Looking Ahead to the Inaugural PRWeek Crisis Comms Conference

PRWeek, one of the most authoritative voices in the public relations industry, will be hosting its inaugural Crisis Comms Conference on April 12, 2023, in Washington, D.C. The conference will explore how communicators can build a modern toolbox of tactics and strategies for addressing the most complex crisis moments.

With speaking topics ranging from the application of real-time data in crisis management to best practices in building multi-disciplinary crisis response teams, the conference will be covering some of the most important topics in crisis management today. Speakers include representatives from Dell, Boston University, the USDA, PayPal and Lockheed Martin. Identity will also be featured among these incredible organizations and world-class brands.

In 2021, I had the unique opportunity to talk about navigating the first 24 hours of a crisis situation as part of a special webinar presentation with PRWeek. The presentation covered a few key topics, including the development of a Crisis SOP, we consider to be non-negotiables companies must consider putting in place when navigating the early stages of a crisis moment. A Crisis SOP includes a combination of immediately deployable technology solutions, information collection processes and impact assessment tests to determine how a crisis might impact a brand in the first few hours or days.  

In the world of crisis communications, how brands and organizations respond in the waking hours of a situation can have a lasting impact. The first corporate statements, social media responses and leadership communications are often developed in those initial moments, and they often have outsized influence on how a crisis situation is perceived in the coming hours, days, weeks or beyond.

What we know about crisis management at Identity has evolved considerably since that presentation moment, and I’m looking forward to sharing insights and perspectives at the 2023 PRWeek Crisis Comms Conference as a panelist covering The First 24 – Navigating the Initial Moments of a Brand Crisis.

Identity has played an important role in shaping best practices related to how agencies work with companies and organizations to navigate local, regional and national crisis moments. In 2022, Identity won the Crisis Management Campaign category at both the 2022 PRNEWS Platinum Awards and Ragan’s PR Daily Media Relations Awards for its role in supporting the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office in response to the tragic school shooting at Oxford High School. More recently, Identity was recognized as a finalist at the Ragan’s Crisis Communications Awards in the Campaigns and Strategy category of Media Relations Campaign and Industry category of Nonprofit/Government.

The need for a steady hand before, during and after a moment of crisis has never been more critical in today’s complex communications landscape. While no two crisis programs are the same, the benefits gained from proper planning, in-depth risk analysis and a sound recovery and reputation management plan are universal. 

Need help crafting a modern PR program or crisis communications strategy for your brand or business? Get in touch.