To: Jeff Berne, CEO American Rubber, Inc.
From:

Jeff:

I just received a phone call from Doug Dieterly about the boiler explosion at the La Porte facility. He reached out to me to assist you as I have worked with him in the past to quickly build communication plans in urgent situations for his corporate clients. I am sorry to hear that your company has experienced such a tragic event. Given the criticality of a quick response, I will make myself available for anything you might need in the next few hours.

The next few pages detail my recommendations on your next communications. I have recommended specific groups and messages as well as a targeted order of execution. The first step you must take action on immediately. Goal is for you to get in control of the message going out as well as its tone before the media sets both for you. I believe you have less than an hour to begin executing this plan for it to be effective.

Step 1: Speak with News Media on Camera

Target Audience: General public, factory workers and their families

Goal: Establish the facts with the public. Build a reputation as responsive and sympathetic. Send the message that you will work tirelessly to protect your workers.

You will need to communicate directly with the news media via an impromptu informal interview, preferably in front of the factory to show that you are physically at the scene. If you drive an expensive automobile, I would recommend you park out of visibility of the media and walk to the front of the factory. We want the public to see you as humble and sincere, not greedy or wealthy.

Include the following facts and statements in your interview:

• Timeline and basic details of the explosion • Number of dead workers, number and status of injured • Boiler’s annual inspection status (passed) • An explanation that the company does not yet know why the boiler exploded • A commitment that engineers will work around the clock to determine the cause • Give an apology directly to the families of those who lost a loved one in the explosion • Make the commitment that the factory will not reopen until you determine the cause of the explosion • Reiterate that the company’s top priority is the safety of its workers • Mention that your next steps are to go visit with the families of the injured workers in the hospital to ensure they are getting top quality immediate care

Step 2: Draft an Email to the Senior Leaders of The Big Three Automakers

Target Audience: CEOs and Operational Leaders (VP and above) of The Big Three Automakers

Goal: Inform them of the incident and timeline to resolution

Email should:

• Inform them that the incident occurred • Give them high level statistics on injuries, etc. • Detail the information given to the press • Inform them that you will reopen the factory once the root cause of the explosion is determined and each additional boiler is inspected to ensure they don’t have the same defect • Let them know that you are convening your top engineers to immediately to investigate the explosion • Reassure them that while the investigation is being conducted your production engineers will be developing a plan to make up manufacturing hours lost while the plant is not operating • Commit to send them a status every 12 hours with updates on the progress of the investigation • Commit to convene a meeting with them (preferably face-to-face if possible) upon conclusion of the investigation to both present the investigation findings as well as the recovery plan to make up lost production hours

Step 3: Go Visit the Injured in the Hospital

Target Audience: Injured Workers and Their Families

Goal: Demonstrate empathy, reassure, and apologize. You want them to like you, trust you, and feel like you care about them.

You will need to make a personal visit in the hospital to each employee injured. I would recommend that you conduct this visit alone as it will come across as more personal and genuine. Focus on speaking slowly and in an even, somewhat soft, tone of voice. Be slow and thoughtful about your responses to their questions as this will come across as empathetic and caring.

You need to do the following things during the visit:

• Introduce yourself to the worker and their families • Address each worker and each member of their family by their first name when speaking to them • Express your sincere apology for what they are going through • Reassure them that you are doing everything in your power to determine the cause of the explosion and prevent future explosions • Tell them not to worry about anything that you will ensure that their medical bills are sent directly to the company and that they have the best medical care possible • Explain that they will continue to be paid in full as if they were working until they are able to return to work • Ask them if they have questions or concern • Listen attentively to their responses and answer with as much empathy and patience as possible

Step 4: Call In Two Teams of Engineers

Target Audience: Plant Operations Senior Leadership

Goal: To build two highly motivated teams that will get to the root cause of the explosion quickly and develop a recovery plan to make up for the lost production time.

You will need to take the following steps to build the teams: • Call your plant operations senior leader immediately and explain the explosion details • Let him know you trust him and need his help • Explain that you will be making him the tactical leader of the investigation and recovery planning • Ask him to pull together a team of top engineers and lead them through a thorough investigation • Ask that the leader and his engineers report in to the facility within two hours to begin their investigation • Ask him to pull together a second team of engineers to build the recovery plan to present to The Big Three • Ask him to provide you direct statuses on progress of both efforts every 4 hours

Meeting With the Engineering Investigation Team • Tell the engineers in detail what has transpired • Help them understand that you will depend on them to conduct a thorough investigation and provide their detailed analysis of findings • Explain to them that the company is depending on them to be thorough and expedient in their research • Tell them that you know that this task could require long hours and dedication and thank them in advance for their work

Step 5: Communicate To The Entire Company

Target Audience: Corporate office workers as well as factory workers

Goal: Keep all other employees informed through you, demonstrate and inspire confidence, and limit rumors

To communicate with corporate employees you will need to: • Setup a meeting at 9am Monday morning • Speak to the group and give the details of what has transpired • Explain that an engineering team is investigating now • Ask that other employees not distract these engineers with questions so that the investigating team can focus on the investigation • Assure the corporate employees that you will meet with them again to provide the findings of the investigation team once the findings are available • Reassure the employees that the factory will not open until the investigation is complete • Answer all questions patiently and thoughtfully

To communicate with factory employees you will need to: • Appoint a customer service representative from your 24 hour call line to call each factory employee due to report for the next shift at their homes • Give the customer service representative a short list of details on what to tell each worker • List should include an explanation that there has been an explosion and that the factory will be closed until the company can determine what caused the explosion • List should include an explanation that each employee will be paid for the hours that they normally would have worked if the factory was open

Summary and Follow Up

In brief, the above provides you with your first steps. Each of these steps will position you as an empathetic, hard working leader who is in control of a difficult situation. This approach will ensure that communication naturally comes through you. Provided you execute these well, you will be solicited for explanations, allowing you to control communication lines. Ultimately, this ensures that you limit the impact of this tragic accident on your company’s reputation.

You will need to follow up as you have committed with all the parties listed and be consistent to maintain this advantage. I am confident that you will be successful in working through this crisis.