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Crises present opportunities

Admire Moyo
By Admire Moyo, ITWeb's news editor.
Johannesburg, 19 Feb 2015
Organisations should view a crisis as an opportunity to show their character in dealing with the situation, says Alan Hilburg, president and CEO of HilburgAssociates.
Organisations should view a crisis as an opportunity to show their character in dealing with the situation, says Alan Hilburg, president and CEO of HilburgAssociates.

Organisations should view a crisis as an opportunity to show their character in dealing with the situation.

So said Alan Hilburg, president and CEO of HilburgAssociates, speaking at the ITWeb Crisis Management Masterclass at the Wits Business School yesterday.

"A crisis situation is uncomfortable, but it should also be an opportunity - that is if you are prepared. Out of your vulnerabilities, comes your strength."

He pointed out in order to emerge from a crisis, organisations must have plans in place. "The best time to fix a leaky roof is on a sunny day," said Hilburg. He urged companies to understand the conditions of the crisis and know the forces behind it before tackling it.

According to Hilburg, crisis management is not about the crisis itself, public relations or about the organisation's reputation. Crisis management is about protecting business continuity and retaining trust from the business' stakeholder community, he noted.

To prepare for a crisis, Hilburg said organisations must create an accurate real world landscape of the crisis beforehand. "They should ask: 'What issues are related to the crisis? Who are my allies? Does my crisis plan engage the allies? Who are the potential adversaries or critics? What are their motivations? Who are their allies?'

"You have to think of a crisis as an iceberg; you only see 10% of it on top, while the rest is at the bottom."

Emotional economy

The term ROI no longer means return on investment, but rather, the value of trust, he pointed out, adding organisations must aim at retaining influence on the communities they engage with.

"Our new reality is consumer democracy, driven largely by digital technologies. We have moved on from a rational economy to an emotional economy. In the rapid evolution from a rational to emotional economy, customer satisfaction is out and it is being replaced by customers who want relationships built on trust."

He noted businesses have to connect to the needs of those they are trying to reach out to. "They must make frequent deposits into their goodwill, trust and reputation banks. Trust is a precondition of loyalty. From a brand perspective, you can't have loyalty without trust."

Hilburg is also of the view that high-trust organisations outperform low-trust organisations three to one. "Trust is an accelerator of performance, and mistrust derails even the best strategy."

Organisations must realise a brand is built on the trust consumers put in them - their products, institution and campaigns, said Hilburg.

"A brand is how someone feels about your product or service, not how they think about you. In other words, a brand behaves as a guarantee. It feels like a promise that is always kept."

He noted, for organisations to understand the full extent of a crisis, they must approach it with an element of fear.

Hearing versus listening

To Hilburg, a clear communication strategy is one of the best ways to deal with a crisis. "Communication is about getting people to listen. You have to speak to be listened to and there is a huge difference between hearing and listening."

He noted studies have shown 90% of the people in the world hear, while only 10% listen. "No matter your job title, you have to convert the other 90% into listeners. If people are not listening to you, you can't change their behaviour, choices, preferences and decisions."

To make people listen, you can offer them incentives, use a clear language that they understand, and ask them some questions, he pointed out.

He also noted for people to listen, they should not be referred to as audiences or stakeholders, but as a community, as this shows they are important. "Referring to them as communities shows you want to align with their decisions, choices and preferences."

Communication also requires organisations to put a context to those they are trying to reach out to, said Hilburg. "If you can't put the context to why you matter, how can people listen to you?"

Trust guarantee

He believes there is a high cost to low trust. "When it comes to trust, we need to understand the scope, scale and cost of mistrust in every customer, leadership, employee and community relationship. You break the trust, you break the relationship. Trust is a precondition of loyalty, engagement and market choice."

In closing, Hilburg said when dealing with a crisis, organisations must focus on addressing the apparent and less apparent human needs of the perceived victim of the crisis.

"When communicating about a crisis, unless you know for sure, do not over-reassure; acknowledge uncertainty but the commitment to finding answers; tolerate early over-reactions; let communities know what to expect; and report your bad news first," he concluded.

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