The communicator’s toolkit: resources to support your team in managing crisis communications
Right now, communications and marketing teams are under immense pressure to keep up with the ongoing situation regarding COVID-19. With daily updates from the Government, nervous staff, unsure customers, as well as ensuring the wellbeing of your team; communicators are under pressure to ensure that the comms they bring out is timely, accurate, and ensures that stakeholders are left feeling reassured.
We’ve pulled together the best resources from experienced professionals across the industry to help you and your team manage your organisation’s crisis communications during these unprecedented times. As the situation is everchanging, we’ll be updating the list with the latest resources to continue supporting your team.
Last updated 5th June 2020
Managing Covid Communications
Reviewing and planning your crisis communications:
- Why communication professionals have a vital role to play in the wake of COVID-19
Reviewing crisis communications in the wake of COVID-19 with Jonathan Hemus (webinar)
Managing employee engagement throughout the crisis:
- Employee Engagement in times of crisis
- Three practical ways to share good news stories across your business
- Guide on communicating with furloughed employees (PDF)
- Supporting employees on furlough - from Mental Health UK
Why keeping furloughed employees engaged is critical for the future of your business
Supporting the mental health of furloughed workers during the coronavirus outbreak (PDF)
Public Health England have partnered with the NHS and local authorities across the UK to provide informative resources to support your crisis communications campaigns.
The Institute of Internal Communication (IoIC) provides a curated list of advice for internal communicators on how to address your organisation during this crisis. This is a must-have list for internal communicators to support your team.
The Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) and CIPR Inside have provided guides on external and internal crisis communications.
- Communicating in a crisis (PDF download)
- Tips for communicating with employees in times of crisis (PDF download)
CIPR Inside Board Director, Advita Patel, writes on managing difficult communications during a crisis, and reminds communicators that keeping it simple is best. She also gives her best tips on how to communicate with front line workers, who may not have the ability to work from home or self-isolate during this time.
- Managing difficult communications during a crisis
- Communicating with front line remote workers during coronavirus
PRWeek have launched a live blog to update communicators on the continuously changing developments. This is a key page for every press officer and PR team, as it brings together timely, concise and relevant industry news in one place.
The Communications Network have provided a crowd-sourced Crisis Communications Triage Kit. Updated by experienced communicators, the kit encourages best practices and provides a sense of community for communicators around the world. This is a unique situation, so to have guidance and information from communications teams globally is a valuable asset to have.
Nicole Alvino, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of SocialChorus, an employee engagement platform provider, writes on what organisations around the world are doing in order to communicate to their workforce. She draws on data gathered by SocialChorus, which can guide your team in providing more strategic comms.
Jonathan Hemus, of Insignia Communications, has over 30 years of crisis communications experience, and is using his experience to help you manage your crisis communications expertly.
Working From Home
Many people are working from home for the first time, and for some, this can be a difficult transition. Merging work life into your home is not an easy feat and being isolated away from your team members means figuring out a new way to communicate. It also means that teams are faced with new challenges: how can teams stay creative? How can ideas be accurately received? How do teams continue on meeting their deadlines? Marketing Week’s webinar gives guidance on how to work from home effectively within your team.
Mental Health and Wellbeing
With the merging of your work and home life, it’s important to keep aware of the impact this may have on your mental health. Laura Earle, EMEA Employee Comms & Engagement Lead at ServiceNow, writes on how communicators can watch out for their mental health during this unusual time. Being isolated away from your team, whilst also working on a strenuous situation, can take a toll on you. If you’re concerned about your mental health and want to seek advice, visit Mind.org’s page on Coronavirus and your wellbeing.
- 6 ways to look after your health during the coronavirus crisis
- Mind.org: Coronavirus and your wellbeing
The Mental Health Foundation provides a dedicated section to looking after your mental health during the coronavirus. The page provides advice for many different situations, but here is some advice that will help you as you work:
- Looking after your mental health while working during the coronavirus outbreak
- Parenting during the coronavirus outbreak
- Looking after your mental health and wellbeing when staying at home
Here are some additional resources to support you with your mental health:
- NHS: Mental wellbeing while staying at home
- SAMH: Coronavirus mental health information hub
- Centre for Mental Health: Tips to building your resilience whilst at home (PDF)
- PHE: Guidance for the public on the mental health and wellbeing aspects of coronavirus (COVID-19)
For more information, or to find out how we can support your organisation, contact marketing@vmagroup.com.