CommaKazi Speek Podcast Show 8
Interview Date: May 2, 2007
A follow-up interview with crisis communications consultant Gerard Braud, taking a closer look at crisis communications planning two weeks after the Virginia Tech massacre.

No, we haven’t started summer reruns yet…this is a 12-minute follow-up conversation with a crisis communications expert who has helped many organizations prepare for the worst–and has seen firsthand how the lack of crisis planning can be as devastating as the crisis itself.

Braud shares some important ideas–including why text messaging isn’t the “answer” in a crisis like the Virginia Tech shootings. He also provides a glimpse into the presentation he will make this June in New Orleans at the International Conference of the International Association of Business Communicators.

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Devote about 30 minutes to listen to crisis communications expert Gerard Braud share lessons learned from the Virginia Tech massacre and the devastation to the Gulf Coast caused by Hurricane Katrina. The conversation is the focus of the latest CommaKazi Speek podcast, Show #6, available for downloading here.

Looking back, it was an eerie coincidence that I moderated a comment that Braud left on one of my IABC Cafe posts about emergency communications just minutes before the Virginia Tech student began his shooting rampage on Monday morning (April 16) that left more than 30 students and faculty members dead.

Braud and I had begun to discuss the idea of recording his thoughts on crisis communications related to Hurricane Katrina. Then the media frenzy surrounding the Virginia Tech massacre made us realize that we should expand our original discussion.

As Braud points out in the podcast, this is not a time to benefit from the misery of this tragedy. We do feel that the events at Virginia Tech and New Orleans provide an opportunity for communicators to engage in important discussions with their employers and clients regarding crisis planning.

Show Notes

CommaKazi Speek Podcast Show 6
April 18, 2007
An interview with Gerard Braud on the topic of crisis communication planning.

00:00 Show theme, “Rollin’”; by Barry McCabe
00:15 Introduce Gerard Braud
01:00 Virginia Tech tragedy
01:25 Flawed Crisis Plan / A Learning Experience
07:30 Phones and Text Messages
10:30 Leaders in Crisis
15:30 Denial in New Orleans
22:15 The Workshop and Tour
29:00 Yes, New Orleans is Safe to Visit!
Also, here is a link to a April 18, 2007 online Wall Street Journal article, regarding the value of text messaging in an emergency, that quotes Gerard. If you are interested in registering for the June 24, 2007 workshop and Katrina Bus Tour led by Gerard, register on the IABC website.

David Murray’s blog post: “Communicators: Always in trouble“Technorati tags:

Preparation for a major crisis is an important subject area for many communicators. I recently wrote a post on this topic on the main blog of the International Association of Business Communicators. Judy Gombita, who has finally joined the blogosphere as a blogger, alerted me to a great report published by The Conference Board of Canada about lessons from Hurricane Katrina: Tough Times in the Big Easy: Lessons From a Catastrophe. Registration is required, but is free.

 Thanks Judy, and congratulations; I’ll be reading your posts!

Allan Jenkins has raised an important issue on his blog.

Why should groups feel that they have the “right” to impose codes of ethics on others, as has Tim O’Reilly? As a member of the International Association of Business Communicators, I agree to honor the IABC Code of Ethics. The preface of the IABC Code of Ethics spells out the association’s perceived reason/value for the code.

I’m copying the preface below, and would like your response to it in terms of whether it is any more or less valuable to communicators, including bloggers, than the O’Reilly “code.”

Preface
Because hundreds of thousands of business communicators worldwide engage in activities that affect the lives of millions of people, and because this power carries with it significant social responsibilities, the International Association of Business Communicators developed the Code of Ethics for Professional Communicators.

The Code is based on three different yet interrelated principles of professional communication that apply throughout the world.

These principles assume that just societies are governed by a profound respect for human rights and the rule of law; that ethics, the criteria for determining what is right and wrong, can be agreed upon by members of an organization; and, that understanding matters of taste requires sensitivity to cultural norms.

