Crisis Management and Communication
Table of Contents
Conduct a stakeholder analysis in relation to the following crisis: Bomb Scare in Luton Airport 4
On what basis would you prioritise the various stakeholder groups? 4
What crisis response strategies would you recommend and why? 4
Introduction
There are various times when an organisation goes through a crisis or a disaster. In times like these, the functioning of the organisation is unstable, and so is the condition of other units present in the organisation. With the help of this assignment, one will come to know about the stakeholder analysis, concerning the Bomb scare that occurred in Luton Airport. In 2014, the Bedfordshire Police department was alerted that there was a suspicious bag found by the security in the Luton Airport. The panic created as no one knew the exact situation and passengers were evacuated from the airport (ndtv.com, 2014). All the flights were delayed and even the ones that were supposed to land were put on hold. However, after the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team confirmed that the airport was safe, and it was a false alarm, the passengers and the staff were relieved (Halliday and Vekaria, 2014).
During this time, there was enough panic created among the passengers using the flights from Luton Airport. In times like these, the organisation faced a crisis, and their customers were afraid to use their method of transportation (nbcnews.com, 2014). With the help of this assignment, one will discuss the stakeholders and their reaction towards such time.
Conduct a stakeholder analysis in relation to the following crisis: Bomb Scare in Luton Airport
When it comes to the stakeholder analysis matrix, for a larger project, the organisation looks after its stakeholders efficiently (Torelli et al., 2020). There are various factors that one should analyse while choosing the stakeholders.
On what basis would you prioritise the various stakeholder groups?
Stakeholders are prioritised into two main groups, namely, power and interest groups. However, the main factors that lead to the choosing of the groups are:
Financial Interests: It mainly consists of stakeholder’s ability to earn profit for the organisation (Nguyen and Mohamed, 2018).
Moral and Ethical Values: Helping the organisation to behave to the social norms for proper behaviour.
Environmental Stewardship: Stakeholders who have the responsibility to keep the environment sustainable and have sufficient efforts to protect wildlife.
What crisis response strategies would you recommend and why?
A crisis response strategy is a planned action taken by an organisation to lessen the pessimistic effects of crisis for the stakeholders that have been affected. The manager's actions help in the improvement and proper response to the crisis. Crisis response strategies provide condemnatory resources, which help in reducing the ill effects of the crisis on the reputation of the organisation (Raithel and Hock, 2021). A crisis is a sudden phenomenon, and no organisation can predict it from the beginning. Not only do the external factors bring change in an organisation, but internal factors may also bring about a crisis in the company (Im et al., 2021). The employees as well as the customers might be responsible for a crisis to take place in an organisation. One of the most effective crisis strategies is the crisis communication strategy. It is recommended that one use this strategy to overcome all the ill-effects that the organisation faces during a crisis (Arendt et al., 2017). It is recommended as
It helps an organisation to plan ahead of time and ensure that they work efficiently, as well as, look after all the possibilities of every crisis
An organisation should have efficient speed, to help them overcome the crisis, providing proper solutions to reduce the effects of the crisis (Blake. J, 2014)
Being responsible and transparent while dealing with a crisis is very important, as it helps in maintaining the stakeholders as well as the customers properly
You will be required to research and produce a 500 word Press Release to at least one stakeholder group
Luton Airports Contact: xxx.xxx@mail.com xxx-xxx-xxxx Press Release Luton Airport fights back the crisis after the Bomb Scare London, United Kingdom (xxxx): In times during this, the Luton Airport was under panic when an unknown caller informed the Bedfordshire Police that an unattended bag was found in the airport. The staff members of the Airport and the security there suggested that it was a terror attack and a bomb might be placed in the bag. All the aeroplanes were put on hold, and there was a delay in take-offs as well as landing in the airport. The Bedfordshire Police informed the Explosive Ordnance Disposal team to investigate on the matter, while they evacuated all the passengers as quickly as possible. However, with proper investigation and thorough check-up, it was found that it was a false alarm and that the bag contained an old iron machine. Even after such thorough check-up, the passengers found it to be a risk to travel with the airlines, and the company is trying to fix its reputation. With the help of this press release, Luton groups would like to portray their actions taken to improve the conditions in the market and ensure that their stakeholders find it