Welcome back! I am writing this at the lovely :( Newark Liberty airport as I patiently await my (delayed) flight to Halifax. Such are the challenges of being a road warrior. I have learned a long time ago not to let very much upset me as I am travelling..no security meltdowns for me! Besides it's not good for the blood pressure or the career...as a few Canadian Cabinet Ministers have recently discovered.
Rahim Jaffer's Committee Disaster
Speaking of the former Minister, Helena Guergis, who did the training for her husband Rahim Jaffer in his Parliamentary Committee testimony? He made the Goldman Sachs officials look well...terrible too.
Although I did think it was a brilliant move to bring along Patrick Glemaud who ended up making Rahim look ....well not good....but better, at least!
Goldman Sachs....Repackaging Subprime Mortgages Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry
I was showing video of the Goldman Sachs Senate Committee disaster to the seminar I was doing today in New Jersey, and the participants asked me if I thought they were trained. Well, if they were they should demand their money back (I mean they do have lots of it, courtesy of the suckers who bought their worthless bonds). I would guess that the lawyers were in dominant mode as indicated by their complete lack of remorse or even apology to the people who believed in them and bought their junk.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKtHdCnxLK4
Of course the grandstanding of Sen. Carl Levin speaks for itself. But let's face it, this is low-hanging fruit for all politicians, right?
Gordon Brown's Media Nightmare
Then there is poor British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, floundering around trying to salvage some dignity from a looming disaster on May 6th and.....he forgets that he is wearing a live mic! Take a look at this and some other politicos who also neglected to think of the microphone when they made their CLCs (Career Limiting Comments):
http://blogs.abcnews.com/nightlinedailyline/2010/04/gordon-brown-new-star-in-hot-mic-mess.html
4/21/10
Crisis Communications Challenges
Welcome back!
Well it's been a few weeks in which I have taken a break from blogging [INSERT CHEERS HERE]. I have just returned from a whirlwind 10 days...five of them spent golfing in Naples FL. and five days in seminars from New York to Toronto. Five rounds in five days led to....a loss of five pounds! So even though my game basically flat-lined, at least my friends and I had a terrific time..playing golf in the morning, watching the Masters in the afternoon. What's a heaven for?
Speaking of golf, Tiger finally faced up to the media and answered [mostly] the questions which Tiger had heretofore ducked. His game was surprisingly strong but his surly media bites following his fourth round did little to show it was a more humble Tiger. Well he's still in rehab, right?
Phil Mickelson's victory was in poignant contrast to Tiger's angry response to his loss. It was not just about his magnificent victory, but more importantly in his genuine reaction to his victory - especially after the challenges he and his wife Amy, and his mother have faced in the past year in their battles with breast cancer. Tiger should pay attention to what humility and class is - in victory or in defeat. Here is a beautiful tribute to Phil and what the victory at the Master's really meant to golf and to what it means to be human:
http://herald-review.com/sports/golf/article_267515fc-4630-11df-b82a-001cc4c002e0.html
Crisis Communications and the Catholic Church
The other major 'crisis' which has captured the world's media is the one involving the Catholic Church. It has been painful for me to watch Pope Benedict and the Church grapple with the issue. I spoke with the Washington Post on this issue last week:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/10/AR2010041002808.html?wprss=rss_metro
Any allegation of sexual abuse of minors is profoundly important and must be dealt with in the strongest possible terms. The Church - as with governments and other institutions - has in the past mishandled the issue, not turning cases over to civil authorities, believing that such abusers could be treated, and reassigning priests instead of removing them permanently from ministry. Society has learned a lot out of this entire issue and we have all come to realize that it must be dealt with in a very different way. Most of the issues facing the Church in America have to do with 'legacy' cases - often back in the sixties, seventies and eighties, as the independent audits show. This must continue until every single case has been fully and appropriately addressed.
