Hill+Knowlton Strategies

Is it just me, or are public relations practitioners – in particular, the bloggers – an uber-sensitive lot? Echo chamber effect aside, are there other industries out there – besides politics – that feel the need to publicly goose one-another more than we do? If so, I’d love to know. Granted, I’ve itched to question the (often half-baked) decisions of my competitors (and have stated as much), but let’s not transform what might be useful discussions - or even those less-than-useful - into glorified episodes of America’s Next Top Model. Yeah, conflict makes for good reading (nay, rubbernecking), but do you really want to be remembered by potential clients or employees for simply being good at slagging others? Who knows when you might be knocking on their door for a job?

That said, I cannot claim absolute innocence. Once upon a time (meaning pre-21st century), I jumped all over a member of the marketing community for pronouncing himself a “concepteur” (granted, it had been a bad day all round, and that just capped it off) which led to some pretty ribald exchanges in the letters section of Canada’s Marketing magazine.  Today, however, my latest peeves are jargon-y stink bombs like “ideation” which remind me of a recent Economist obituary for Jim Michaels, a former editor of Forbes, who once tore a strip off a journalist for using the term “upscale”:

“His edits, seen by everyone on the open filing system, were surreptitiously collected in the “Abuse File”. Some entries became famous outside the magazine, such as his wild reaction to “upscale”: “IF I SEE THIS WORD AGAIN ILL UPTHROW”. Copies are still circulating.” 

You may have noticed that I’ve been talking a lot about crisis recently. The reason being that a crisis – whether an accident or a crisis of confidence – is often an area where corporate reputations are either greatly strengthened or irreparably damaged (depending on how they respond), where journalists’ careers can be jumpstarted, and where the skills of PR practitioners are tested and scrutinized under the most extreme conditions. It’s also an area where H&K invests considerably, given what’s often at stake… be it human lives, the future of a business and the jobs it creates, or the safety of an entire community. It is PR when the stakes are highest.

And if crisis management wasn’t hard enough already, in today’s 2.0 world, reputation is no longer determined solely by what we read in the media. Consider that trust in traditional organizations and institutions continues to erode (and I’m not entirely convinced by studies that claim the contrary) and is being supplanted by a new breed of influencers, that transparency is not only being demanded but imposed, that technological barriers to entry no longer exist, and that we as a society appear to increasingly and willingly expose ourselves in order to participate, speak up and be heard.  

Consider also that news is no longer “local” and can easily reach a global audience, and that the traditional media are increasingly looking to social media for new angles, tips and story ideas in order to ride the momentum. Consider the potential for misinformation and speculation to spread through the blogosphere and social networks like wildfire if left unchecked, fanned by emotion and bias rather than a desire for accuracy and credibility. And consider the risk now posed by employees who might attempt to join the conversation without understanding the bigger picture or  the consequences of their actions if they are anything less than fully transparent.

I spent a couple of days last week back in Calgary participating in a series of crisis training sessions with Jo-Anne Polak, our national crisis practice leader. It was the first time that we had fully integrated our traditional and digital crisis philosophies and principles into a more holistic approach for this client (In recent months, I have conducted a series of training and education sessions with clients that were focused specifically on digital and crisis.). It spurred a lot of discussion and thinking around what steps need to be taken to ensure their existing policies and processes reflect this new dynamic. Discussions that need to happen.

The integration was not difficult, given H&K’s unique approach to crisis management. It reflects new realities that have shaped the media environment since 9-11, and which have been further transformed with the London Bombings, Hurrican Katrina, the Virginia Tech tragedy and the California wildfires earlier this year. It acknowledges the increasing importance of your digital footprint, the power of the search engines, and the opportunities created through social media to reach and engage audiences directly. And it questions current thinking, including the need to tie communications solely to the requirements of traditional media.

As I mentioned at the start of this post, Crisis communications is PR when the stakes are highest. And yet even as the industry looks inward following silliness such as this, I fear that we may be ignoring an even greater challenge and test to the credibility of our industry in future years. The responsibility for us all is clear.  

Wrapping a PR context around a truly awesome video is never easy. But here goes… and, yeah, it’s a stretch. But you’ll thank me for it.

Think Crisis in a Web 2.0 world. Consider the virtual tidal wave of “noise” – the new voices - that would likely erupt, and which could potentially overwhelm an organization unprepared to deal with the implications of the social web. Consider how an organization must now react in order to keep pace with this surge of new information (and misinformation) that could literally overwhelm their capacity to effectively manage the crisis. Think speed, agility, and focus – critical factors required in equal measure to endure through such a maelstrom.

Or… simply enjoy this video as I did (particularly when the camera first pulls back from the surfer). It’s Friday. Whatever.

Third Tuesday Ottawa is nearly upon us (next Monday, that is) and while I won’t be able to attend (as I’ll be back in Calgary), I think the rest of you should… because, well, it features Colin…arguably Canada’s most prolific blogger on issues related to communications, government and the afterlife of a high school preppie (if, of course, I’ve interpreted it right).

Perhaps most interesting, is how Colin continues to tweak the proverbial nipple of government (through his day job as well as his alter-blog), encouraging them to push forward on embracing digital and social media tools, and – best of all – making some good headway on the part of his current employer… including blogging and, more recently, in the use of video.

So, as per the usual, we encourage you to register early and often so that the venue can staff appropriately (and you won’t have to wait as long for your drink)… oh, and remember, it’s FREE.

A month or so ago, the good people at the City of Calgary invited me to participate in a day-long session on the impact of social media and local government.

