Richard Ren, account manager for Weber Shandwick’s healthcare team shares his insights about how to weather the storm and come out shining.

The Chinese media industry has undergone drastic changes in recent years.  Organizational restructuring and reduced financial support from the government have resulted in increased flexibility and editorial control for the Chinese media.  The SARS crisis in 2003 was a watershed moment for media industry transformation in China.  Following the crisis, the government began to realize the importance and huge social influence of media and responded by adopting a milder media control policy to bring more openness and positive change to the industry.  Gradually, priority news coverage became main-stream, leading to general acceptance of the trend to report independently.  The number of media sources and journalists increased significantly, creating a much more intense competitive atmosphere.  Some media have gained good reputations and respect by reporting on sensitive social issues, analyzing outstanding social conflicts, and revealing inside stories behind big incidents.  Moreover, newswire services and the Internet have accelerated this openness and competition.  Once a news item makes local headlines, it may quickly become regional and national news, especially in the case of negative reports and crisis situations.

The healthcare and pharmaceutical industries have direct and crucial relationships with public health and human life.  Moreover, healthcare issues (reform, high medical expenses, commercial bribery, etc.) have become problems that require government discussion and further action.  Therefore, potentially controversial issues involving companies working in related industries are hot issues likely to attract media coverage and make headlines.  Timely responses to any issues that arise will be critical in limiting potential damage to the reputation of these companies.

The types of emergency communications issues these companies could face in the course of their daily work can be diverse. Regardless of potential issues, when a major news story breaks, it is difficult for organizations to estimate the potential extent, direction, and length of the coverage.  The most important job is to communicate the facts and to minimize disruption to those involved.  This means providing media with what they need to get the job done – on your terms, not theirs. 

2006 is a unique year for China’s healthcare sector.  Patient complaints regarding high medical costs have brought doctors, hospitals, medical suppliers and pharmaceutical companies into the public focus.  An increased number of inside stories were revealed by the media, resulting in media crises for the companies under the spotlight.  Companies are not immune to these issues.  Thus, a strong, ongoing program of crisis management is urgently needed, where awareness, readiness and communications all play essential roles.

Communications:  The Key to Success

For good or ill, an organization is communicating each and every minute throughout the course of a crisis, whether it intends to or not.

Thoughtful, consistent and carefully crafted communications is indeed the key to successful crisis management and resolution.  What you say, how you say it, when you say it and to whom you say it will make the difference between the restoration of public trust and continued calamity leading to a compromised or damaged reputation.

Crisis Affords Opportunities

How companies act in a crisis is more important than what they say.  Although no one can fully control the course of events during a crisis, we can greatly influence the opinions and perceptions it creates.  A crisis offers organizations the opportunity to reaffirm their values and reinforce positive opinions and perceptions.

It is possible for organizations to benefit richly from skilled communications during a crisis.  The potential benefits include:

• Sustaining – and even enhancing – one’s reputation in the industry
• Establishing oneself as a respected and responsible partner among all stakeholders
• Building lasting relationships with government and media that influence public perceptions and opinions
• Gaining respect and appreciation from employees

Overcoming the Challenges

A crisis presents formidable challenges to communicators.  In the early stages of an incident, very little reliable information may be available.  The organization hit with the crisis will likely operate in an environment of misinformation, speculation and rumor.  Time and the pace of events will be compressed.  Critical strategic decisions must be made in hours, if not minutes. Intense scrutiny often occurs from the outside.

There are characteristics common to most crisis situations that can become pitfalls for communicators.  These include:

• Surprise
• Insufficient or incorrect information
• Complex or insufficient communication channels
• Loss of control
• Siege mentality
• Panic
• Short-term focus

With proper planning and preparation, communicators can overcome these pitfalls.  The following principles can help you successfully meet the challenges of communicating in a crisis.

Convey control.  People are generally risk averse. In other words, those with whom you communicate in a crisis will almost always favor the side that represents the least risk.  That is why it is important to demonstrate that your side has the situation under control and is working to eliminate or reduce risk.

Keep focused.  Make sure the company’s position and actions regarding the core issue are clear from the outset.  Keep the focus on what the company is doing to address the core issue; this will help prevent or limit distracting side issues.

Engage potential exploiters.  Advocacy groups may exploit a crisis for their own purposes.  Identify these groups and their issues; if possible, engage them before conflict sets in, with the aim of preventing or mitigating exploitation.

Avoid debate.  The cold, hard fact of a crisis is that perception is reality.  Perceptions are often the result of emotions stirred by a crisis.  Engaging in debate – even if the organization’s point of view is entirely rational – is viewed as defensive behavior.  Target the perceptions of those affected by the crisis and focus your messages accordingly.

Speak with one voice.  Your goal should be to provide consistent information from a single, reliable source – especially in the early stages of a crisis.  The organization’s “face” during an emergency should be someone who is authoritative but also able to convey a genuine concern for the human dimensions of the situation.

Communicate early and often.  In the first few hours after an incident, there is an ideal opportunity to shape the way the story will be told and establish credibility with the public and those who shape opinions and perceptions.

Get ahead of the curve.  Anticipate every conceivable turn of events during a crisis situation.  That means preparing fact sheets, backgrounders and announcements – in advance – to support pro-active communication.

Get all of the bad news out at once.  Be willing to have a bad day.  If the news media or other parties reveal the bad news, the perception will be that we tried to hide it.  Get the bad news out first – all of it – and build in context as you do.

Believe that problems can be solved.  Your attitude is all-important when communicating in a crisis.  The confidence displayed by the individual in the company will go a long way toward restoring or maintaining the trust of others.

Trust and leverage your knowledge of your business.  You have power, whether you know it or not, because you are an expert.  Put that expertise to use as a provider of solid, accurate information.

Account Manager, Richard Ren
rren@webershandwick.com