensitive times, companies may need to temporarily halt non-essential messaging and promotions. This includes social media posts across various channels, pre-scheduled marketing emails, and any communications that do not address the current event directly.
It is also best practice to monitor and review the responses of other companies, CEOs, and competitors regarding the crisis. Their perspectives can provide valuable insights for your organization, offering strategies to adopt or avoid in your own communications. For example, this piece from Axios compiled a list of responses from CEOs of corporate America after the assassination attempt.
In both cases, these steps are among the many guidelines that organizations should already have outlined in their customized special situations and crisis playbooks. This invaluable resource serves as a ‘one-stop shop’ for your executive leadership team, containing a wide array of pre-approved materials, messages, checklists, protocols and more that empower fast decision-making and action during unexpected events like we just experienced.
To learn more about Vested’s special situations services, click here.
