Violence is bad for business. That view, held by a handful of Houston’s business and political leaders in the early 1960s, contributed to the peaceful integration of Houston’s lunch counters that decade. One business leader at the time, Bob Dundas Sr., was acutely aware of mayhem resulting from racial tensions. He was a teenager in the summer … Read more
After the tragic explosion at the West Fertilizer Company (WFC) in April, 2013, I wrote that it would take months for experts to conclude what went wrong at the facility in West, Texas (see “Initial Observations on West Communications”). Now, nearly three years later, the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) has completed its … Read more
All crises are not created equally. Some company mishaps slip quickly out of view while others linger on at high cost for months and months. Explanations for the different outcomes can sometimes be found in the actions or inactions of the afflicted company. But frequently it’s the actions of third parties that seize upon somebody else’s misfortune … Read more
The mind-numbing tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School and other school shootings have educators and public officials everywhere wondering if the next crisis will involve them. As someone in charge of communications during a highly charged period in Houston METRO’s recent past, I was asked earlier this month to share my thoughts on crisis preparedness … Read more
In business and political crises, every utterance becomes magnified to the point that ill-fated word choices become forever linked to the incident and the reputation of the speaker and their company. “I’d like my life back” will likely be former CEO Tony Hayward’s enduring legacy from BP’s Macondo tragedy in 2010. So how did our … Read more