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COM 722. A Crisis Communication Professor: Dr. Janice Barrett

Damla Kken Shamira Mostafa Mara Paula Stacchiola Valerie Williams

November, 2012 !

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Contents
BP at a Glance Section A - Chronological description of BPs Deep Water Horizon oil spill Section B - Pre-crisis Phase Section C - Relief and Recovery Efforts Section D - BPs Advertising and Social Media Campaign Section E - Materials Needed For Crisis Media List Section F - Steps for Holding a Successful Press Conference Section G - Public statement made by Tony Hayward on November 28, 2012 Section H - Media Advisory References Appendix A - Executive Summary 3 3 10 18 22 23 26 27 30 32 34

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BP at a Glance This is Beyond Petroleum (BP): British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, England. The third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world, according to Fortunes annual ranking of the worlds largest corporations (CNN Money, n.d.) One of the six oil and gas supermajors, according to Derek Butter, corporate analyst at industry consultants (Bergin, 2008, para. 13). Operates in over 80 countries, produces around 3.4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, and has around 21,800 service stations worldwide (BP, n.d.) Its activities are focused on exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading. The company also develops renewable energy activities in bio-fuels and wind power (BP, n.d.) As a global group, BPs interests and activities are held or operated through subsidiaries, branches, joint ventures or associates established in, and subject to the laws and regulations of, many different jurisdictions (BP, n.d.) Its largest division is BP America, which is the second-largest producer of oil and gas in the United States (UPI, 2012).

Section A - Chronological description of BPs Deep Water Horizon oil spill

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In order to better understand how the communication crisis at BP occurred, the following table provides a chronological description1 of the tragic events, followed by information on CEOs actions, and impact of social media during crisis. Date Event Deepwater Horizon commenced drilling an exploratory well at the Macondo Prospect (Mississippi Canyon Block 252), about 41 miles (66 km) off the southeast coast of Louisiana, at a water depth of February 2010 approximately 5,000 feet (1,500 m)2. The Macondo prospect exploration rights were acquired by BP in 20093. The rig was owned an operated by Transocean. While drilling at the Macondo Prospect, an explosion on the rig caused by April 20, 2010 a blowout ignited a fireball visible from 35 miles (56 km) away. Eleven people are reported missing and approximately 17 injured. A blowout preventer, intended to prevent release of crude oil, failed to activate. BPs first official response less than 24 hours after the initial explosion deflected the blame of the disaster, placing it on the owner of the oil rig, April 21, 2010 Transocean. BP sent out a news release titled, BP Offers Full Support to Transocean After Drilling Rig Fire. April 22, 2010 Deepwater Horizon sank, leaving the well gushing at the seabed and

The timeline of this crisis has been organized with information gathered from The Guardian. Retrieved November 29, 2012, from http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jun/29/bp-oil-spill-timeline-deepwater-horizon & BPs response to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, a crisis communication case study. Retrieved November 29, 2012 from http://www.scribd.com/doc/70317920/BP-Crisis-Communications 2 "Fleet Status Report". Transocean. 13 April 2010. Retrieved 29, November 2012. 3 "Macondo Prospect, Gulf of Mexico, USA". offshore-technology.com. 20 October 2005. Retrieved 29 November 2012. 4

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causing the largest offshore oil spill in US history. The US coast guard suspends the search for missing workers, who are all presumed dead. The rig is found upside down about a quarter-mile from the blowout preventer. A homeland security department risk analysis says April 23, 2010 the incident poses a negligible risk to regional oil supply markets and will not cause significant national economic impacts. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs says: I doubt this is the first accident that has happened and I doubt it will be the last. Robotic subs discover oil leaking from the piping, which now lies 5,000 April 24,2010 feet beneath the seas surface. The government estimates the leak rate at 5,000 barrels a day, up April 28, 2010 from BPs original estimate of 1,000 barrels a day. May 4, 2010 May 6, 2010 BP seals one of three leaks, with no effect on the overall output of oil. Oil from the leaking well makes its first confirmed landfall A large-containment dome is lowered over the main leak in an effort to May 7, 2010 channel some of the oil to the surface for collection, but the dome becomes clogged with an icy slush of methane and water. NPR and The New York Times report that the official figure of 5,000 May 13, 2010 barrels a day grossly understates the magnitude of the leak. President Obama calls the finger-pointing among BP, Transocean, and May 14, 2010 Halliburton a "ridiculous spectacle", and assails the "cozy relationship" between the government and Big Oil. May 16, 2010 Scientists report that they've found massive plumes of diluted oil deep

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below the surface. After at least two setbacks, BP begins siphoning off a portion of the leaking oil to a ship on the surface. BP reports that the amount of oil drawn off by the tube has increased to 5,000 bpd. Given that BP had previously estimated the entire leak at 5,000 May 20, 2010 bpd and the tube only draws off a fraction of the spill, the leak must be much larger than previously estimated. Experts testifying at the congressional hearing put the figure at 20,000-100,000 barrels per day. President Obama establishes a bipartisan commission to investigate the May 21, 2010 disaster and prevent future blowouts. The tube inserted into the leaking pipe captures much less oil than May 24, 2012 expected. May 26, 2010 BP pumps thousands of barrels of mud into the well in an attempt to plug the leak. The process, known as top kill, fails to overcome the flow of oil. May 27, 2010 The Flow Rate Technical Team, created by federal officials a week earlier, estimates the leak rate to be 12,000 to 19,000 barrels of oil per day June 1, 2010 June 3, 2010 Hayward features in the first. June 4, 2010 Attempts to place a cap over the valves that were meant to prevent the rig from leaking show signs of success. June 6, 2010 BP announces the containment cap is capturing 10,000 barrels of oil a day; approximately half the total amount being leaked. June 8, 2010 In an interview on NBC Obama says he would have sacked BP's chief US launches a criminal investigation into the oil spill. BP begins an advertising campaign in the US aimed at boosting opinion.

