Crisis Communications: The Definitive Guide to Managing the Message

ANATOMY OF A CRISIS

One final point on crisis management before we turn our attention back to crisis communications: in conducting research for my crisis management book, which included not only an analysis of pivotal business crises across the country but a confidential survey of the CEOs of what were then the Fortune 500 companies, I discovered that crises usually follow a similar pattern regardless of the industry affected. Understanding this pattern gives you greater control over the management of a crisis because you have a better idea of what lies ahead, and you can plan and manage accordingly.

My research, as reported in that earlier book, concluded that there are four separate and distinct stages to a crisis:³

The Prodromal Stage

The ...