These principles are essential:

• Professional communication is legal.
• Professional communication is ethical.
• Professional communication is in good taste.

Recognizing these principles, members of IABC will:

• engage in communication that is not only legal but also ethical and sensitive to cultural values and beliefs;
• engage in truthful, accurate and fair communication that facilitates respect and mutual understanding; and,
• adhere to the following articles of the IABC Code of Ethics for Professional Communicators.

Because conditions in the world are constantly changing, members of IABC will work to improve their individual competence and to increase the body of knowledge in the field with research and education.

As an IABC member, I feel professionally bound to honor the IABC code of ethics, but I don’t demand that everyone else subscribe to it. Frankly, Allan’s  point that his  “badge” is his blog can be expanded to say that every communicator’s work is his or her badge. But does that mean that we should actively resist any attempt to apply standards (ethics) to measure our work against that of others?

Because I believe that all people inherently are flawed, I don’t believe that we can be left to set our own individual standards and base our “success” on whether or not anyone pays attention to our work.

The result of no standards is that the bar lowers to the least common denominator, and real debate that can lead to enlightenment and advancement gets stuck in the muck.

Comments?

I posted my third show today–a couple of days after posting my “fourth” show. The mixup was because I split a lengthy discussion at a recent IABC/Chicago Senior Communicator Forum into two podcasts. I meant for this one to be first, but finished editing the second one and posted it before this one was ready. Oops!

The Senior Communicator Forum concept is helpful to more seasoned communicators, because it provides an opportunity to share and hear ideas, issues and information with other people who “have been there.”

If you meet the qualifications, try to attend a Senior Communicator Forum in your area, or contact me for more information if you wish to start your own forum.

I’ve just posted a podcast on my podcast site. It is a portion of a conversation that I had on Jan. 31, 2007 with three other colleagues during a Senior Communicator Forum at VW Credit, Inc., in Libertyville, Ill.

This portion of the discussion centered around Kraft Food’s embrace of podcasting, and why it wasn’t as enthusiastic about blogging.

This was supposed to be the second part of my posts from the Senior Communicator Forum. The other part was going to be Show 3. So I actually have skipped to Show 4, and will post Show 3 later this week. Confused? Obviously not as much as I am!

I was caught trying to go to those sites again at work. I felt so dirty when my attempt to satisfy myself resulted in the stern company “ACCESS DENIED” page filling my computer screen. What if anyone saw that I was trying to reach these nefarious sites?

• http://blog.holtz.com/ — The oh-so-tempting site operated by the “infamous” Shel Holtz. Why would I even THINK that my IT Department would consider an IABC and PRSA Fellow and long-time communications expert worthy of visitation?
• http://www.nevillehobson.com/ — This one is my “guilty pleasure.” Neville Hobson’s sound judgments and real-world solutions to communications challenges—the stuff that makes a communicator’s blood boil! But he is often seen in the company of Shel Holtz, so what was I thinking?
• http://trafcom.typepad.com/ — Oh, don’t despise me, I can’t help myself. Donna Papacosta almost forces me to frequent her site. The smart advice and tips about podcasting, the links to helpful resources…how could I resist?

But that is the situation I face now at work. I suppose that I should thank my IT Department for making me go “cold turkey” and avoid these sites–and so many others. What reason does IT offer, to comfort me? Security concerns with blogs and streaming audio/video. That’s what I learned when my craving to have at Shel’s, Neville’s and Donna’s sites made me temporarily insane. How insane? Insane enought to try to reason with IT. Stop laughing. I suggested that blocking these kinds of sites gives the appearance that IT doesn’t “trust” employees. But this has nothing to do with trust, my colleagues assure me. It is about security.

Special thanks to communications consultant Steve Crescenzo, who spent some time talking with me about “cutting through the clutter.” Our conversation occurred just before Steve’s Jan. 17, 2007 lunch seminar of the same name, organized by the Chicago Chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators.

I recorded our conversation and used it as my first podcast. Let me know what you think.