crisis communications

Insights into crisis leadership, reputation and readiness

crisis communications

I Speak Canadian (And What To Do If You Don’t)

I Speak Canadian (And What To Do If You Don’t)

I’m in the process of prepping a global crisis simulation for a multinational corporation. The other day, our brilliant client lead came to me and said “I can’t believe I’m bringing this up, but we need to add a Canada component. For the first time, we have to worry about the differences between...

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There’s No Waffling at Waffle House

There’s No Waffling at Waffle House

As we approach the Easter and Passover "egg season," egg prices remain at an all-time high due to an ongoing shortage caused by the widespread avian flu. Businesses in the food and beverage industry that use a large volume of eggs – such as breakfast restaurants IHOP, Waffle House, and Denny’s –...

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When Controversy Snowballs into Crisis

When Controversy Snowballs into Crisis

The Washington Post has been shaking things up lately, especially in its opinion section. Owner Jeff Bezos just announced a shift to focus on "personal liberties and free markets," which led to the resignation of respected opinion editor David Shipley.  This move, like many shakeups happening in...

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When an Apology Isn’t an Apology

When an Apology Isn’t an Apology

Saying “I’m sorry” shouldn’t be hard. When we say or do something that hurts someone else, then we as humans should own it, apologize for it, and try to make it right. But, many public apologies seem to miss this relatively easy target. Is someone sincerely apologizing when their apology...

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Don’t Lie

Don’t Lie

We are all professionals. As professionals there is one cardinal rule of talking to the media (or if you ask my grandma, anyone): never lie. Don’t outright lie. Don’t tell a half truth. Don’t try to be cute. Don’t parse the truth.  Don’t lie.  All that does is make your audience mad and make them...

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The Perils of a Shallow Apology

The Perils of a Shallow Apology

It can be incredibly difficult as a business to publicly admit that you made a misstep.  Savvy executives and communicators know the importance of making a timely mea culpa statement that demonstrates ownership and empathy, and clearly outlines steps being taken to support impacted consumers and...

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Are You Warm Blooded or Cold Blooded?

Are You Warm Blooded or Cold Blooded?

At Kith, we often say that a crisis does not develop your leadership skills – it reveals them. It also reveals what type of creature you are: warm blooded or cold blooded.  Now, obviously, humans are warm blooded as a matter of biology, so what we’re really asking you to consider is more about...

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The Value of Saying I’m Sorry … from a Canadian

The Value of Saying I’m Sorry … from a Canadian

If you’ve spoken to me for more than five minutes, you know I’m Canadian – also American – but I was Canadian first and very proud of it. Every stereotype of Canadians includes that we like to say sorry: to each other, visitors, inanimate objects, and so on. Move away for a while and you’ll...

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Winning An Argument with Crazy

Winning An Argument with Crazy

Let’s be clear. You can’t win an argument against Crazy.  Once rightfully relegated to the lunatic fringe, Crazy abounds today – it is everywhere. Crazy is encouraged, fanned, inflamed, and carried to new converts by the magnifying lens that is social media. Sadly, organizations that value their...

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Daily Harvest Needs To Be a Lesson for All Startups

Daily Harvest Needs To Be a Lesson for All Startups

Have you stuck to your New Year’s resolutions? I didn’t make any this year. Instead, I built a plan that will build on small changes throughout the year. January has been a focus on slowing down. But even with my change of thought, it was pretty hard to ignore the barrage of ads about weight loss,...

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Kyte Baby: How It Could Have Been Avoided

Kyte Baby: How It Could Have Been Avoided

There have been some really great dissections of the #KyteBaby crisis response. Jeremy Tunis and Eleanor Hawkins to name my favorites. But for all this great analysis, I want to dive a little deeper into how this could have been prevented. I see there are three points: It’s a commonly held...

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Are you ready for a crisis?

Is your organization prepared to respond to a crisis and protect its hard-earned reputation? Take our quiz and find out!