Transcript CRISIS COMMUNICATION Colonel NOISETTE Jean-Yves Director of the Fire and Rescue Division for the department of Vaucluse (South of France) METHOD and PRACTICE for CRISIS.

CRISIS COMMUNICATION
Colonel NOISETTE Jean-Yves
Director of the Fire and Rescue Division
for the department of Vaucluse (South of France)
METHOD and PRACTICE for
CRISIS COMMUNICATION
Introduction : The crisis concept
1. Préliminary questions
2. Forms of communication
3. Usual rules
Conclusion
Introduction – The crisis concept
Effects
?
The EVENT
Population
Irrational
anxiety
VPC
Emergency response
?
Doubts about
the event,
its effects
Groups
of pression
Decision center
Politics
Politics
Experts
Effects
?
The EVENT
Population
Irrational
anxiety
VPC
Emergency response
?
Doubts about
the event,
its effects
Groups
of pression
Decision center
Politics
Politics
Experts
Emergency
response
Doubts about
the event, its
effects
Groups
of pression
Decision center
Irrational
behaviour
Fears
Power
conflicts
Closing of
the center
Turning
in on
oneself
Decision center
1 – Preliminary questions
Communication can be
IMPOSED
or
DECIDED
In every cases,
TO COMMUNICATE IS NEVER
NEUTRAL
Before communicate, some questions
are necessary :
2 – Forms of communication
The choice of the right form is made
according to the answers given by the
ANALYSIS :
 Of the operational situation
 Of the media sollicitation level
 Of the population behaviour (victims, witness, etc…)
 Of precedent or malfunction existence
 Of the decision-maker strategy
PR
E
S
S
Operational situation
Media on
field ?
YES
NO
Media
calling ?
Emergency response
NO
YES
INFORMATION
INFORMATION
 Groups of pression
 Doubts
 Contradictions
Emergency
response
Facts
Consequences
Means
We have
all the time
• Event
• Preventative measures
• Rescue acts
Back to normal
FOLLOWING
FOLLOWING
ANALYSIS
ANALYSIS
Groups of pression
Doubts
Contradictions
Operationnal
Technician
Operational situation
Doubts ?
Irrational
behaviour ?
NO
Groups of
Pression ?
Victims ?
NO
Implication of
rescue ?
Antecedents ?
NO
NO
Anxiety ?
NO
NO
NO
Operational situation
Doubts ?
Emergency response
Media on field ?
NO
YES
YES
NO
Expert
Media calling ?
NO
YES
To reduce
Doubts
YES
INFORMATION
INFORMATION
Scientific information
collect
 Excess of attributions
 Number of experts
 Lack of coordination
Analysis
Interpretation of
results
FOLLOWING
ANALYSIS
EXPERT
No limit for
expert attributions
Contradictions
Lack
of coordination
experts
withbetween
TECHNICAL
information
EXPERT
Operational situation
Doubts ?
Victims ?
Emergency response
Media on field ?
YES
NO
Media calling ?
NO
NO
YES
NO
YES
Expert
INFORMATION
To reduce
Doubts
YES
YES
INFORMATION
Victims (Number,
state of health)
 Quality of inforation
 Lack of information
 Lack of coordination
Disaster victims (Evacuation,
lodging,…)
Families
« Green Number »
AUTHORITY
EMPC
Informations about
Disaster victim information
Lack of
coordination
victims
not guaranteed
with
TECHNICAL or
incomplete
for a long time
SCIENTIFIC
and / information
or
(post-Crisis)
in contradiction
Lack of coordination
with « green number »
FOLLOWING
ANALYSIS
Operational situation
Media on field ?
Groups of
pression
YES
Implication
of rescue
Antecedents
Doubts ?
YES
YES
To reduce
doubts
NO
INFORMATION
Expert
Anxiety
Irrationnel
INFORMATION
Answer to
anxiety
 Discrepancy
 Number of communicants
 Lack of answer to the questions
Rationnal explanations
Planned communication
AUTHORITY
No uniqueness
of communicant
:
Discrepancy
the:
No answer tobetween
questions
Prefect
+ elected
message
and
theauthorities
state of
• of the
population
Authorities
ofthe
different
ministries
mind
population
• of
the of
groups
of pression
END OF
ANALYSIS
3 – Usual rules
For a good use of the COMMUNICANT
For a good use of the PLACE
For a good use of the MOMENT
The COMMUNICANT
If the communicant isn’t
credible or representative for
the media, the journalists will
search an operational
protagonist or somebody who
meet their needs among the
witness or the population
AVOID THE RESSOURCE LOSS
 Don’t let an expert or a politic authority to
communicate about technical information.
 Don’t multiply the technical informations.
AVOID THE CREDIBILTY LOSS
 Don’t let the experts to quarrel.
 Don’t contradict or modify an information of
another kind of communication.
The PLACE
The media, especially the radio
and television media, are
looking for « ambiance ».
The journalists want to be :
• on the field of the event
• in the command post
• in the decision center
REDUCE The PRESSURE
 Choose the place, according to the media
requirement.
 Separate the place for press conference
and the structure (command post or decision
center), which is under pressure by the
media.
 Organize a « visit ».
The MOMENT
The radio or television media don’t
have the same requirements than
newspapers :
• The first one are in competition with
each other.
•The second are looking for substance.
CHOOSE THE RIGHT MOMENT
 Choose the moment, according to the
media requirement.
 When there is enough matter for :
TECHNICAL information
SCIENTIFIC information
SOCIAL information
POLITICAL information
If not, communicate carefully, because
NOT TO COMMUNICATE CAN LEAD THE MEDIA TO
INTERPRET THE ACTIONS OR TO BE POLEMICAL.
As a CONCLUSION…
The (bad) communication
GENERATE THE CRISIS !
The (right) communication
- quick, reliable, clear, regular-
AVOID THE CRISIS !
Thank you for your attention
Colonel Jean-Yves NOISETTE
SDIS 84 – Esplanade de l’armée d’Afrique
84 018 AVIGNO Cédex 1
(France)
[email protected]