Crisis Communications Management by Gonzalez-Herrero and Smith - Essay Example

A ‘many-to-many’ model of communication has replaced the latter, requiring organizations to implement multiple online communication strategies that can counter any challenges in the event of a crisis.

            In the words of Gonzalez & Smith (2010); “the new internet environment demands that organizations be cognizant of facts that; there is instant access to information by their audiences, stakeholders are today more scattered given the diversity of media available online, people with issues against organizations can with the help of the internet, quickly mobilize to protect their interests and the traditional role of mass media as a gatekeeper and disseminator of information does not exist anymore”.  For these reasons, organizations have evolved in their communication to audiences by being more proactive online. Pro-activity in this context requires them to engage their audience on all platforms and respond to their concerns so that in the event of a crisis, the mechanisms are already in place and a good relationship with the online audience is created.

Key issues from the article and their possible development in three to five years

            Even with many organizations having implemented online crisis management strategies, the next few years will see an acute improvement in how some of these organizations shape their existing frameworks. In this regard, the following can be picked out as the  critical issues from Gonzalez & Smith’s (2010) article that will possibly be expanded in the short term:

• Correctly understanding an organization’s audience:  As explained by Gonzalez & Smith (2010), an organization in the building materials manufacturing industry does not have a savvy audience as a gaming software company. These two entities cannot, therefore, employ the same crisis management strategy in the online world. Most organizations engage in business-to-business and business- to- individual levels, and this calls for a proper understanding of the audience segments so that commensurate communication models are embraced. In the next few tears, companies are most likely going to segment their audience and have online crisis management strategies for each division. Presently, companies have a common online media center that responds to tweets and keeps a tab with comments on Facebook for all audiences; this will most likely change in three to four years.
• Need to be proactive online: Most companies have embraced social media and appreciated its power to build or destroy an organizational reputation. There are; however, few organizations with clear social media policies and strategies, this is partly because of the new nature of this platform and the fact that a lot more learning is ongoing to incorporate social media properly into the traditional communication frameworks. Even with the current learning process, the degree of companies’ proclivity towards this media is yet to reach the desired levels. In the subsequent few years, additional resources will be dedicated to online communication with twenty-four-hour social media centers in the majority of organizations. Having a heavy presence in the virtual world will be useful in detecting disasters before their happening, and finding the most suitable mitigation plan. Should the disasters happen, crisis management will be much easy because of the level of preparedness. Cases like the “United Lost My Guitar” song on YouTube and “KFC rats’ incident” will be handled immediately they are detected before they blow out of proportion.
• Making the online culture part of an organization’s way of life: Major companies around the world have existed for several years prior to the emergence of the internet and social media, as we know them today. It is, therefore, acceptable to allow these companies more time to not only accept social media as the new communication platform but also for them to fully embrace the concept. The historical crisis management models must, therefore, be aligned with the new technological development around the internet, As Gonzalez & Smith (2010) put it, the traditional crisis management strategies have not changed and did not need to change, but rather, they should be in line with the rapid information dissemination brought about by the internet.

Older and relatively technology rigid members of an organization, must, therefore, be guided to accept and embrace social media as the new frontier in crisis management. In the next few years, organizations will most likely spend more resources in incorporating the online culture into the larger organizational way of life. With such happening, a more online-based business society will be achieved where crises are managed in the virtual world and contained comprehensively through that media.

Conclusion

            Crisis management strategies may not have changed over the years, but with the emergence of the internet and social media, new and extremely unique challenges, as well as opportunities, have presented themselves. It is possible presently, to use complex algorithms to predict a disaster that is yet to happen. This is a positive development brought about by the internet and social media. But in the same magnitude, should a disaster occur; the very internet and social media have the potential of destroying a company’s reputation that has been build over many years, in very few hours. Organizations must, therefore, work towards comprehensive online crisis detection and management strategy so that all involved are prepared with the right tools should such occur. Building on existing strategies and adopting new workable ones as more research is conducted in this field will be the trend over the next three to five years.