ABSTRACT

We live in a crisis society, with traditional media responding on a minute-by-minute basis on daily, seemingly inevitable, organizational crises. Whether crises have become more prevalent or we're simply more aware of them, they are now of great concern to organizations and crisis management and communication is a priority. Most organizations have a crisis response plan; many have dedicated crisis and security management staff. Yet much of the emphasis has been on action outside of the organization. Neglecting communication between managers and employees, they risk poor, inconsistent crisis management and the very real possibility of crisis escalation. Crisis management, like charity, begins in the home.

Internal Crisis Communication is one of the first guides to communication inside organizations, before, during and after a crisis – not just on the acute crisis phase – to provide a complete and holistic guide for managers that will help them manage and contain crises. It includes an in-depth real-life case study, referred to throughout, from the author's own experience, which makes practical application explicit and the methodology clear.

Strengthened by rigorous academic research and tested in real-life crisis situations, the methods included in this book will be invaluable for communication professionals, security officers and crisis managers, as well as valuable reading for students and researchers interested in crisis and risk management.

chapter |10 pages

Introduction

chapter Chapter 1|17 pages

Crises and communication

chapter Chapter 2|10 pages

Perspectives on crises and crisis communication

chapter Chapter 3|16 pages

Internal crisis communication

chapter Chapter 4|21 pages

Leaders and co-workers – perspectives and roles

chapter Chapter 5|21 pages

Anticipation – the art of looking for weak signals

chapter Chapter 6|21 pages

Resilience – the art of managing crises and learning

chapter Chapter 7|19 pages

What can we learn, and how?

chapter Chapter 8|4 pages

A note on methodology