BRPA - In The Loop

Vol. 4, No. 2, April,  2011

Welcome...

Cynthia Berry (DeVry Inc) – BRPA Newsletter Editor

Greetings and welcome BRPA – In The Loop Readers!  Spring has finally arrived and not a day too soon.  Weather certainly has been the topic of the seasons from ice storms, blizzards to tornado warnings, earthquakes and tsunamis.  It is quite eye-opening to see what has unfolded in just the past 2 months that has kept us aware and prepared to act and respond. 

In this newsletter, John Mantsch, BRPA president, reminds us of our diligence in the areas of emergency management and continuity.  With recent events, it is important for us to remember how important our roles are in the grand scheme of things and how we can provide value to those we manage and support.  BRPA Vice-President Dan Johnson provides insights to the benefits of working with and for BRPA. 

Our guest columnist this month is no stranger to managing communication strategies in emergencies situations.  Dr. Robert Chandler, Professor of Communication and Director of the Nicholson School of Communication at the University of Central Florida discusses 6 strategies for communicating during the six stages of a crisis.  This is an important area for us all to review!  Additionally, Dr. Robert Chandler will be conducting 4 engaging sessions later this month in our annual April training.  Our program director, Alane Watkins highlights this training below.  There is still time to register—see details below!

Alina Rubin provides a detailed list of events for all BRPA members to review not just locally but nationally as well.  And, Chris Sarcletti has a brief word to BRPA members and sponsors. 

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A Word From our President

John Mantsch (R J O’Brien) – BRPA President

2011 is turning out to be a very demanding year for those working in the continuity field.  Monster snow storms, earthquakes and tsunamis and that’s just the 1st quarter of the year.  We didn’t have any major flu outbreaks during the current flu season but many companies are experiencing supply chain issues caused by the tsunami which more than makes up for it.  In our business, we are always dealing with either actual or potential disasters but this year we’re experiencing some massive events that are impacting not only a single company but the size of the events are so large that they have impacted whole cities, states, multi-state regions as well as whole countries.

When working in the continuity field, we need to be ever vigilant as to what can impact our business (directly or indirectly) and to relay that information to management so that they can see how those potential or actual scenarios can impact the operation of the company (lack of supplies, staff, customers, etc.) and what management can and should do about it.  Our profession has a great deal of responsibility to ensure that we not only identify what can happen to our company, letting management know what can happen and then supplying management with options as to what they can do to offset those risks.

We all hope that the worst is behind us but as the world events have shown us, we can never be over prepared for a crisis.

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BRPA Initiatives

Dan Johnson (Bank of America) – BRPA Vice President

BRPA is always looking for volunteers to assist with some of our ongoing initiatives. We rely on the BRPA community to offer assistance at meetings, social events, this newsletter and in other ways. Right now BRPA is looking for someone to fill a position on our board. This will require a little of your time (an average of about 5 – 10 hours monthly) but it is a great way to learn more about how this organization functions and will also allow you to work closely with others dedicated to making BRPA continue to be the best Business Resumption group in the Midwest! If you would like more information on this please contact Dan Johnson at dan.johnson@bankofamerica.com.

I encourage all of you to be active in this organization. If you can’t volunteer at a meeting or on the board, there are still many ways you can help the association. Maybe you’ve been to a BC seminar or conference and saw a great speaker that you think would be a good fit for our BRPA members. You can get that presenter’s business card and forward that information to someone on our board. Another way to help out is by networking at the meetings. We always ask for new members or guests that are attending the meeting to introduce themselves. Make it a point to reach out to those people during the breaks or lunch and welcome them to our organization. Some of the best contacts could be the ones we never met before. Lastly, don’t be afraid to offer up ideas to our board members. All of the presentations and topics that are covered at our meetings are from someone else who either saw the presentation or developed one specifically with BRPA in mind. We rely on our BRPA members to be on the lookout for interesting and educational presenters who are willing to speak at an upcoming BRPA meeting.

BRPA will continue to be a thriving organization with assistance from all practitioners and sponsors. I thank you in advance for your commitment to BRPA!