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executive if he had been working for him. Later the President compares the BP oil spill to 9/11. Scientists double their estimate of the scale of the spill to 40,000 barrels a June 12, 2010 day. BP agrees to a $20bn (13.5bn) down payment towards compensation for June 16, 2010 victims of the oil spill. One of BP's partners, Anadarko Petroleum, refuses to accept any June 19, 2010 responsibility for the Deepwater Horizon explosion despite owning a quarter of the well. Its chief executive, Jim Hackett, says BP's actions probably amounted to "gross negligence or willful misconduct". June 25, 2010 BP shares hit a 14-year low of 304p after the clean-up bill reaches $2.35bn. BP stops the flow of oil for the first time in 87 days, raising hopes that it could be sealed off for good after installing a new, more tightly fitting July 15, 2010 containment cap on the ruptured wellhead. The company says it will have to monitor the cap for 48 hours before it can be sure it will hold. BP admits to using Photoshop to exaggerate the level of activity at the Gulf oil spill command center. The picture, posted on the company's website, July 21, 2010 shows staff monitoring 10 giant video screens. In reality, three of the screens were blank. It is revealed that the Deepwater Horizon alarms were switched off at the July 23, 2010 time of the explosion to allow workers to sleep undisturbed. BP announced CEO Tony Hayward would be replaced by Bob Dudley as July 27, 2010 the company's chief executive effective as of October 1, 2010

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BP falls out of a major marketing consultancy's list of the top 100 brands. September 16, 2010 The fallout from the Deepwater Horizon spill led to BP being left off Interbrand's index for the first time in 11 years. BP finally seals off the ruptured well. Five months after Deepwater September 19, 2010 Horizon blew, a cement plug leaves it "effectively dead". The US government files a suit against BP and several of its partners in the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster. The action, which could potentially cost BP December 15, 2010 billions in legal costs, accuses the company of violating safety regulations and seeks unlimited damages to cover the cost of cleaning up the oil, losses suffered by local businesses and harm caused to the environment. The White House oil commission concludes that the oil spill in the Gulf of January 6, 2011 Mexico was the result of systematic management failure at BP, Transocean and Halliburton. While BP was struggling to control the damage on the gulf CEO Tony Hayward continued to hurt BPs image and credibility for the rest of the summer, although earlier he said the company would take full responsibility for the spill and the cost for the cleanup. CEOs statements during the crisis Well, it wasn't our accident, but we are absolutely responsible for the oil, for cleaning it up (May 3, 2010). The Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean. The amount of volume of oiland dispersant we are putting into it is tiny in relation to the total water volume (May 14, 2010). The environmental impact of this disaster is likely to have been very,

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very modest (May 18, 2010). I m sorry -we're sorry- for the massive disruption this has caused their lives. And there's no one who wants this over more than I do. You know, I want my life back" (May 30, 2010). In response to the initial communication, the public developed a myriad of creative tactics of their own. Some of the most notable social media tactics received significant media coverage and vital notoriety. Twitter: ABC reported in one week, the fake twitter account boasted more than 20,000 followers, while the real BP account had approximately Social media during the crisis. Beginning from May 2010 4,700. The Wall Street journal characterized the tweets as dark humor and reported that some of the followers believed the twitter account to bereal. Although twitter does have a safeguard against fake accounts, BPs real account was not verified, which prevented any significant action against the imposters. In an interview with the LA times, the fake BP PR professional said, BP is doing everything we can to save our reputation and hopefully salvage some oil out of all this. We're making a ton of shirts and commercials about how we care, and I cleaned an ugly bird yesterday

YouTube video: "Don't worry about it. It's a small spill on a very large table. A viral sensation during the summer of 2010, the BP Spills Coffee YouTube Video by Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy made light of an otherwise dark environmental disaster. The parody boasts 12,046,674 views and caused the site 9 to crash at one point during the summer due to its overwhelming popularity.

