Crisis and issues management services
In an era of unprecedented political and economic volatility, crisis and issues management capabilities are no longer just about defense. They’re a strategic asset that, cultivated correctly, can be a source of competitive advantage. Organizations that build strong crisis response muscles can navigate uncertainty more effectively, protect stakeholder relationships, and emerge stronger from challenges.
At Orangefiery, we combine the analytical rigor of management consulting with real-world communications expertise to help organizations build and maintain nimble, effective crisis response capabilities.
Our approach to crisis preparedness
When it comes to crisis and issues management, it is vital to anticipate potential issues, mitigate risk, prepare for the risks you know, build capabilities and monitor the environment for emergent issues and risks on a regular basis.
- Anticipate: Identify and assess the risks facing an organization, encompassing both intrinsic risks and external risks
- Align: Using a workshop or series of workshops, we work with our clients to create an agreed-upon framework to characterize risks and put in place appropriate response activities. A key focus in this step is creating a team empowered to manage crisis preparedness and crisis activity. This group should include participation from regulatory, legal and operating teams as needed.
- Prepare: Put in place monitoring and communications protocols, and draft materials that can facilitate fast and efficient engagement on crises if and when they take place
- Activate (as needed): Create an infrastructure of monitoring and reporting on real-time crises and issues, as well as on-call team that can respond quickly based on needs
- Evaluate: Assess the performance of the crisis and issues management effort, as part of organizational learning and to drive improved outcomes
Anticipate
As a first phase in our crisis and issues management assessment, we undertake two main activities to understand the risks your organization may face:
- Landscape analysis: Conduct desk research on the major issues and potential issues facing the industry and the particular organization
- Leadership in-depth interviews (IDIs): Conduct structured one-on-one interviews with leaders to understand the risks and potential risks they perceive, as well as their expectations and perspectives on the resource requirements for managing issues and crises effectively
We assess risks across four dimensions: reputational, stakeholder, operational and environmental. These categories ensure we will cast a wide net for potential issues, organized in ways that can then be actionable.
The landscape analysis can help us see what risks have come to light in the past, as well as potential issues for the future. In our interviews, we gain a depth of understanding of the issues. These activities will yield a draft risk assessment deliverable that outlines potential risks and implications for future preparedness.
Align
Based on the findings from our Anticipate phase, we design a workshop with key decisionmakers to agree on the top priority issues and how they should be characterized from a crisis and issues management perspective.
This workshop – or series of workshops – focus on two key tools. The first is our issues stratification matrix. We will create brief descriptions of the potential issues identified in our IDIs and landscape research. We will circulate these and discuss them, so the team is on the same page about what the issues represent.
We will then work with the team to quantify the significance of risks based on two vectors: likelihood of occurrence and organizational impact. This mapping exercise helps us determine whether we have issues that we should monitor, prepare for, respond to or engage on.
Based on the findings from the Anticipate phase, we will typically host a workshop with key communications team leaders and other relevant functional leaders to gain agreement on the top priority issues and how they should be characterized.
This workshop – or series of workshops – will focus on two key tools. The first is our issues stratification matrix. We will create brief descriptions of the potential issues identified in our IDIs and landscape research. We will circulate these and discuss them, to clarify any ambiguity about what an issue represents.
We will then work with the team to rank issues based on two vectors: likelihood of occurrence and organizational impact. This mapping exercise helps us determine whether we have issues that we should monitor, prepare for, respond to or engage on.
Prepare
With issues clearly ranked and scenarios clearly defined, we will create a crisis and issues management “playbook” that contains a set of protocols and draft materials. These materials will address:
Operations
- Team structure
- Norms and governance
- Internal communications protocols
- RACI chart
Stakeholders
- Third-party ally contact list
- Protocols for engaging allies
- Tailored materials/talking points for stakeholder use
Materials
- Issue briefs
- Q&A
- Draft materials on top issues
- Monitoring and escalation protocols
- Spokesperson training materials and protocols
Activate
On an as-needed basis, our team will be available to assess and advise on the response to emergent issues or scenarios. These engagements are typically managed on an hourly fee basis, scoped based on anticipated needs. We offer a range of support, from senior counselors to writers and project managers, to ensure issues are managed with expertise and efficiency.
Evaluate
We believe strongly in ongoing measurement and evaluation. We seek to understand not just what actions we took, but what impact it had. As a results, we will use a variety of tools, from sentiment analysis to coverage volume, to evaluate our actions and implement needed improvements.
On a quarterly basis, we recommend convening the cross-functional issues team to ensure that we map the progress of existing issues, discuss any new issues that may occur, and seek feedback on the team’s performance on issues over time. These conversations invariably lead to improvements in protocols, strategies or messaging.
The opportunity in crisis and issues management
Any organization of scale, with a public profile of any note, risks having a crisis happen to them. Since the question around crisis engagement is not one of ‘if’ but ‘when’, we propose using tools and frameworks as outlined above to ensure the response to crisis can be a source of strategic advantage.
Take Action
Don’t wait for a crisis to test your readiness. Contact us to schedule a confidential discussion about strengthening your organization’s crisis preparedness and response capabilities.
Crisis Preparedness
We start by taking an inventory of issues and risks facing your industry and organization. We map these risks based on the potential business impact they might have and the likelihood that they will occur. We create norms and governance around crisis management and use scenario planning and other tools to identify gaps in preparedness your perceptions of your organization.
Crisis Response
For clients managing an active crisis, our expert team of consultants can engage immediately to help. We can provide strategic counsel and tactical support to boards and executives dealing with the unexpected.
