Digital is the new frontier for your crisis response.
Crisis is everywhere. Be it escaping lions, system hacks, on–site threats or executives behaving poorly, every day the headlines are full of situations organisations need to manage from a physical, cyber and reputational risk.
Cyber-security breaches are on the rise, and organisations of all sizes and shapes, right across Australia, are being targeted.
The threat is a certainty; the only variable is how prepared an organisation is when crisis strikes.
The rising risk posed by cyber threats means Australian businesses will soon face new regulatory requirements for managing crisis situations, thanks to amendments to the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018. From this August, high-risk industries must respond to mandatory obligations to develop, implement and maintain plans for cyber incidents.
Most organisations are already working to meet this new requirement from an operational and technical perspective. However, many are yet to confront the equally important communications aspects of crisis management.
Cyber-security breaches can hurt an organisation twice: once through the actual incident and again through the reputational damage from poor communications.
As communicators, it’s ironic that despite many aspects of daily life and business now being run from your smartphone or tablet, many organisations still rely on old-fashioned hard copy crisis plans as our north star when nothing else is certain.
The inherent problem with relying on a physical copy of key documents is obvious. Corporate crisis contingency plans are often not living documents with up-to-date contact information and quickly accessible to all key people. They can be difficult to access in the moment you most need them. They are often gathering dust in a file drawer or on a shelf. Most comms professionals have a story about when a crisis hit and all the key decision makers were away or uncontactable. From our decades of experience in crisis management, one thing is clear: when everything is on the line, having your crisis communications plan accessible on any device, at any time, could be the difference between emerging from a crisis with your reputation intact, or in tatters.
In the age of digitisation, it’s clear that the classic crisis response binder doesn’t cut it. To protect your business, all the key organisational stakeholders need to have continuous, up-to-date access to their crisis plan, and input on actions and next steps. Everyone must be on the same page to get ahead of an unfolding crisis.
At SEC Newgate, we recognised the need for organisations to take their crisis plan into the new digital frontier and developed the SEC Newgate Crisis Communications App – an ‘anywhere, anytime’ Crisis App that helps you manage a crisis in real-time from wherever you are.
The App converts your Crisis Communications Plan into an actionable and effective crisis management tool that steps you through the actions you need to take to quickly make decisions. It puts your crisis plan in your hand, no matter where you are. Stakeholder contact lists, crisis team members, response plans and protocols, draft collateral, media information and more is at your fingertips, giving you the advantages of speed and accuracy.
Find out how the Crisis Communications App can make things easier for your business by getting in contact with our specialist crisis team here.
Talk to us about developing a crisis plan for your organisation, or converting your current plans into the App.
Feyi Akindoyeni, Partner, SEC Newgate Communications – [email protected]
Kate Fagan, Associate Partner, SEC Newgate Communications – [email protected]
SEC Newgate’s integrated approach draws on our national team’s experience and networks to deliver a full service offering.