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Others: Live Oil Spill Feed Deepwater Horizon Response.com. Google creates Crisis Response Page for the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Watchdog boycott BP stations Anti-BP Facebook groups, Alabama musician, Brent Burns writes a song to BP. Activist Group & BP Logo: The well-known environmental advocacy group, Greenpeace, developed their own interactive campaign to encourage the public to help rebrand BP. According to the campaign, BP's slick green logo doesn't suit a company that wants to invest in tar sands, the dirtiest oil there currently is. Beginning on May 20, 2010, the public was able to submit their own design to a Flickr album full of green and yellow logos accented with black skulls and oil-covered animals. Approximately 2,000 images were submitted to the rebrand BP Flickr album and many of the best images still emerge on a Google image search of BP. The following images are some examples:

Section B - Pre-Crisis Phase BP has formulated a Contingency Plan, and established guidelines for the Managing of Communications during and after crisis as part of the crisis preparation process. Contingency Plan of BP

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The contingency plan of BP includes necessary steps to execute counteraction strategies and aftermath measures in case a crisis appears4. The contingency plan has to be actualized periodically and simulation drills must be performed. Potential contingencies and areas of vulnerability. The Crisis Management Team (CMT) has to be activated when any of the following critical incidents occur: Explosion due to technology failure (BPs Case) Oil Spill (BPs case) Violation of procedures Failure of emergency warning system Death or injury of workers (BPs Case) Mismanagement (BPs Case) Malevolence of employees Natural disaster (e.g. hurricane, earthquake, and flood) Fire hazard Gas or chemical hazards Terrorist attack (e.g. bombing and plane crashing) Unfavorable media or community attention, including major complains or criticism about programs, and curriculums Other exceptional catastrophic incident (e.g. plane crash on a oil rig)

Crisis threshold and assign a crisis alert responsibility. Events signaling a crisis can be evident, like an earthquake, an explosion or a shooting. Other events may not be clear or unnoticeable. In either case, there has to be a concrete signal or set of indicators that a crisis on

The contingency plan has been formulated according to the guidelines provided by Lerbinger (2012), and Barrett (2011), PowerPoint presentation for the course COM 722 Crisis Communication, Module #11 Technological Crisis. 11

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hand or imminent unless emergency measures are taken to avert it. The following warning signs need to be considered: When the technical staff (scientist/engineer) warns about technology failure Mismanagement of procedure When the potential risks of a project is high Continuous dissatisfaction among workers regarding certain issue

When the project leaders or anyone from senior management position receives information that can be related to a crisis threshold, the leader of the company, that is the CEO must be alerted. If the team leader cannot be contacted, the next available person in charge must be notified. Crisis Management Team. The CMT of BP is responsible for the execution and actualization of the crisis communication plan. The team includes people in the following designations as the core member of the team. The CEO The senior public relation or communication officer The general counsel Head of affected operating company/division The chief financial officer Head of security Head of environmental affairs Head of engineering Head of human resource and Head of marketing

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The team must be lead by the leader with strong communication skills (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 38). The purpose of this team is to perform the following tasks in a timely and effective manner: ! ! ! ! ! Identifying clearly the hazard or threat Performing a risk assessment Establishing the significance of the risk for the institution Communicating the risk The Communications Office is responsible for the organization of the training for the CMT and even though more than one spokesperson is involved the management must always speak with a single voice. Establishment of the crisis communication center. Once a crisis is identified, a Crisis Communication Center must be established. The size and capacity of the Center will depend on the expected number of media representatives (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 25). Necessities of the media, like parking facilities and additional support has to be considered. These activities are part of establishing of good relationships. Another separate place for other stakeholder, for example family or victims in case of explosion, must be established. A 24-hour hotline service and email account must be open to answer any query during the crisis. Also trained people should be assigned to attend the phone calls and answer the email updates about the crisis should be available in the official websites of the company. Obtain advance approvals to implement the measures of the contingency plan. If approvals are required from governmental authorities to execute portions of the contingency plan, they should be obtained in advance. If this is not possible, clearance procedures should be carefully outlined, together with names, addresses and telephone numbers of all involved

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individuals. This is essential in case of explosion. Military assistance, advanced technology from other organization might be required to control explosion and its impact and rescue trapped workers. List and prioritize publics that must be informed. List of the several groups workers, executives, scientists, engineers, environmentalists, media, and other organizations for instance U.S. department of energy must be available, including phone and cell numbers, email, and addresses. This is decisive for the communication strategy. Without this data is not possible to alert the community about emergencies. This task is responsibility of the Communications Office. Social media must be attained for PR communication. Prepare a crisis media list and background press materials. The Communications Office is responsible for the maintenance of complete and updated media list of local, national and international media. Depending on the magnitude of the crisis international media should be informed. The communication officer must have specific format for media release which should be used in case of communication crisis. Designation of a spokesperson. The CEO should be the spokesperson in crisis of national & international significance. For crisis that only concerns locally the head of operation in that area or the communication officer can be the spokesperson as well. However in every situation there can be more than one spokesperson depending on the situation but all communication must be done with the single voice approach. Other relevant strategies to avoid or minimize crisis effects Engage in intelligence activities. Developing proper surveillance measures and developing reliable information networks. For example, establishing communication channels with journalists, media professionals, environmental activist groups

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Strengthen security measures, emergency warning system. Ensure emergency warning system is active 24/7 and all security regulation and procedures are being strictly followed.

Enforcement on following all formal procedure. There must be periodical speculation and strong enforcement for following all the formalities related to performing tasks.

Guidelines for Communication Management during and after the Crisis Once the CMT is activated, it is necessary to execute actions to address the particular crisis, by means of customizing the general measures that appear in the contingency plan. The main objective of the Crisis Communication Plan is to control damage to an organizations reputation, depending on the situation, a supplementary objective is to use the occasion of media attention as an opportunity to publicize itself, that is to tell the public about the organizations mission, values, and operations (Lerbinger, 2012, p.39). Accuracy of the information and transparency. In order communicate properly and in a timely manner, it is necessary to conduct a fact-finding (Lerbinger, 2012, p.54). This task can be performed by answering the five Ws: who, what, when, where, why, and how, explained by Lerbinger (2012) and featured below: Who: The heroes and culprits were? What: Happened? Damage was caused to property and the surrounding environment? Is your plan of action? Witnesses, experts, victim and other might be interviewed? When: Did it happen? Will we know the details? Will be over? Where: Did it happen? Should we be now? Why: Did it happen?