Five Crisis Communications Concepts
To a certain extent, one could say that the Church is now dealing with an over-hyped series of 'allegations'; however one of the concepts of crisis management is that allegations - whether substantive or not can still throw an organization into crisis. A second concept is 'don't blame the media' - even if there have been some inaccuracies, or one doesn't like the tone of the stories, don't go there. Thirdly, with different spokespersons speaking out in defence of the Holy Father, it often distorts the message and escalates the problem. Fourthly, take action. Strongly and clearly. While words of apology are important, actions speak louder than words. Finally, the larger the crisis and the longer it goes on, the greater the 'remedy'. Half measures and reacting are not enough to get hold of the crisis.
What is Needed: A Universal Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People
All of these have taken place in recent weeks, but the Church has not been able to make a major turning point in the crisis. What it will take, IMHO, is to bring together a special Synod of Bishops from around the world, and put in place what I would call a Universal Charter - modelled on the American Bishops 'Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People'. http://www.usccb.org/ocyp/charter.shtml
The communications aspect of this is critical, as a Charter provides the framework and the vehicle to communicate the actions necessary to turn the corner on this sorry saga in the Church's history. Such a Charter will serve to mark a major turning point as it did in the United States. It incorporates a fully transparent process backed by consistent actions and reporting across the Church in every country around the world. Through that Charter, will come transparency and accountability.
Half measures won't do the job. I remain hopeful that the Vatican will take hold of this crisis in a strong and forceful way. It's not too late!
The Helena and Rahim Saga Continues
Canadians have been exposed to story after story cataloguing the trials and tribulations of former Cabinet Minister Helena Guergis and her husband, the former MP, Rahim Jaffer. The couple have got themselves into such a mess that it's hard to separate fact from fiction. The Prime Minister's decision to remove her from Cabinet and the Caucus while calling in the Mounties to investigate certain unnamed transgressions - while more than likely his only choice- has whetted the public's appetite for what's behind the call for the investigation.
They have been blessed, however, by the CBC's revelation about the private eye who appears to be behind the most damaging allegations concerning the conflict of interest and associations of the Minister concerning her husband's business dealings. It turns out he is $13 million in debt and tried to peddle his story to the Liberals who had the sense to turn him down. This is an opportunity for Helena Guergis to find a window in this foggy 'allegation-driven' soap opera in order to get a coherent message across. Will she take advantage of it? No sign yet, but Mr. Jaffer is about to appear today before a House Committee to tell his side of the story.
Here is just one example of the latest 'revelation' which serves to ratchet up the story without anything of great substance to back it up:
http://news.ca.msn.com/top-stories/cbc-article.aspx?cp-documentid=23955101
It sure ain't over till it's over!
Until next time.....
Well it's been a few weeks in which I have taken a break from blogging [INSERT CHEERS HERE]. I have just returned from a whirlwind 10 days...five of them spent golfing in Naples FL. and five days in seminars from New York to Toronto. Five rounds in five days led to....a loss of five pounds! So even though my game basically flat-lined, at least my friends and I had a terrific time..playing golf in the morning, watching the Masters in the afternoon. What's a heaven for?
Speaking of golf, Tiger finally faced up to the media and answered [mostly] the questions which Tiger had heretofore ducked. His game was surprisingly strong but his surly media bites following his fourth round did little to show it was a more humble Tiger. Well he's still in rehab, right?
Phil Mickelson's victory was in poignant contrast to Tiger's angry response to his loss. It was not just about his magnificent victory, but more importantly in his genuine reaction to his victory - especially after the challenges he and his wife Amy, and his mother have faced in the past year in their battles with breast cancer. Tiger should pay attention to what humility and class is - in victory or in defeat. Here is a beautiful tribute to Phil and what the victory at the Master's really meant to golf and to what it means to be human:
http://herald-review.com/sports/golf/article_267515fc-4630-11df-b82a-001cc4c002e0.html
Crisis Communications and the Catholic Church
The other major 'crisis' which has captured the world's media is the one involving the Catholic Church. It has been painful for me to watch Pope Benedict and the Church grapple with the issue. I spoke with the Washington Post on this issue last week:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/10/AR2010041002808.html?wprss=rss_metro
Any allegation of sexual abuse of minors is profoundly important and must be dealt with in the strongest possible terms. The Church - as with governments and other institutions - has in the past mishandled the issue, not turning cases over to civil authorities, believing that such abusers could be treated, and reassigning priests instead of removing them permanently from ministry. Society has learned a lot out of this entire issue and we have all come to realize that it must be dealt with in a very different way. Most of the issues facing the Church in America have to do with 'legacy' cases - often back in the sixties, seventies and eighties, as the independent audits show. This must continue until every single case has been fully and appropriately addressed.