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BRPA Event Schedule

Alane Watkins (Kraft) – BRPA Program Director

BRPA’s Annual April Training:  April 26, 2011 – CoreLink Data Center- Mt. Prospect, IL

At least once annually, BRPA offers an all-day training session to all its members.  This year, we are pleased to offer another internationally known expert, Dr. Robert Chandler, who is known for his research and expertise in the area of crisis and emergency communications.  If you have attended a DRJ conference, you may recall that Dr. Chandler is often one of the keynote speakers.  Our host this year is CoreLink Data Centers in Mt. Prospect.  Join us early in the morning for a hot and hearty breakfast and a tour of CoreLink’s brand new data center.  We would also like to thank our generous sponsors for the event:  Send Word Now Communications, Mainline Information Systems, Sentinel, Worknet, and i365.

Dr. Chandler is a well-recognized researcher and scholar with more than 100 academic and professional papers, including widely circulated “white papers” on emergency and crisis communication.  He is currently a Professor of Communication and Director of the Nicholson School of Communication at the University of Central Florida. Dr. Chandler is also a subject matter expert in areas such as communication and conflict management, organizational communication priorities for pandemics and other public health crises, risk communication, behavioral and psychometric assessment and appraisal, leadership, teamwork, multicultural and intercultural diversity, organizational integrity, employee ethical conduct, and business ethics.  He has addressed attentive audiences around the globe ranging from Warsaw to Sydney and Seoul to St. Petersburg.

Dr. Chandler has designed an all-day training course for BRPA that is unique and one of kind.  The day will be divided into four modules.  These include:

Morning Session #1:  Communication Challenges for Emergencies and Disasters

The training begins with an interactive session focused on identifying common communication challenges for crises, disasters, and emergency situations. Interactive discussion of case study situations gives way to a macro organizational approach for communication planning and preparedness.  In addition, the session will also shed light on the effectiveness of risk/warning messages. The session will identify challenges and provide insight for overcoming such challenges to better ensure successful communication.

Morning Session #2:  Lessons Learned from Research and Best Practices for Effective Incident Notification

This session focuses on conquering the challenges for more effective emergency incident notification. Key topics covered include; the necessity of pre-mediated planning for incident notification success; adapting to the changing circumstances of a crisis or disaster; the psychological and psycho-metric variables of crisis events and how they impact; perceptions; attentiveness; decision-making; perceptions of risk; cognitive functioning; listening ability; and overall behavioral responses. Specifically, participants will learn about diminished cognitive capacities which occur at peak stress periods of critical incidents.

Afternoon Session #1: Communication for Reputation Management and Repairing Reputation

This session will focus on the aspects of public communication (with the public and media) and its role in shaping perceptions and opinion about your businesses’ competency, professionalism, motives, ethics, integrity, and trustworthiness. Case studies of mismanaged public communication leading to reputation disasters will be discussed. Key core principles to minimize the risks of reputation damage and steps to take for the recovery and repair of sullied brand and corporate image will be reviewed.

Afternoon Session #2:  Crisis Leadership - Marks of an Effective Leader Communication

This final session will provide a capstone to the day’s theme of enhancing crisis and emergency communication by focusing on the communication dimensions of effective crisis leadership. The Crisis Leadership Assessment (CLA) model will be presented and discussed. Participants will have an opportunity to informally assess their own and others crisis leadership qualities. Interactive discussion of the model will lead to various applications for applying the model to questions about selecting, training, and assessing the knowledge, skills, abilities, and traits for effective crisis leadership.

BRPA 2011 Program Calendar:

Apr  26^th               Annual Training Event with Dr. Robert Chandler @ CoreLink -  Mt. Prospect

Jun  21^st               TBD

July 19^th               TBD

Aug 16^th               Annual Social Event

Sept 20^th              Office of Emergency Management and Communications                     

Nov 15^th               TBD

Dec 6^th                 Annual Holiday Luncheon

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Guest Column

Robert C. Chandler PhD (University of Central Florida) Professor of Communication and Director of the Nicholson School of Communication

Communication During 6 Stages of a Crisis

Evolution of a Crisis

According to Robert C. Chandler, Ph.D., internationally renowned crisis communication expert, a crisis has six stages: 1) warning, 2) risk assessment, 3) response, 4) management, 5) resolution, and 6) recovery.