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How: Many causalities were incurred (both injured and Death)? Are rescue and relief operations proceeding? Unconfirmed or speculative information should not be released in any condition. If any answer is unknown the following approach should be pursue I dont know but Ill find out for you and tell the truth even if it hurts(Berger as cited in Lerbinger, 2012). No facts shall be overlooked even if it seems minor. Keep the media informed. Organize press conference and release updated data. Silence can jeopardize a reputation (Lerbinger, 2012, p.56). When the essential facts of a serious crisis have been verified, a statement and news release must be prepared in consultation with senior management. A press conference should be organized if possible within 24 hours of the crisis. Communication must be prompt, because events move rapidly in an emergency and critical decisions must be made quickly. In no case news media must not gather information from own source. If any news of such nature arise, the company must also promptly respond to that. The following must be taken into account while writing the press release for crisis communication:5 Description of what happened, when and where. If definitive information is available include how many casualties there are known up to this point or any other pertinent information available. Sympathize with victims and state honest apology if people are harmed. Explain why the breakdown has occurred. Accept responsibility if it is the companys fault, state the potential risks of the incident and deep concern.
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Immediate and future plan of action.

The press release guidelines has been formulated according to the guidelines provided by Lerbinger (2012), Barrett (2012), Class Notes on Technological Crisis for the course COM 722 Crisis Communication and NewsPlace.org/crisis). 16

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State the values of the company and a strong note of determination to overcome the crisis.

Date and signature of CEO

All information must be verified before publicly communicating. Only definitive and not speculative information should be disseminated. Communicate directly with key stakeholders. When a crisis occurs, information can be delivered in form of a text message to social media. The institution must keep a single voice when communicating with stakeholders. Information must also be disseminated as quickly as possible to various involved government agencies and the organizations employees, victims families, stockholders and other partner companies. Keep a log. The communication manager should keep a log of all information received, procedures undertaken, and steps decided upon. Everyone involved in crisis management should write down what he or she does and thinks. This log will help the communication manager to become more objective about events and facilitates the formulation of responses. Those handling communications should keep a log of all media contacts-both inquiries and initiatives-by simply recording the name of the reporter and the media, date and time of the contact, phone number and other contact information and subject of the inquiry and response given (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 43). Post crisis rebuilding. After the crisis has been overcome, communication continues being crucial. It is necessary to keep providing the last remaining updates. The following steps are considered as part of the rebuilding phase: Follow up with stakeholders, keep in contact with the affected groups, for example, families of victims, stock holders etc. and continue providing updates to the media.

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Perform an act of good will if appropriate, to display commitment beyond self preservation within the crisis resolution process.

Perform a Post-Incident Analysis (PIA) and communicate the results. In some cases, like tragic deaths or killings, organize events to commemorate the deaths.

Section C - Relief and Recovery Efforts Lerbinger (2012) points out that in the aftermath of a disaster, public attention is focused on response and relief efforts, which help stabilize the stricken area. These efforts are undertaken by government bodies, nonprofit organization and NGOs, and by people helping one another (Lerbinger, 2012, p.99). BP should work along with the US Coast Guard, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other state and federal agencies to analyze the situation, figure out where the greatest needs are, and respond as rapidly as they can since every hour and day counts (Lerbinger, 2012. p.58). First of all, in order to effectively address the damage caused by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, BP should listen to the people of the Gulf Coast to assess their principal needs. In order to do that, designated managers of the company should travel to the region, and have meetings and conversations with fishermen, health officials, environmental organizations, local leaders, scientists, members of the business community, local officials, and thousands of Gulf Coast residents across all five states of the Gulf of Mexico. Plans to restore the Gulf will be mainly suggested from the people of the area. BPs response to the crisis will require special analysis on three areas: environment, economies, and the companys image. The first and second areas are intimately linked to each

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other, since what happens to the ecosystem of the Gulf affects its economy, and consequently the welfare of all Gulf Coast residents. Therefore, recovery and sustainability for the Gulf Coast will focus on bringing these aspects into balance. Environmental Restoration BP should work with the entities mentioned above to put the recovery plans in place, with the aim of addressing and/or reducing the potential damage and loss of natural resources. Main efforts will consist of beach deep-cleaning and dune restoration; monthly tests to examine water and air quality; seafood testing; and set-up of bird, marine mammals and sea turtle centers along the coast. Ensuring seafood safety will not only protect human health, but also promote economic recovery across the region. In order to accomplish environmental restoration, state and federal laboratories should be warned to receive, analyze, confirm, and report the presence of oil, dispersants, and other toxic agents in seafood, clinical, and environmental samples. BP will also set up a research initiative to monitor the long-term effects of the oil spill and its potential impact on the ecosystem and human health. To those with oil spill-related health concerns, the company will guarantee free access to specialty care providers, and reimbursement of medical bills. Economic Restoration In order to facilitate economic restoration throughout the Gulf Coast, BP should work with special emphasis on two of the regions most impacted industries: tourism and seafood. In relation to tourism, BPs safety concerns should focus on restoring the image of the Gulf as a desirable place to live, visit, vacation, and do business. The company will donate a certain amount of money to help the states to promote tourism in the areas affected by the oil spill. Developing marketing plans and creating diverse events including fairs and festivals would be interesting recreational activities that BP, local authorities, and diverse organizations should

