Crisis Communications
When something has gone wrong, what you say in the first hours shapes how the rest of the story is told. We help you say it accurately, promptly and consistently.
What counts as a communications crisis
A crisis is any event that threatens the safety of people, the continuity of operations or the trust others place in you, and that is likely to attract public attention. It might be a serious workplace incident, a data breach, a product fault, allegations against a senior person, a regulatory investigation or a sudden loss of a major client.
The common thread is pressure on time. Journalists, staff, customers and regulators all want information before you have it all, and silence is filled by others.
The first hours
Early communication does not need to have every answer. It needs to show that you know what has happened, that people come first, and that more information will follow at a stated time. A short holding statement that says this, and nothing that may later prove wrong, is usually the first task.
At the same time, you need one source of truth inside the organisation, a named spokesperson, and a clear decision on who approves each statement. We help set that up quickly so the people managing the incident can concentrate on it.
Communication alongside legal and regulatory duties
Many crises carry formal obligations that run in parallel with media and stakeholder communication. A data breach may need to be assessed under the notifiable data breaches scheme in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). A serious workplace incident may need to be notified to the relevant work health and safety regulator. A listed company must consider its continuous disclosure obligations under the ASX Listing Rules.
These decisions belong with your lawyers and directors. Our role is to make sure the public words are consistent with them, are released in the right order, and never get ahead of what has been notified or confirmed.
What we do during a crisis
- holding statements, updates and question-and-answer documents
- briefing and rehearsing spokespeople for interviews and doorstops
- handling media enquiries and keeping a log of what was said to whom
- messages for staff, customers, partners and the board
- monitoring coverage and commentary, and correcting errors
- a review afterwards of what worked and what needs to change
Before anything happens, we can also help you prepare a crisis communication plan, holding statements for likely scenarios and a short exercise to test them.
Preparing before anything happens
The organisations that handle a crisis well have usually rehearsed. They know who sits on the response team, who speaks publicly, who approves statements and how staff will be told. They have contact lists that are current and holding statements for the scenarios most likely in their sector. A short tabletop exercise, run once a year, exposes the gaps while they are still cheap to fix.
How it works
First contact
You tell us what has happened, what is confirmed and who already knows. We agree immediate priorities.
Holding position
We prepare an initial statement and internal message, and confirm the spokesperson and approval path.
Managing the story
We handle media enquiries, prepare updates as facts are confirmed and keep stakeholders informed.
Recovery and review
Once the pressure eases, we review what happened and help plan the communication that rebuilds confidence.
Crisis communications in Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney
We work in person from Southbank and remotely when speed matters more than location. See public relations in Melbourne, public relations in Canberra and public relations in Sydney for how we work in each city.