CRISIS PLAN PROCEDURES For additional information, please contact Melissa Briske, External Relations Coordinator. T (254) 296 5383 F (254) 753 3173 E MBriske@hotworkforce.com Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. www.hotworkforce.com
Crisis Communications Team Executive Director Anthony Billings (254) 495-1622, abillings@hotworkforce.com External Affairs Coordinator Melissa Briske (254) 723-3407, mbriske@hotworkforce.com Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. George Dimo (916) 600-0505, georged@pddesign.com Manager of Business and Industry Initiatives Rene Clayton (254) 315-6373, rclayton@hotworkforce.com Center Director Deidra Simmons (254) 296-5277, dsimmons@hotworkforce.com Center Assistant Director David Davis (254) 296-5204, ddavis@hotworkforce.com Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. H 2
Crisis Team Procedures: 18 Steps to Carry Out When a Crisis Occurs 1. If anyone within Workforce Solutions for the Heart of Texas or the Heart of Texas Workforce Development Board learns of a potential crisis, they should immediately contact Melissa Briske. Attempts to contact Melissa should be made in the following order: a. Call Melissa on her cell: (254) 723-3407 b. Call Melissa at her office: (254) 296-5383 c. Text Melissa on her cell: (254) 723-3407 d. Email Melissa: mbriske@hotworkforce.com e. Fax Melissa: (254) 753-3173 2. Melissa Briske will call the remaining Crisis Team members as soon as possible after the crisis has occurred in the following order: a. Anthony Billings: (254) 495-1622 b. David Davis: (254) 296-5277 c. Rene Clayton: (254) 315-6373 d. Deidra Simmons: (254) 296-5277 e. George Dimo: (916) 600-0505 Should one of the crisis team members be unreachable by phone, Melissa will email them and continue to try calling. a. Anthony Billings: abillings@hotworkforce.com b. David Davis: ddavis@hotworkforce.com c. Rene Clayton: rclayton@hotworkforce.com d. Deidra Simmons: dsimmons@hotworkforce.com e. George Dimo: georged@pddesign.com Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. H 3
3. Should one of the Crisis Team members learn of a crisis prior to being contacted by Melissa Briske, they should follow step one and contact Melissa Briske so she can carry out step two. 4. The Crisis Team will convene at a time established by Melissa Briske at the McLennan County Workforce Solutions Center: a. 1416 S. New Road, Room 129 Waco, TX 76711 (866) 982-9226 The backup meeting location will be the Board Administrative Offices: b. 801 Washington Avenue, Suite 700 Waco, TX 76701 (254) 296-5300 In the event that both of these locations are not available, Melissa Briske will choose an alternative location. 5. The Crisis Team will establish what the crisis is and what category it falls under: sudden, smoldering, or bizarre. a. Sudden an immediate, unforeseen crisis that carries massive risk/loss b. Smoldering an ongoing, festering crisis that begins small and grows larger as more information becomes known c. Bizarre an unusual, unexpected crisis that does not fit into the above categories Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. H 4
6. The Crisis Team will make a list of the facts they know, questions that they have or that may come up from the media, and who can answer these questions, if anyone. 7. Based on this list, the Crisis Team will prepare a statement and background information on the crisis to be dispersed or announced to the media. This media message should include an explanation of what is being done to solve the problem. 8. Identify your key audiences, what order they need to be informed in, and how they should be addressed. Key audiences could include: a. Employees b. Customers c. The media d. Board members e. CEOs f. Other governmental entities g. Special interest groups 9. Establish the primary spokesperson that will interact with the media. This spokesperson may change depending on the crisis. The spokesperson should be chosen based on: a. Comfort with cameras and reporters b. Skills in directing responses to another topic c. Knowledge about the organization and the crisis d. Ability to project confidence e. Accessibility to the media and to internal communications personnel Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. H 5