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work together on to attract tourism to the coasts. To further support the tourism industry, they should develop a travel and tourism website to help disseminate appropriate information about open beaches and tourist attractions to the public. Regarding seafood, BP should grant funding for fishery disaster assistance. The company should collaborate with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and its state representatives from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida on developing plans that are intended to help both the local seafood industry and the sport fishing community restore national confidence in Gulf fishery products. In addition, BP should work along with local organizations to promote the Gulf seafood, and design programs that monitor and study the state of the local seafood affected by the oil spill. Besides efforts to support these core industries tourism and commercial fishing-, BP should also develop educational plans to provide the public information about seafood safety, and address public concerns and perceptions. Image Restoration BP should start by hiring a prestigious advertising agency to work together on and advertisement campaign to improve message management, and enhance the companys reputation overall. Newspaper, radio, television, and social media will be the main outlets to promote the commitment of BP to the Gulf restoration (refer to Section E for more information on BPs Social Media Strategy). In addition, corrective action is part of image restoration (Lerbinger, 2012, p.71). Thus, BPs image restoration will require further corrective action beyond the clean-up efforts and restoration of the environment and local businesses. It will include the following aspects: CEOs public and sincere apologies, and open acknowledgment of the companys responsibility.

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Following Lerbinger (2012) suggests say it fast, say it all. BP should establish greater transparency about the availability and use of funds. This should begin with making public the distribution of funds among the four states: Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi. BP should also communicate publicly what recovery steps will follow and when. The more information the company provides the less speculations the media may elaborate, and the more comfort residents will feel.

Restructuring BPs staff. A standard practice in serious crisis of mismanagement failure is to replace errant managers (Lerbinger, 2012, p.230). BP should begin with the appointment of a new CEO, and follow with the conformation of two fundamental divisions: a crisis management team and a communications department.

Ensuring access to support services to the victims families. It will be particularly important that individuals who lost love ones as a result of the initial explosion be effectively connected to safety net programs, such as psychological aid, and unemployment compensation.

Strengthening communication channels with diverse parties: shareholders, stakeholders, the media, and society at large. BP should work hard to regulate and implement policies to protect the Gulfs community, make safety measures public, and guarantee relief efforts to those affected by the disaster. As part of the same goal of enhancing communication channels, the company will set up a hotline to receive peoples concerns and suggestions, which would help to give residents and organizations a voice in the crisis (Lerbinger, 2012, p.57). BPs institutional website will also provide information about the companys progress toward helping economic and environmental restoration efforts in the Gulf Coast region.

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It is necessary to understand that identifying specific recovery activities in the human services area will be a significant challenge for BP. It will be extremely difficult to predict what the needs will be over the coming years. There is also uncertainty about how quickly local industries such as fishing, tourism, and oil drilling will recover. However, a critical step in minimizing those potential effects is to continue efforts and plans to mitigate damage to the tourism and commercial fishing industries.

Section D - BPs Advertising and Social Media Campaigns During and after the disaster, BP should run a strong advertising and social media campaigns to keep the public informed about the companys actions. Thus, running a massive TV campaign, featuring the CEO of the company addressing a sincere message, would be a good start to express sorrow for the consequences of the crisis, show accountability, and ensure commitment to restore the Gulf Coast. The TV advertisement will run in major local and national TV stations, for the period of six months and in prime time. The same message will be adapted to the local and national radio stations and the newspapers. Social media should be used to make BPs messages still more massive. Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube will be the main platforms for their Public Relations response to the oil spill. Facebook groups should engage the public in an informative manner about the companys efforts associated with the catastrophe. Twitter account will be used with the same purpose of Facebook but will provide more quickly updated reports. Flickr channel should be used to show pictures of the disaster, focusing on the clean-up efforts, community engagements, and claim reimbursements. Official YouTube channel of BP will feature Gulf stories, peoples testimonies, and videos recorded at the affected shores.

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Section E - Materials Needed for Crisis Media List In order to execute the said advertising and social media campaigns, an up-to-date media list should be ready and immediately accessible. Up-to-date list, of media relevant, listing every press service, newspaper, television stations, and radio station (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 41), along with the names of contacts available, their telephone numbers and email addresses.

