During a crisis, an organization is inundated with an enormous amount of information in a short period of time. Facts change, new questions arise, and different teams work simultaneously on solutions. Meanwhile, the crisis communications team must determine what needs to be communicated, to whom, and when. How do you ensure that everyone is on the same page, sets the right priorities, and doesn’t lose sight of important actions?
Effective crisis communication requires more than just quickly drafting a message. It requires a clear overview, coordination, and well-defined decisions. Especially when the pressure mounts, it is important to bring structure to all information and activities.
A proven way to do this is to work with the six strategic coordination boards. Together, these boards form the basis of the BOB methodology for crisis communication: perception, assessment, and decision-making. This approach helps teams move from scattered information to a coordinated response. Recently, these six boards have also become available digitally within FirstRing, allowing crisis communication teams to consolidate their information, assessments, and actions in one central location.
Why is maintaining a clear overview so important during a crisis?
A crisis often involves multiple people and teams. The environmental analyst monitors developments in the media and on social media, the spokesperson prepares statements, editors work on news reports, and advisors coordinate with the crisis team and other crisis partners. Everyone has access to some of the information, but of course, no one has the complete picture. And that is precisely where risks arise. When information is shared primarily verbally, important details can be lost. Decisions are made based on differing perspectives, and it is not always clear who is responsible for what.
That is why it is important not only to discuss information with one another, but also to document it in a visible way. By compiling facts, considerations, decisions, and actions on whiteboards, a single, shared overview is created that the entire crisis communications team can rely on. The goal is to shift from a reactive to a proactive approach.
How do the six strategic coordination dashboards work?
The six signs provide structure to the crisis communication process. Each sign has its own function, but together they form a single whole.
It starts with perception-building. What do we currently know about the crisis? Which facts have been confirmed, what’s happening in the outside world, and what has already been communicated? This forms the common starting point for the team.
Next comes the assessment. What do these facts mean for communication? Who are the people affected and involved, what concerns exist, and where are the main challenges? Based on this, the team determines which topics will be prioritized.
In the decision-making process , the choices made are documented. This ensures that it remains clear which decisions were made and what actions result from them.
The fourth board contains the basic principles of communication. Here, we specify exactly what information needs to be communicated, what the central message is, and what people need to know or can do. In this way, this panel serves as the link between the chosen strategy and the actual communication.
The network board provides an overview of the crisis partners involved. Which organizations need to be coordinated with, who are the points of contact, and who communicates what?
Finally, there is the sign with open questions. Not everything is immediately clear during a crisis. By visibly documenting unanswered questions, you prevent them from lingering in discussions or being forgotten altogether. Once it’s clear who needs to find an answer, the question can be turned into an action item.
The strength lies not so much in the individual boards, but primarily in their cohesion. The team works based on the same facts, makes joint decisions, and translates those into concrete communication and actions.
Does the entire crisis communications team need to be present at every meeting?
A key principle of this approach is that not everyone needs to participate in the coordination meetings at all times. The process coordinator chairs the meeting. In addition, an assistant or information manager, a consultant or environmental analyst, and an editor or spokesperson & editorial coordinator typically participate. If necessary, a communications advisor from another crisis team may also participate. Meanwhile, other team members can continue working as usual.
Because the most important information and decisions are clearly documented, the team can continue to work based on the same principles. The boards are also useful for briefings, such as when a new colleague takes over a shift or a leadership needs to be quickly brought up to speed.
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