Over the course of the event, which happened last week and was co-organized by the City’s Corprate Marketing and Communications (CMC) division and its Customer Service and Communications Communication Partners Services (CPS) Division, I presented twice: first, to a group of 70+ city managers on the implications of social media as it related to such areas as trust, transparency, and the role of emerging technologies in transforming the relationships between the City, its citizens, and its employees. In the afternoon, I presented a second time to a similarly-sized group of communicators and marketers on social media and reputation management… with a focus on crisis.

From the perspective of this participant, it was an impressive exercise in mass education and immersion into the new communications dynamic, and one that I have rarely seen undertaken within a public sector organization at any level previously (although that’s not to say these events are not happening elsewhere. I just haven’t heard about them).

And it makes sense, particularly as it relates to municipal government. In the same way we tend to ignore local politics despite the fact that it often impacts our daily lives more so than any other level of government, the current emphasis on social media and PR tends to skew toward the more sexy interactions between consumers and brands at the expense of government-citizen engagement, which is perhaps where the potential for social media is even greater. When you look at tragic events such as this (recognizing that this was captured within the confines of Vancouver Airport, although it involved federal law enforcement, but hopefully you get my point), or this, or this, the implications of citizen journalism and social media to impose transparency on the behaviours of government – at any level – are only further reinforced. 

The next day, I joined a smaller group of 20 or so communicators, web team members and others to brainstorm ideas on where the City might focus some of its efforts in the areas of social media – from both internal and external perspectives, including a discussion on the role of social media in times of crisis (which is a discussion that I seem to be having increasingly often). And while obstacles clearly existed, the will to find ways to overcome these obstacles – political or otherwise – was also evident, and refreshing to see.

I figure that my role in this exercise was perhaps the easiest – to put it bluntly, instill fear and motivate people to action. And I think that was accomplished. The hard part, in my view – and the role of City communicators – will be to drive this forward, and to help Managers better understand these tools, develop meaningful strategies that integrate old and new while remaining relevant to and focused on their respective business lines, and (most importantly, in my view) to manage expectations as it relates to how these tools will impact what the City does now. Likewise, they will also need to educate elected officials on the benefits of these tools and the need to embrace a more open and transparent approach to communications and engagement, and work with legal teams to determine how best to accelerate approvals and turnaround times and provide clear direction on what should and should not be done as it relates to social media, particularly in times of crisis.

No small undertaking. But based on the collective enthusiasm I witnessed last week, I wouldn’t bet against this team being able to pull it off.

So let’s throw a few stakes into the ground for this post… the first being that the business of PR is no longer synonymous with media relations. The second being that the business of crisis communications is no longer synonymous with media relations.

Like I said just a few days ago, the media is still a critical part of our business - in terms of reach and influence – and must be viewed as such. But more and more, and particularly during times of crisis, an organization’s ability to directly communicate its messages to its most important audiences can no longer be viewed as a mere afterthought, nor distributed solely through a filtered media. And this includes – in addition to employees, customers, and communities – regulators, law enforcement and emergency services, and other government departments and agencies that will be looked to as both partner, and – in all likelihood – as the “higher authority” when a crisis hits.

Which means recognizing the vital role that these and other external agencies and government departments play in managing that crisis, and the importance of close partnership with these agencies as it relates to communications.

Which is why the addition of Dr. Gary Ellis, former Toronto Police Superintendent, to our crisis team is, from our perspective, a milestone event in the way PR firms work with clients in the area of crisis communications and crisis management. As outlined in H&K’s recent announcement, Dr. Ellis will help manage emergencies and prepare corporate clients and government agencies for a potential crisis, ensuring they are able to successfully respond to unforeseen events. 

Why does this matter? In the words of Jo-Anne Polak, H&K Canada’s National Crisis Practice Leader, “Looking at recent crises in North America – whether Hurricane Katrina, shootings at Virginia Tech, or the capture of possible terrorists in Toronto – the public response and communications during these events has been handled by law enforcement officials – and extends beyond media relations into true stakeholder outreach. Dr. Ellis brings to Hill & Knowlton a tactical knowledge of how to organize and coordinate a response during an emergency, as well as to incorporate the concerns of a broad range of stakeholder groups.” 

Combined with our aggressive focus on digital and crisis in a Web 2.0 world, the addition of Gary to the crisis team is something I’m pretty excited about. Welcome aboard, Gary!  

In the category of things that might effectively neuter the future viability of PR, I offer you this direct from the Bulldog Reporter’s 2008 Bulldog Awards brochure:

“Who better to assess the work of PR professionals than the most important audience for your work? Our 20 journalist judges are tough but enthusiastic supporters of media relations excellence.”

Without question, traditional media relations remains a critical component of the PR toolkit, and will remain so for the forseeable future. The reach and credibility of the mainstream media (for the most part) is still vital to influencing perception and behaviour. But what cannot be ignored, however, is that this perceived supremacy is being challenged by the ability of an organization to reach and engage its “real” audiences directly (meaning customers, employees, communities, governments, etc.), to mobilize advocates and galvanize support and endorsement beyond the media itself. Furthermore, and in specific instances, effective PR is about not engaging with the mainstream media at all. So why define PR success in such narrow terms?

Quite simply, if we as an industry continue to believe in and support the notion that PR is synonymous with media relations (and that the journalist is the “most important” audience) at the expense of everything else we could and should be doing, then the battle for future legitimacy will be lost without a shot being fired.