Media list (updated November 28, 2012) Environmental advocacy: " Jennifer Marcellas, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Office phone: (301) 480-0379 E-mail: jennifer.marcellas@niehs.nih.gov " Casey Lauren, National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) Office phone: (888) 232-6348 E-mail: clauren@nceh.org " Mark Salt, CDCs National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Office phone: (888) 232-6348 E-mail: msalt@niosh.org Local newspapers: " Diedra Wilson, Alexandria Daily Town Talk Office phone: (540) 981-3211 E-mail: publisher@thetowntalk.com

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" Steve Wilkos, Times-Picayune Office phone: (722) 458-3346 E-mail: swilkos@timespicayune.com National newspapers: " David Nicholas, New York Times Office phone: (800)-NYT-0001 E-mail: editor@nytimes.com " William Emerson, USA Today Office phone: (800)-USA-0001 Email: editor@usatoday.com Local radio: " Jason Lewis, NewsRadio710 Office phone: (339) 857-4483 Email: journalist@newsradio710.com " Frances Jean-Baptiste, WBZR Office phone: (339) 887-8966 Email: fjb@wbzr.com National radio: " Jeffrey Philogene, ABC News Radio Office phone: (339) 855-8966 Email: philogenej@abcnewsradioonline.com

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" Vanessa Sullivan, National Public Radio Office phone: (339) 986-8046 Email: sullivanv@npr.com Local television stations: " Ricardo Heredia, New Orleans News Office phone: (339) 227-8966 Email: heredia@wwltv.com " Deanna Mills, Baton Rouge Breaking News Office phone: (877) 933-5547 Email: news@wafb.com National television stations: " Marshall Erikson, CNN Office Phone: (912) 121-6743 Email: eriksonm@cnn.com " Grace Johnson, FOX News Office Phone: (912) 223-8563 Email: johnsong@foxnews.com

It is also important that BP has ready background material on: # Constantly updated vital statistical data should be prepared for immediate distribution.

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# Keep a list of experts, namely high credibility persons, and other specialists whom the media can consult for technical details, and for verification of various kinds of data. # CEOs name and contact information. # Prepare a list of space and equipment needs for the crisis and communication control center for use by the news media.

Section F - Steps for Holding a Successful Press Conference In case of emergency, BP must quickly hold press conferences and make disclosures to the media, accurately and sincerely. Before, during and after the conference the following steps should be followed: Before the press conference: " A topic/good reason for holding a press conference should be stated. " A press conference should be held as soon as possible. " A location where the press conference will be held on should be determined. " A media advisory should be issued notifying the media of the news conferences. " Information should be ready to disseminate. " Spokespeople should be designated. During the press conference, the spokesperson: " " " " Should be open and honest, as it is essential to the companys reputation. Provides as much information as he/she possibly can. Always escorts journalists in the emergency site. Makes positive efforts to provide assistance to the media.

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"

Should provide accurate reports; unconfirmed or speculative information should never be released.

After the press conference: " Make sure the contingency plan is being executed as it was articulated at the press conference. " The media should be monitored: if errors or inaccuracies are found in media statements, prompt action should be taken to correct them.

Section G - Public statement made by Tony Hayward on November 28, 2012 (included in the mock press conference) Thank you all for coming on such a short notice. For those of you who don't know me, Im Tony Hayward, the CEO of Beyond Petroleum. Beyond Petroleum, known as BP, is a British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, England. I will first inform you of the subject matter, and then I will be available to answer your questions. We are shocked and deeply saddened by what has happened in the Gulf of Mexico last night. At 11pm, an explosion ripped through BPs Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, 52 miles southeast of the Louisiana port of Venice. According to the Coast Guard, five workers were reported dead, and few others are missing. At this point, we still do not have a confirmed number of injured people. Soon after the explosion, nearly a mile below the surface the ocean, oil began spewing into the water. Because there has never been leak this size at this depth, it has been testing our limits of technology. We are assembling a team of our best scientists and engineers to tackle this challenge. We are also consulting scientists and experts

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from academia and other oil companies to provide us with ideas and advice. We are ready to use any required equipment and technology to stop this disaster. I am extremely sorry to be here to tell you about this accident. I assure you we will fight this for months and even years; we will fight this spill with everything weve got for as long as it takes. We will pay for the damage that has been caused by this unfortunate accident, and we will do whatever is necessary to help the Gulf Coast and its people recover from this tragedy. Today, I would like to lay out for you what our battle plan is going forward: what we will be doing to clean up the oil, and what we will be doing to help people in the gulf. For the clean up, we are in touch with the government to provide us the right people to help us stop the oil coming to the shore and clean the gulf. We will get this clean up started as soon as possible. As the clean up continues, we will offer whatever additional resources and assistance might be needed. We understand that despite our best efforts, oil has already caused damage to the coast line and its wildlife. Sadly, we also understand that no matter how effective our responses, there will be more oil and more damage before our clean up effort is completed. That is why the second thing we will focus on is the recovery and the restoration of the Gulf Coast. We understand that many people have been making a living from the water and that water is in jeopardy now. We will set aside any resources required to compensate the workers and business owners who have been harmed as a result of this accident. We will develop a Gulf Coast restoration plan as soon as possible and we will pay for it. We understand that the two of the regions most impacted industries are tourism and seafood. We will facilitate economic restoration throughout the Gulf Coast with special emphasis on these two industries.

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Our intention is to form a department that is directly responsible for ensuring that our company will fulfill its promises to the people of the Gulf Coast. This department will be responsible for implementing the necessary tactics to restore the environment, the economies and our image, so that we may improve the trust and confidence the public has in our company. We are ready to collaborate with any environmental and governmental agencies to clean up this disaster. We are considering every single idea out there, especially from the folks who know these communities best. Weve also opened up a 24-hour hotline service and an email account for everyone who has any inquiry. The hotline number and email address are given in the press release and our official website. Every decision we make is based on a single criterion: what is going to best protect and make whole the people and Eco systems of the gulf. If there is an idea, or suggestions, I am here to listen. We are all in this together. I am here to tell you: you are not alone, you will not be abandoned, and you will not be left behind. We will keep at this until the leak is stopped and until the coast line is clean. That is my promise to you.