Five Crisis Communications Concepts
To a certain extent, one could say that the Church is now dealing with an over-hyped series of 'allegations'; however one of the concepts of crisis management is that allegations - whether substantive or not can still throw an organization into crisis. A second concept is 'don't blame the media' - even if there have been some inaccuracies, or one doesn't like the tone of the stories, don't go there. Thirdly, with different spokespersons speaking out in defence of the Holy Father, it often distorts the message and escalates the problem. Fourthly, take action. Strongly and clearly. While words of apology are important, actions speak louder than words. Finally, the larger the crisis and the longer it goes on, the greater the 'remedy'. Half measures and reacting are not enough to get hold of the crisis.
What is Needed: A Universal Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People
All of these have taken place in recent weeks, but the Church has not been able to make a major turning point in the crisis. What it will take, IMHO, is to bring together a special Synod of Bishops from around the world, and put in place what I would call a Universal Charter - modelled on the American Bishops 'Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People'. http://www.usccb.org/ocyp/charter.shtml
The communications aspect of this is critical, as a Charter provides the framework and the vehicle to communicate the actions necessary to turn the corner on this sorry saga in the Church's history. Such a Charter will serve to mark a major turning point as it did in the United States. It incorporates a fully transparent process backed by consistent actions and reporting across the Church in every country around the world. Through that Charter, will come transparency and accountability.
Half measures won't do the job. I remain hopeful that the Vatican will take hold of this crisis in a strong and forceful way. It's not too late!
The Helena and Rahim Saga Continues
Canadians have been exposed to story after story cataloguing the trials and tribulations of former Cabinet Minister Helena Guergis and her husband, the former MP, Rahim Jaffer. The couple have got themselves into such a mess that it's hard to separate fact from fiction. The Prime Minister's decision to remove her from Cabinet and the Caucus while calling in the Mounties to investigate certain unnamed transgressions - while more than likely his only choice- has whetted the public's appetite for what's behind the call for the investigation.
They have been blessed, however, by the CBC's revelation about the private eye who appears to be behind the most damaging allegations concerning the conflict of interest and associations of the Minister concerning her husband's business dealings. It turns out he is $13 million in debt and tried to peddle his story to the Liberals who had the sense to turn him down. This is an opportunity for Helena Guergis to find a window in this foggy 'allegation-driven' soap opera in order to get a coherent message across. Will she take advantage of it? No sign yet, but Mr. Jaffer is about to appear today before a House Committee to tell his side of the story.
Here is just one example of the latest 'revelation' which serves to ratchet up the story without anything of great substance to back it up:
http://news.ca.msn.com/top-stories/cbc-article.aspx?cp-documentid=23955101
It sure ain't over till it's over!
Until next time.....
4/4/10
Happy Easter Everyone!
Is this a glorious weekend or what? I will be celebrating Easter Monday on CFRA' "Lunch Bunch"chatting about the issues of the day. You can catch it here: http://www.cfra.com/chum_audio/lb%20april%205.mp3
Listen to the chat - about Tiger Woods, the Catholic Church crisis among other issue 'hot' in the media.
Enjoy the sun ....and life....while you're at it!
Listen to the chat - about Tiger Woods, the Catholic Church crisis among other issue 'hot' in the media.
Enjoy the sun ....and life....while you're at it!
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