efficient. The company has used the crisis communication strategy to improve their conditions during the crisis. Customers have been aware of the fact that the authorities do not find any threats in their system, and are there for the customers to guide them and protect them from any crisis that occurs in their airport. Moreover, with the help of a proper strategy, the company can deal with the crisis efficiently, and overcoming all the loopholes that might have affected the company. It is to provide a detail to all the stakeholders, to have faith in the company and help the company rise again from the crisis that they recently faced. It will not only help the organisation improve its productivity, but also help the authorities to provide their hard work and efficiency to improve the conditions of the organisation. The company is improving its efficiency and increasing brand awareness day by day, helping the organisation attracts customers. It is also helping the customers to feel safe and protected under the guidance of the employees working in the organisation. It is to inform the stakeholders that the organisation can secure and retain their position in the aviation industry, helping the organisational performance as well as the customer service to stay stable. However, during times like these, the stakeholders need to provide the organisation not only with financial support but also with emotional support. It will help the organisation improve and provide better service to its customers, providing customer satisfaction. Thus, it will also help the organisation to increase its productivity, and strengthen its stakeholder relationship. -x- |
Conclusion
With the help of this assignment, one comes to know about the condition of Luton Airport during the time of crisis, and the ill-effects that it brought with it. It not only affected their customer base, but also the stakeholders associated with the organisation. With the help of the stakeholder analysis, the organisation will be able to prioritise their stakeholders, looking after the factors associated with the matrix. Moreover, a recommended crisis response strategy is produced, which will help the organisation improve its dealings with the crisis and maintain a steady relationship with the stakeholders of the firm. Lastly, a Press Release has been produced, which will present the situation and maintenance of the situation in the firm during a crisis, and improving the relationship with the stakeholders.
During times like these, it is a responsibility of the stakeholders to provide the organisation with financial as well as mental and emotional support. It will help the organisation grow and provide proper satisfaction to their customers, even while they are still recovering from the crisis. For an organisation to work smoothly, not only are the employees responsible, but the stakeholders having an indirect role to perform. With maintaining a proper stakeholder relationship, the organisation will be able to perform efficiently and increase profit margins as well.
Reference List
Arendt, C., LaFleche, M. and Limperopulos, M.A., 2017. A qualitative meta-analysis of apologia, image repair, and crisis communication: Implications for theory and practice. Public Relations Review, 43(3), pp.517-526.
Blake. J, 2014 Luton airport reopening after bomb scare [Online] Available at: https://www.channel4.com/news/luton-airport-security-alert-bomb-disposal-suspicious-flight
[Accessed on 6th February, 2021]
Halliday. J, and Vekaria. N, 2014 Luton airport bomb scare: disposal experts carry out controlled explosion [Online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/08/london-luton-airport-evacuated-suspicious-item-found#:~:text=Luton%20airport%20bomb%20scare%3A%20disposal%20experts%20carry%20out%20controlled%20explosion,-This%20article%20is&text=Bomb%20disposal%20experts%20carried%20out,raised%20to%20severe%20last%20month. [Accessed on 6th February, 2021]
Im, W.J., Youk, S. and Park, H.S., 2021. Apologies combined with other crisis response strategies: Do the fulfillment of individuals' needs to be heard and the timing of response message affect apology appropriateness?. Public Relations Review, 47(1), p.102002.
nbcnews.com, 2014 U.K.'s Luton Airport Evacuated, Bomb Squad Called at 'Suspicious Package' [Online] Available at: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/u-k-s-luton-airport-evacuated-bomb-squad-called-suspicious-n198216 [Accessed on 6th February, 2021]
ndtv.com, 2014 Alert Cancelled at London's Luton Airport After Controlled Explosion [Online] Available at: https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/alert-cancelled-at-londons-luton-airport-after-controlled-explosion-661193 [Accessed on 6th February, 2021]
Nguyen, T.S. and Mohamed, S., 2018. Stakeholder management in complex projects. In The 7th World Construction Symposium 2018: Built Asset Sustainability: Rethinking Design, Construction and Operations (pp. 497-506).
Raithel, S. and Hock, S.J., 2021. The crisis?response match: An empirical investigation. Strategic Management Journal, 42(1), pp.170-184.
Torelli, R., Balluchi, F. and Furlotti, K., 2020. The materiality assessment and stakeholder engagement: A content analysis of sustainability reports. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 27(2), pp.470-484.
