Crisis Management

Crisis Management

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Webster Crisis/Emergency Definitions

• Crisis – an unstable situation of extreme

danger or difficulty; an unstable or crucial

time or state of affairs in which a decisive

change is impending.

• Emergency – an unforeseen combination of

circumstances or the resulting state that

calls for immediate action; an urgent need

for assistance or relief.

For Destinations … a Wide

Variety of Potential Threats

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Hawai„i Crisis/Emergency Categories

Categories Examples

Weather/Natural Disasters

Tsunamis, hurricanes

Health-Related SARS, Avian flu, food poisoning

Business Airline strikes, aircraft groundings, bankruptcies

Disturbances Acts of terrorism, power outages

Accidents Toxic contamination, fires

Crisis Management Goal

• To preserve the integrity of the

tourism industry in the wake of a

crisis/emergency

• To take care of affected visitors and

visitor industry employees

• To plan for recovery

Employees Are Affected by

Crisis, Too

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HTA Crisis Management Objectives

• To serve as a liaison to provide visitor-

related information to its stakeholders

groups and facilitate communication and

interaction among interested parties;

• To coordinate and maintain a crisis

emergency communication system within

the visitor industry that will provide

tourism-related information in response to a

crisis;

HTA Crisis Management Objectives

• To monitor and assess the situation to

determine appropriate actions and

responses by the Authority; and

• To implement marketing plans to

promote Hawaii as a safe destination

during the recovery from a crisis.

Three stages of planning …

• Pre-planning/preparedness

• Emergency response

• Recovery

Crisis Plans

• General provisions … applicable to

all crises

• Crisis categories …

– Specific responses developed for

specific crisis categories

Resources

• UNWTO

– Crisis Guidelines for the Tourism Industry

• Pacific Asia Tourism Association

– Crisis recovery plans from SARS and

Tsunami

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Pre-planning …

• Know and understand “who does what”

• Survey plans from other organizations

… lessons learned … and share

different plans

• Build a database

• Have resources and plans in place (and

tested)

“Who Does What”Weather/Natural disaster: Hurricane,

Tsunami, flooding

Haw

ai‘i To

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Hote

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Ass

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HVIS

A

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Coun

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Hote

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HVCB

Island

Cha

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Building

Owner

s & M

grs.

Reta

il M

erch

ants

WBID

CATR

ALA

Airline

Com

mittee

Red

Cro

ss

Dept

. of T

rans

pora

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Dept

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Coun

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over

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FEMA

TSA

Coas

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Natio

nal G

uard

Overall planning (destination)

Coordinate agency plans

Sector planning

Brief government leaders/key players

Training and exercises

Develop/maintain crisis centers

Coordinate county planning

Visitor education

Statewide emergency response

County emergency response

Deploy assets/emergency equip.

Communications with members/companies

Communications with visitors

Communications with media

Communications links/technology/systems

Redistribution of visitors/evacuation

Transportation coordination (rental cars)

Transportation coordination (air)

Coordinate emergency centers

Coordinate shelters

Creating security alerts

Distributing security alerts

Cleanup

Business recovery plans

Evacuation

Communications links/technology/systems

Regular Meetings (and Drills)

to Get to Know the Players

“A Crisis is Not a Time to

Exchange Business Cards”

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Training, training, training

… especially front line staff

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The Database …

• Must be kept up-to-date and checked

regularly

• Must be distributed widely … with

copies kept in the homes of key

players as well as offices

• All forms of communications should

be included

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The Database …

• Brainstorm who should be included on

the contact list …

– Beyond the obvious …

– Consular corps/Embassies

– Religious organizations/counselors

– Airlines (both local contacts and

headquarters)

– Shipping/cruise lines

– Ground transporation

– Etc., etc.

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Communications Exercises

• Conducted without notice

• At night or on holidays

• Post-exercise assessment … and

updates on the database

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Physical plans

• Communications Center Established

and equipped

– Designated equipment staged and

ready

– Call list

– Rehearsals

• Technical ability to communicate

with industry and guests

Prepare for the Unexpected

• Communications goes down …

– System of “runners” between hotels

– “Emergency kits” include forms and

supplies

• Cellular coverage is affected

– Satellite phones

• Test: What doesn‟t work when all

power is lost

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Physical Plans: Communications Center

Dedicated Equipment

• Generator with sufficient fuel

• Telephones (and designated

emergency telephone lines)

– Special lines are cited on emergency

communications releases

• Computers with internet connections

• Televisions/radio

• Cameras

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Connecting to the Center

• Make sure the number is widely

distributed

– Employee cards

• Set up transfers from key sites

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Redundancy

• Remote and/or backup sites for web

servers

• Multiple telephone systems (land,

cellular, satellite)

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Resources for Visitors

Inform … not

alarm

Prepare for Low Tech

Communications

Ex: Signs and Standees in

Lobbies

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Travelsmarthawaii.com

For Visitors and Travel Professionals

• Includes general safety information

continuously

– … for those with concerns

• Bulletins and updates posted during

an emergency

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Travelsmarthawaii.com updates

Travelsmarthawaii.com

Communications Principles

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Spokesperson(s)

• Identify your spokesperson(s) in

advance … in the plan

• Make sure that all others know to refer

inquiries to the dedicated

spokesperson(s)

• Conduct regular media training

• Check and double-check all

information before going public

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Communications

• Pre-prepare general press releases and

talking points …

– Express sympathy/empathy

– We‟re diligently working to …

– We will distribute more information as

soon as it is reliably available

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Lessons Learned in Hawai„i

• Traffic jams at the airport

• Restroom that didn‟t work

• Elderly visitors stranded on upper

floors of hotels

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Recovery: Some lessons from

Hawai„i …

• Keep marketing budgets flexible

• The most immediate response is from

seasoned travelers

– Airline frequent flier programs

– Best-developed markets

– “Fish where the fish are …”

• Reassure … but don‟t over-promise

safety

• Employ discounts and offers carefully …

it is very difficult to regain normal pricing

after deep discounts

Marketing in the Recovery

• Shift marketing funds from the crisis

period to the recovery period

• Use technology

– Travel agent websites and distribution

systems

– Satellite/Video News Releases

• Review the marketing message

– New Orleans, post-Katrina

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Post Event Analysis

Interview Everyone

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