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Section H - Media Advisory

BP OIL SPILL MEDIA ADVISORY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 23, 2010

Wilson Mitchell 918-455-1992

GULF OF MEXICO - There has been a massive explosion on the evening of April 20th, 2010 aboard the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig leased by BP. Eleven workers have been reported missing and 17 are injured. Another 98 survived with no serious injuries. There were no warning signs before the blast. April 21, 2010 - Coast Guard log reports Potential environmental threat is 700,000 gallons of diesel on board the Deepwater Horizon and estimated potential of 8,000 barrels per day of crude oil, if the well were to completely blowout (Solomon, 2010, para.5). April 22, 2010 The Deepwater Horizon burned for over 24 hours before sinking beneath the ocean. Coast Guard says oil was leaking from the rig at the rate of about 8,000 barrels (340,000 US gallons) per day (Solomon, 2010, para.8). Norwegian crews begin using remotely operated underwater vehicles to map the seabed and assess the damage to the wreck. The crews report large amounts of oil that flowed out (Solomon, 2010).

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BP is currently organizing a press conference to be held April 24, 2010. For more information contact Wilson Mitchell at wmitchell@bp.com

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References Lerbinger, O. (2012). The crisis manager: Facing disasters, conflicts, and failures. (2nd ed). New York, NY: Routledge. Al Jazeera. (2010). BP begins testing new oil well cap. Retrieved November 10, 2012, from http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2010/07/20107150283268524.html Bergin, T. (2008). Oil majors output growth hinges on strategy shift. Retrieved November 12, 2012, from http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/08/01/us-oilmajors-productionidUSL169721220080801 BP (n.d.). BP financial and operating information 2007-2011. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://www.bp.com/liveassets/bp_internet/globalbp/STAGING/global_assets/downloads/ F/FOI_2007_2011_full_book.pdf CNN. (2010). Coast Guard: Oil rig that exploded has sunk. Retrieved November 12, 2012, from http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/22/coast-guard-oil-rig-that-exploded-has-sunk/ CNN Money. (2012). Global 500. Retrieved December 1, 2012, from http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/global500/2012/full_list/ Durando, J. (2010). BPs Tony Hayward: I'd like my life back. Retrieved November 18, 2012, from http://content.usatoday.com/communities/greenhouse/post/2010/06/bp-tonyhayward-apology/1#.UL-cH5PjnTU Hoch, M. (2010). New estimate puts gulf oil leak at 205 million gallons. Retrieved November 15, 2012, from http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2010/08/new-estimate-puts-oil-leakat-49-million-barrels.html

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Solomon, J. (2011). Coast guard logs reveal early spill estimate of 8,000 barrels a day. Retrieved November 13, 2012, from http://www.publicintegrity.org/2010/06/03/2663/coast-guard-logs-reveal-early-spillestimate-8000-barrels-day UPI. (2012). BP enters shale oil quest in Ohio. Retrieved December 4, 2012, from http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Energy-Resources/2012/03/27/BP-enters-shale-oilquest-in-Ohio/UPI-94691332873030/ Welch, W. M. & Joyner, C. (2010). Memorial services honors 11 dead oil rig workers. Retrieved November 19, 2012, from http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/201005-25-oil-spill-victims-memorial_N.htm

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Appendix A: Beyond Petroleum Communication Crisis Executive Summary

1. Facts 2. Analysis of the Events 3. Contingency Planning 4. Lessons Learned and Conclusion

1. Facts On the evening of Tuesday April 20, 2010, Beyond Petroleum experienced a major technological crisis when the Deepwater Horizon Drilling Unit exploded. The explosion killed 11 workers and injured 17 others (Welch & Joyner, 2012, para. 2). The Deepwater Horizon to burned for almost two days and eventually sank, starting an offshore oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico (CNN, 2010, para.2). The blowout preventer, in place to prevent the spread of crude oil in case of emergency, failed to activate. An estimated 4.9 million barrels of crude oil flowed out of the damaged wellhead until July 15, 2010 when the wellhead was successfully capped (Al Jazeera, 2012, para. 10). 2. Analysis of the events The oil spill that took place over the course of three months in the Gulf of Mexico can be classified as both a technological crisis and a crisis of skewed management values. Lerbinger says, when technology becomes complex and coupled and something goes wrong in the system as a whole, then a technological crisis is likely (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 90). This is exactly what happened in this case. Once the explosion took place, the sinking drilling unit impacted the

