Poppy Garofalo
STAFF WRITER
Hurricane Katrina has shown the importance of planning for crises before they occur. The aftermath of the storm gives new relevance to the studies of three Pepperdine graduate students and their professor. In an advanced organizational communication seminar last semester, Dr. Robert Chandler and his class published a book about crisis communication planning.
“Crisis Communication Planning: Sustaining Effective Corporate Communication During Disasters, Emergencies, and Critical Events” was the final product of the COM 518 seminar.
Marci rae Blue, Jennifer Roberts and Morgana Wingard did all of the research with the help of Chandler, chair of the Communication Division.
“The majority of the work was done by the three of us with the broad strokes done by Dr. Chandler,” Blue said.
Wingard graduated from Seaver College last spring as a communication major. Blue and Roberts are still attending Pepperdine as graduate students. They both are pursuing degrees in communication.
Roberts said she is considering a career in crisis management or crisis communication.
“I never thought of it before this class,” Roberts said. “It’s an entirely different world.”
“Crisis Communication Planning” was published by a not-for-profit branch of BCP Media. The book was designed as a resource for beginning continuity workers who have not received training in their field. It is a survey on how to best communicate in times of crisis.
“Dr. Chandler wanted our work to be practical,” Blue said, “something that could actually be used in a real world situation.”
Chandler gave the following questions as examples of issues that are addressed in crisis communication planning: How do you get in touch with all of your employees? Do you know if your employees have a disaster plan? How do you notify them after a crisis?
“We come at it from human factors and a training background,” Chandler said.
The class also produced a DVD with the book. It includes interviews with 10 corporate communication leaders. Dr. Chandler said this would be beneficial to show in a communication class even though the book was not written for college students.
“It allows viewers to meet communication leaders,” Chandler said.
Crisis communication planning deals with answering the difficult questions. The book addresses intrinsic challenges, common failures and alternative technologies in communication. It also focuses on understanding news media.
“Com majors are more expert than they know,” Chandler said. “I’m proud of them and enjoy doing research with students.”
“Crisis Communication Planning” will be presented at the World Disaster Recovery Conference held in San Diego Sept. 18-21. Blue and Roberts will lead the discussion. For the conference, they have divided the book into three major sections.
Their presentation will begin with a quick overview of crisis communication.
Blue and Roberts will explain the development of a crisis communication plan. As a communication department, the administration needs to create a guide. They also will discuss the anticipation of communication failures.
“It’s important to be able to say ‘let’s follow these steps’, especially with Katrina where they didn’t have a plan,” Blue said.
Blue and Roberts have discussed Hurricane Katrina in relation to their presentation. While they will make some reference to the natural disaster, Roberts said that most of the other people at the conference will probably address it.
“Crisis communication planning deals more with avoiding situations,” Roberts said.
Elizabeth Smith, assistant director of student journalism, and Dr. Michael Murrie, professor of journalism, will join Chandler for a post-conference workshop. They will concentrate on how corporations deal with people in times of crisis, and the presentation will include a mock press conference and training scenarios.
“My background is in print and Dr. Murrie’s is in broadcast,” Smith said.
“We can both bring our perspectives especially to what’s going on in the world right now.”
Chandler is currently in the process of writing another book that is due out this fall. It will deal with ethical misconduct disasters and how to prevent, manage and recover from them. Chandler will co-author his new book with three other authors.
The authors include Dr. O.C. Ferrell, the Bill Daniels distinguished professor of business ethics at the University of Wyoming, Lynn Brewer, the whistle blower in the Enron scandal, and Victoria Nemerson, the president and CEO of the Integrity Institute.
Chandler also has written many articles on related issues. His most recent publication was in the Graziado Business Report 2005. “Avoiding Ethical Misconduct Disasters” focuses on strategic planning for organizational integrity continuity.
Between his two books, Chandler said he is most proud of the work with his students.
“It is something tangible that honors the Pepperdine motto,” Chandler said. “You could look at it as a gift back.”
09-15-2005