CRISIS RESPONSE PLANNING.

The old adage, "Bad news travels fast," is all too true. No organization is exempt from a crisis, and an organization involved in one seldom has the luxury of dealing with the situation on a convenient timetable.

While putting together a leadership orientation manual for our organization, we began to consider different scenarios that might affect our association and decided we needed to establish procedures to follow in the event of an internal or external crisis. Following are the specifics of the plan.

Emergency communication plan

First, decide who will make decisions relating to the crisis. We designated our four-member executive committee and our executive director--with advice from our attorney--to serve as our Emergency Communication Task Force. We update this list yearly, adding new officers and confirming all current contact information.

Determine that the moment anyone hears of a potential crisis, they notify the executive director or president who then can notify the others. The task force will discuss the severity of the crisis and the urgency of a response. If needed, they will appoint a response team.

Response team

The members of the response team have specific tasks.

* Gather information.

* Assess information and the impact of the situation--as well as of a crafted response--on the association, community, and member firms.

* Assess potential association involvement in resolving the crisis, including resulting economic, legal, and social impact on members.

* Alert the parent association of the situation.

* Contact members, staff, and outside experts if necessary.

* Establish a final course of action and a timeline for completion.

Spokesperson

If the crisis situation may attract media coverage, the task force should appoint an official spokesperson--likely the chapter president--to communicate from one source and with one voice. The spokesperson should be as open as possible, express concern, stress the positive factors, and reassure the community that to the best of the association's knowledge, the situation is under control.

Media statements

Before any statement is issued, the response team should evaluate whether or not the public needs to know. If a media statement is made, it should be strictly factual; do not include conjecture, speculation, or personal opinion. Indicate that further details will be announced as available or necessary, and distribute written press releases during all briefings and oral statements to create an accurate record of information. The response team should monitor the media's coverage and correct inaccuracies immediately.

With any luck, your organization will not need to activate a crisis response plan--but it will be reassuring to know that you have one in place.

Submitted by Trudy Aron, CAE, executive director, American Institute of Architects, Kansas Chapter, Topeka (staff size: 2; annual operating budget: $228,350).