Finished, completed, ran. Any of these words could have filled in the blank in, “Congratulations you ____ the Boston Marathon!” without any incident. Unfortunately, Adidas chose ‘survived’ in an email blast sent to those who ran in the marathon. While this crisis occurred a few years ago now, there are two main lessons that arose
By Dennis Culloton CEO, President It’s no secret this space is reserved for Cubs fans and we’ve often used Cubs manager Joe Maddon’s wit and witticisms to illustrate larger crisis communications leadership truths.As we lick our wounds from being eliminated from the National League Championship playoffs by the Los Angeles Dodgers (3 home runs including a
By Dennis Culloton In a week like the one America has just experienced, it seems trite to discuss crisis communications like we do here in this space--everything pales by comparison to the tragedy in Las Vegas. We like to preach that in times of crisis, communicating to your customers and the public is a priority. That priority
By Dennis Culloton, CEO, presidentIt’s just getting started but it has already been a brutal hurricane season. In the wake of Hurricane Harvey walloping South Texas, many unexpected heroes emerged but one Harris County meteorologist stepped into the spotlight with a great lesson for all business, civic and political leaders who find themselves in the
By Dennis Culloton, CEO and President, Culloton Strategies and University of Illinois Visiting LecturerAs I recently wrapped up another mini-semester teaching Crisis Communications at the University of Illinois, it struck me that this year more than ever, students had the unprecedented experience of learning by watching a startling array of major crises befalling brands and
Steve Hamilton and Andrew TouhyIn what was the airline video shown around the world that generated a grave PR disaster for United Airlines, their response to the crisis only made it worse. Even as this story continues to unfold, PR and crisis management professionals can refer to this case as a blueprint of what not
Steve Hamilton – Digital Media DirectorAndrew Touhy – Senior Account Executive Within seconds of this being posted to the McDonald’s corporate Twitter account, it was retweeted over 1,000 times and spread across the internet. Knowing that the tweet would be short lived, many Twitter users made sure to archive it.McDonald’s has since released a statement reading
Steve Hamilton, Digital Media DirectorNo industry is exempt from the possibility of a bad PR move in the digital age. Consumers are using the internet now more than ever for their interactions and purchases. In an era where every meal , movie, teacher, and video games is reviewed, you need to be able to stand
Steve Hamilton and Andrew TouhyAfter the tempestuous election, New Balance’s vice president of public affairs, Matthew LeBretton, offered an endorsement to Donald Trump saying, “The Obama administration turned a deaf ear to us and frankly, with President-elect Trump, we feel things are going to move in the right direction.” Though the answer was in response to
Andrew Touhy, Assistant Account ExecutiveWhen certain situations arise, a crisis is inevitable. The New York Times reported Oct. 25 that Canadian authorities alleged Elizabeth Tracey Mae Wettlaufer killed eight elderly patients from 2007-2014. A horrific and shocking story indeed, but one that offers lessons to crisis professionals.In a case like this in which revealing certain