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underwater oil well system, causing oil to leak out from the reserve that was 18,000 feet under the sea floor (Hoch, 2010, para. 7). There relief wells and a blowout preventer in place that failed to activate. Because these emergency efforts did not work, the system as a whole was technologically flawed, which is what led to the initial accident developing into a full-blown crisis. A crisis is also more likely when an accident occurs at the boundary of human technological knowledge and experience (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 90). This crisis in particular was a challenge to the scientists and engineers attempting to find a solution, since the oil spill was stemming from several thousand feet underwater (Solomon, 2011, para. 6). BP representatives admitted that an operation had never been performed at that depth. To work outside of their knowledge and experience was testing their limits of technology at the time. Had they anticipated the possibility of an oil spill happening, they would have been better prepared and equipped to assess the damages and contain the oil sooner. Instead of ensuring upstream measures, BPs response to this crisis seemed to be almost completely downstream; they didnt do enough to lessen chances of the crisis happening, so once it did, they were scrambling to find the right solution (Lerbinger, 2012). Preventative measures they could have used include: Upgrading safety measures. Regularly scheduled safety inspections and drills should have been routine at the Deepwater Horizon Drilling Unit. During the crisis, it was revealed that the emergency alarm system was not on during the time of explosion, which enraged many members of the media and public. The workers who died and were seriously injured could have benefited greatly from a properly utilized alarm system. If there were safety inspections and safety drills, precautions would have been taken to ensure the alarms were on. If the workers had

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safety drills, they may have been better prepared to escape the burning rig, and better equipped to protect themselves if the alarm system failed to warn them (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 100). Emergency planning. Since the rig was in an isolated location, workers should have been trained in first aid or basic life support in case of emergency. Other emergency planning includes having the proper backup technologies. Although BP had a blow out preventer, it didnt work after the explosion. Having more than one may have helped contain the situation at first, but there are still other options that should have had prepared. In the worst-case scenario, BP could have anticipated an uncontrolled oil leak and developed a device suitable for plugging a leak of any size, at any depth. BP came up with the idea of using a dome to cover the leak, but if they had these ideas in their contingency plan, creating the dome and implementing it would have taken place much sooner (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 101). This was also a crisis of skewed management values. The CEO personifies the organization (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 42), and Tony Hayward reflected a selfish and careless attitude about the victims of the explosion and the environmental hazards the spill caused. Hayward said Theres no one who wants this thing over more than I do, I'd like my life back (Durando, 2010, para. 2). This is just one example of his insensitivity that the public was exposed to during the crisis. Although there were people hospitalized, missing, and dead, Hayward failed to sympathize with those who didnt have the choice to get their lives back. Since he was unfortunately the spokesperson, BP was represented poorly. Aside from the constant images of the spill in the media, Haywards attitude is what the public saw and heard from BP. His negligence is what made this crisis even worse than it already was. Management performance in preventing and handling a crisis is an aspect in determining its outcome (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 186).

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3. Contingency Planning An essential aspect of crisis preparation is contingency planning. The overall purpose of contingency planning is to recognize and address as many uncertainties and risks as possible so that management can maintain control over its affairs when a crisis strikes (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 20). If BP had a strong contingency plan, even the unexpected string of incidents ultimately leading to the spill could have been sooner and more efficiently. According the Lerbingers outline on page 20, BPs contingency plan should have included: An outline of response actions, communication procedures, and responsibilities Guidance for personnel who manage major crisis events. Guidelines for company spokespersons who communicate with the media a key audiences during a crisis Additional emergency and public affairs resources and personnel who are available in the organization. More specifically, Lerbinger (2012), says a contingency plan should: Identify all potential contingencies and areas of vulnerability: If BP had taken this step, they may have been able to foresee the potential for this spill occurring. The Drilling Unit was large enough that if it ever sank, it could have impacted the structures underneath it. If the structures werent stable enough to withstand the impact, the oil from the reserve underground could have spilled into the ocean. Many things that could have gone wrong went wrong all at once, and if BP thought about this ahead of time, they could have prevented it getting worse. Establish Crisis Thresholds and Assign Crisis Alert Responsibility: The warning systems aboard the rig fall under this category. Workers should have been warned of

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the danger they were in during the time of the explosion. Also, the fire after the explosion burned for almost two days. If BP understood how bad a fire on the Deepwater Horizon could have been, they would have known how to better control the fire. They should have had the proper crisis thresholds and alert responsibility, so they would have had enough resources to put out the fire. This might even have prevented it from sinking and causing the oil spill. Organize and Train a Crisis Management Team and Establish Crisis Communications Center: If all else had failed, BP may have benefited most from this aspect of a contingency plan. A spokesperson trained to deal with a crisis would have represented them better than Tony Hayward. BP took too long to respond to the media during the first hours of the crisis, and once they did, it wasnt sufficient for the crisis they were facing.

4. Lessons learned and conclusion -If an organization wants to gain control over the reporting of the event (Lerbinger, 2012, p. 31), it is essential to deliver information openly and honestly during the first hours after the crisis occurs. BP did not respond promptly enough to the crisis, which allowed the media to take full control of what was being said and shown about the disaster. -Emergency alarms and backup technologies need to be regularly checked and in fully functional condition. It seemed BP had the right tools, but they were proven completely useless when they were needed the most. The victims may have survived if they were warned by the alarms, and the crisis may have never escalated if the blowout preventer actually prevented the explosion in the first place.

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- Until a realistic fact finding (Lerbinger, 2012, p.41) is available, it is better to consider the worst case scenario when faced with a potential crisis. Tony Hayward underestimated the severity of the crisis from the very beginning. This shows the public that not only did the disaster mean nothing to him, but that he wasnt dedicated to fixing the problem. Having the attitude that its a tiny spill hinders the problem-solving process as opposed to tackling it head-on.

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