Chandler’s Six Stages of a Crisis™

1. Warning. Certain incident types, such as hurricanes, have very distinct warning phases. Communication during this stage is often precautionary and intended to heighten awareness. Other incidents, such as workplace violence and power outages, have no warning periods or very subtle

warning signs that often go unnoticed. In these situations, many organizations bypass communication completely during the Warning Stage.

2. Risk Assessment. In the moments after an incident occurs and/or is reported, a core team of crisis management decision-makers assembles to determine how to handle the situation. This team activates the organization’s emergency response plan. Communications are primarily geared toward assembling team members, apprising executives and officials of the incident, and advising local law enforcement and other similar organizations of the situation.

3. Response. Once the emergency response plan is activated, crisis team members begin to notify the “masses” about the incident. Communication during the Response Stage focuses on making

constituents aware of the incident, providing instructions, and calling first responders

into action.

4. Management. After the initial response to the incident, the crisis moves into the Management Stage. During this phase, the crisis gets better and moves toward resolution or gets worse with deepening layers of complexity. Organizations must respond differently according to the progression of the crisis. A significant percentage of communication occurs during this phase as organizations provide regular status updates to their various audiences, change or add to previous instructions,

control rumors, conference with leadership and responder teams, and course-correct as needed to respond to changes in the situation.

5. Resolution. Once the crisis has been resolved and is drawing to conclusion, crisis team members communicate that resolution to all audiences in the form of all-clear alerts and messages of reassurance.

6. Recovery. During the Recovery Stage, the focus is on healing and getting back to normal. Communication often revolves around post-crisis counseling, a return to pre-crisis policies and operations, and rebuilding accomplishments.

Chandler’s Six Stages of a Crisis provides the compass for understanding underlying information needs to drive effective communications.

A Crisis Complicates Conventional Communication

Communication during a crisis is hampered by a number of unpleasant realities business continuity professionals must account for in a comprehensive emergency communication plan.

Truth #1: Stress negatively affects the cognitive process

Thinking of what to say and how to say it in the middle of a crisis leads to the possibility of mixed or erroneous messages. Messages may be too long, too short, or not address relevant issues. The wrong message can contribute to existing panic and confusion.

Truth #2: Stress negatively affects comprehension

During a crisis, average reading levels decrease four grade levels. Negative dominance also occurs; during times of stress, it takes four positive statements to balance one negative statement.

Truth #3: You can’t forget varied demographics

A workforce may vary in geographic location, languages, and economic resources. A message's effectiveness will be hampered if it is written in a language or manner unfamiliar to employees.

Truth #4: Key personnel may be unavailable

Key personnel may be unavailable due to scheduled absences or illness. Who makes decisions if the CEO is unavailable? What happens to payroll if half of the accounting team falls ill during a pandemic outbreak?

Truth #5: Business reputations may suffer

You will be under a microscope. Poorly articulated or worded answers to questions can affect an organization's survival post-disaster. The perception that an organization behaved in a competent and responsible manner during a disaster is key to recovery.

Communication Challenges Resolved: Message Maps

Message maps are clear, concise messages created in advance of a disaster that simplify complex concepts and improve communication during chaos. Message maps are appropriate before, during, and after an incident. Planned message maps deliver clear, consistent communication throughout a

crisis.

Planned message maps:

• Eliminate the potential for dissemination of incorrect information

• Reduce rumors

• Meet elevated information demands

• Ensure the right message reaches the public

• Reassure those affected of an organization's ability to handle a disaster

Message maps are created prior to disasters.

In creating message maps ahead of time, organizations have the time and resources to explore all possible disaster scenarios and map out all messaging needs by audience and stage of a crisis.

Message maps are written at or below a sixth-grade reading level

Reading ability and comprehension drops approximately four grade levels during times of stress. Planned communication ensures messages are understood by the widest possible audience. Message maps are created by distilling information down to easily understood messages written at or below a sixth-grade reading level.

Message maps adhere to the 3-3-30 Rule.

