Forty-Six Percent of Companies Increased
Crisis Communication Planning in Wake of September 11
Lessons Learned from 9/11
DES MOINES (September 3, 2002) – A national survey of public relations professionals has found that the September 11th tragedy has led companies to give higher priority to updating their crisis communication plans and seek faster ways to communicate with all employees in the event of a crisis.
The survey of 150 companies nationwide, conducted by Pinnacle Worldwide,
evaluated whether companies had changed their approach to media relations,
employee relations or community relations in the aftermath of 9/11.
Pinnacle Worldwide is a network of more than 60 leading independent public
relations firms around the world. Hanser & Associates, Des Moines, is the
member firm in Iowa.
“Our survey found that 46 percent of companies have increased their focus
upon crisis communication planning in the wake of 9/11,” said Ronald Hanser,
President of Hanser & Associates. “Companies re-evaluated their crisis
communication plans and determined that the top priority is to communicate
quickly and effectively with all employees.”
The survey indicates that the most typical changes to communications programs include:
- Updating crisis communication plans and briefing employees about these plans.
- Improving the company’s ability to communicate faster with all employees:
- Updating employee contact lists with home and cell phone numbers and home e-mail addresses
- Instituting e-mail blast technology
- Establishing a back-up toll-free number
- Exploring additional communications technologies, including wireless web access, radio phones and instant messaging software
- Establishing temporary office sites
- Identifying back-up communications systems
- Instituting stronger security checkpoints at company entrances and employee identification badge programs
- Developing informational web sites for potential future activation
- Cross-training employees to take on broader responsibilities
- Conducting media training to prepare company spokespeople to handle media inquiries.
ABOUT PINNACLE WORLDWIDE, INC.
Pinnacle Worldwide is an international network of independent public relations firms with 68 offices and 2,000 employees in 31 countries.
Pinnacle's offices in the U.S. are in Atlanta, Boise, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Des Moines, Detroit, Houston, Kansas City, Las
Vegas, Laguna Beach, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, Portland, St. Louis, San Diego, San
Francisco, Seattle, Tampa and Washington, D.C. Founded in 1976, Pinnacle is the world's oldest
organization of its kind. For more information visit www.pinnacleww.com.
ABOUT HANSER & ASSOCIATES
Hanser & Associates is a team of public relations specialists that helps
companies build and maintain relationships with the people who are important
to their future. Co-owned by Ronald and Bonnie Hanser, the national award-winning firm is headquartered in Des Moines and has an office in
Omaha, Neb. The firm is nationally ranked among the top 20 independent PR firms in Midwest cities. An equity partner in Pinnacle Worldwide, the firm
has partner offices in 68 major cities around the world. For more information visit
www.hanser.com.
###