Message maps consist of three short sentences that convey three key messages in 30 words or less. The best chance of getting an audience's attention occurs within the first 9 seconds of a visual or audio broadcast or during the first 30 words of written material.

Message maps are specific to one organization.

Message maps convey information specific to an organization, e.g. work resumption, post-disaster insurance availability, and bereavement policies.

Message maps consider the needs of varied demographic groups.

Organizations may need multiple messages for various demographic groups. Creating message maps ahead of time allows organizations to take into account knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs that suggest how target audiences will react to messages. Messages can also be translated into multiple languages.

Creating Effective Message Maps

If message maps are essential to emergency preparedness, why don't more organizations have them in place? Creating a message mapping strategy takes time, energy, and resources. The process involves input from many members of an organization. Although time-intensive, disaster planning can save lives, company assets, and organizational reputations. In the long run, it is

economically more effective to take the time and resources to ensure excellent preparation.

To create a message mapping strategy:

Determine your core constituent audiences.

Who is involved in or affected by your organization? List all possible audiences, e.g. employees, customers, vendors, suppliers, government regulators, investors. Employees can also be divided into subcategories such as managers, field workers, clerical staff, and more.

Walk through every possible disaster scenario.

List all the likely scenarios that may affect your organization, such as power outages and weather-related closures. Then brainstorm the what-if scenarios: active shooters, natural disasters, terrorist attacks, pandemics, salmonella scares, and more. What do you need to communicate to employees, students, nurses, or others? How do their information needs change during the various stages of a crisis?

Consider legal, financial, and other ramifications.

In determining types of messages, consider:

• Legal implications

• Public relations implications

• Financial implications

• Business operations

Determine channels of communication.

How will these messages be communicated? Email, phone, text message, fax, other? How will your organization know the message was sent? Is there a confirmation process? Is there an automated system in place or will your organization need to set up a phone bank to contact others?

Hone and refine message maps.

Traditional message maps reduce important, emergency-relevant concepts to no more than three short sentences that convey three key messages in 30 words or less at a sixth-grade reading level. Test messages for comprehension and revise as necessary.

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Member Benefits

Chris Scarletti (CME) – BRPA Membership Director

• Yearly BRPA Sponsorship and Membership Dues
  • Thanks to those of you who have already renewed your dues for 2011. Reminder messages regarding membership renewal were sent in early January.
• Individual Meeting Sponsorship Opportunities
  • Any BRPA Sponsor can provide additional support to BRPA by sponsoring an individual meeting for $275. These fees can be paid online throughout the year and these funds go towards securing speakers and providing breakfast and lunch to our member base. Additionally, the fees contribute toward:
    • Providing auction items and raffle prizes at BRPA meetings and events;
    • Speaking at BRPA events and assisting with securing speakers; and
    • Hosting meetings

Thanks again for your support and please contact me at Christopher.Sarcletti@cmegroup.com if you have any questions about membership.
 

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Other Announcements

Alina Rubin (Exelon) – BRPA Communications Director

Upcoming Events & Training from our Collaborative Partners

Many of BRPA’s collaborative partners offer discounts and special benefits to BRPA members – particularly, our education providers. A valued benefit of your BRPA membership is the free passes we give out each month to CAMP IT conferences.  CAMP IT is a BRPA collaborative partner and provides a member benefit valued at $219 for each pass.  It includes a full day of high quality training and a complimentary lunch. This is a great way to complete your educational credits for certification.  Many BRPA members are taking advantage of these great opportunities with CAMP IT.  Be sure to check your inbox for the email that details the monthly conferences and how to request a pass.

Upcoming CAMP IT Conferences:
Thursday, April 28, 2011 Desktop Virtualization Strategies - Implementation and Management

Register at:   http://www.targetedconferences.com/events/2011/virtualization1.htm

Thursday, May 5, 2011 Business Intelligence and Analytics

Register at:    http://www.targetedconferences.com/events/2011/analytics.htm
 

Thursday, May 19, 2011 Storage Management

Register at:   http://www.targetedconferences.com/events/2011/storagemanagement.htm. 

ICOR:  World-Class Education e-Learning Programs

Learn from home - advance your career options and grow professionally!  ICOR offers e-Learning education programs in Business Continuity Management, Organizational Resilience, and Supply Chain Risk Management.  All BRPA members save 10% on the courses.

April 18-22:  Certified Data Center Professional and Certified Data Center Specialist

April 24-29:  Certified Data Center Expert

April 24-29:  Auditing BCM Programs for PS Prep Certification (perfect for internal auditors and those preparing the organization for PS Prep certification.) Classes are offered at the Summit on Michigan Ave.

For more information, visit http://www.theicor.org/courselisting.html#bcm or contact Lynnda Nelson at 866-765-8321

ContinuityLink offers public or in-house BCM training that goes far beyond theory. You will get expert advice from a certified trainer, with stories from the trenches, and softcopies of mature tools and real-life examples. BRPA Members receive a 10% discount on all ContinuityLink courses.

BCM-FND - Business Continuity Management – Foundation Training

·         April 18-20  2011 (Philadelphia)

·         May 03-05 2011 (Atlanta)

·         May 17-19 2011 (Houston)

·         May 31 –June 02 (New York)

BCM-BIA - Comprehensive BIA Process – Methodology

·         April 13-15  2011 (Atlanta, Post-Continuity Insights)

·         April  26-27 2011 (Columbus)

·         April 26-27 2011 (San Francisco)

·         May 02-03 2011 (Honolulu)

·         May 10-11 2011 (Chicago)

·         May 24-25 2011 (Charlotte)

BCM-AUD - Auditing a Business Continuity Management program

·         April 28-29  2011 (Columbus)

·         April 28-29  2011 (San Francisco)

·         May 04-05 2011 (Honolulu)

·         May 12-13 2011 (Chicago)

·         May 26-27 2011 (Charlotte)

For more information and our complete training calendar visit:  http://www.continuitylink.com/En/training.htm

ACP Northern Illinois Chapter

Thursday April 14 at KPMG downtown office.  For more information, see www.nilacp.org  or contact Marcia Kittler at Marcia@MKBusinessSolutions.com

ICRC - International Crisis & Risk Communication Conference in Orlando, Florida

May 10-May 11, featuring Robert Chandler, PhD

For more information, see http://www.icrcommunication.com/

The Association of Threat Assessment Professionals (ATAP) Chicago Chapter Presents:

Threat Assessment Teams - Optimization Through Collaboration

·         Spring Regional Conference:  April 18 & 19, 2011

·         Full Day Training "Public and Private Stalking: The State of the Science" - Dr. J. Reid Meloy April 20, 2011 Adler School of Professional Psychology, Chicago, IL

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Member Highlights

Check out this timely article by Geary Sikich entitled Unrealistic Scenarios – C'mon Man!
This article was featured in the Disaster Resource guide under Meet the Experts.  Sikich uncovers the timeline of the recent events in Japan as they unfolded and engages us in unbelievable scenarios that actually happened.  Click this link to review the article.  
http://disaster-resource.com/newsletter/2011/subpages/v376/meettheexperts.htm

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Special Events

Eric Robin (Pactiv) – Special Events Director

Stay tuned for upcoming events… in the meantime, please support the American Red Cross.

American Red Cross Responds to the Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan

On March 11th a massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake occurred near the northeastern coast of Japan, creating extremely destructive tsunami waves which hit Japan just minutes after the earthquake, triggering evacuations and warnings across the Pacific Ocean. The earthquake and tsunami have caused extensive and severe damage in Northeastern Japan, leaving thousands of people

confirmed dead, injured or missing. Millions more were affected by lack of water, electricity and transportation. Millions still remain without water, electricity, fuel or enough food and hundreds of thousands more are homeless. The misery is compounded by heavy snowfalls, freezing cold and wet conditions. The official number of dead and missing has topped 15,000. The American

Red Cross has pledged funds to provide food, water and other relief to people impacted by this earthquake.

What You Can Do Today to Help

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Closing Thoughts

Thanks again for reading our newsletter.  As a BRPA member, resources are just a click away.  We encourage you to browse the website and click on the links in this newsletter.  We welcome your feedback as we continue to update this newsletter based on your needs and suggestions.  As always, we are only an email away: newsletter@brpa-chicago.org.

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