Primary spokespeople include: a. Primary Spokesperson for Workforce Services: David Davis b. Primary Spokesperson for Workforce Board: Melissa Briske Should the primary spokesperson be unable to fulfill his/her duties, an alternative primary spokesperson will be chosen based on the attributes outlined above. 10. Establish your backup spokesperson in the event that there are two media interactions that need to occur at one time. Secondary spokespeople include: a. Secondary Spokesperson for Workforce Services: Diedra Simmons b. Secondary Spokesperson for Workforce Board: Rene Clayton Should the secondary spokesperson be unable to fulfill his/her duties, an alternative secondary spokesperson will be chosen based on the attributes outlined in step eight. 11. The Crisis Team will decide whether a press conference is necessary and, if deemed necessary, will decide the time and location of the press conference. If not deemed necessary, a list of the spokesperson s contact information should be created to disperse to the media. This list should include: a. Primary spokesperson s office phone number b. Primary spokesperson s cell phone number c. Primary spokesperson s fax number d. Primary spokesperson s email address e. Secondary spokesperson s office phone number f. Secondary spokesperson s cell phone number g. Secondary spokesperson s fax number h. Secondary spokesperson s email address Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. H 6
12. Melissa Briske will inform the Board Chairman of the crisis and the Crisis Team s plan to address the situation. Specific directions should be outlined, if needed. Attempts to reach the Board Chair should be carried out in the following order until contact is made: a. Call Gaylan Beavers office phone: (254) 752-9241 b. Email Gaylan Beavers: gaylan@tejaswarehouse.com c. Fax Gaylan Beavers: (254) 752-8950 13. Melissa Briske and David Davis will inform Board staff and Workforce Solutions Center staff of the crisis and the Crisis Team s plan to address the situation. Specific directions should be outlined, if needed. Board staff should be notified by phone or email in the following order, unless the Board staff was involved and/or is already aware of the crisis: a. Sarah Bailey Bird: (254) 296-5382, sbaileybird@hotworkforce.com b. Aquanetta Brobston: (254) 296-5385, netta@hotworkforce.com c. Rochelle Goodnight: (254) 296-5391, rgoodnight@hotworkforce.com d. Judy Hedge: (254) 296-5393, jhedge@hotworkforce.com e. Ed James: (254) 296-5384, ed@hotworkforce.com f. Kary Kuecker: (254) 296-5381, kkuecker@hotworkforce.com g. Vicki Meek: (254) 296-5387, vmeek@hotworkforce.com h. Julie Talbert: (254) 296-5379, jtalbert@hotworkforce.com i. Eunice Williams: (254) 296-5324, ewilliams@hotworkforce.com Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. H 7
Workforce Solutions Center staff should be notified by phone in the following order, unless the Center was involved and/or is already aware of the crisis: a. McLennan County Workforce Solutions Center: (866) 982-9226 b. Falls County Workforce Solutions Center: (254) 883-5678 c. Bosque County Workforce Solutions Center: (254) 675-2024 d. Freestone County Workforce Solutions Center: (254) 739-2887 e. Hill County Workforce Solutions Center: (254) 582-8588 f. Limestone County Workforce Solutions Center: (254) 729-8775 14. The Crisis Team will divide the list of media contacts and begin calling/faxing/emailing the media announcing the planned press conference time or the spokesperson s contact information for media inquiries. See attached draft of media contact list. 15. The Crisis Team or a selected staff person will be appointed to handle initial incoming media or public requests for information. This person should be familiar with maintaining that Crisis Call Log, pleasant to work with and well spoken over the phone or via email, and should be able to politely fend off questions until the spokesperson can return the communication. The Crisis Call Log list should contain: a. The date and time of the call b. Name of the caller c. Question(s) asked d. Caller s phone number e. Person responsible for response f. Additional follow-up contact needs See attached draft of Crisis Call Log. Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. H 8
16. The spokesperson and, if needed, the backup spokesperson should return calls and emails as quickly as possible in the order that they were received. Any support that the remaining Crisis Team members can provide during this process should be given. 17. As new information comes to light, the Crisis Team should begin the process again at step five. If possible, keep the same spokesperson for the duration of the crisis as the media will have become accustomed to seeing/hearing this person dispersing information. 18. Once the crisis is over, evaluate and review your processes. Evaluation and review can be completed by: a. Viewing and reading any media coverage of the crisis b. Convening the Crisis Team and debrief on actions and crisis management c. Making a list of mistakes and successes throughout the crisis d. Updating the Crisis Procedures, if necessary, based on the analysis The Heart of Texas Workforce Board, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer/programs and auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to include individuals with disabilities. TTY/TDD via RELAY Texas service at 711 or (TDD) 1-800-735-2989 / 1-800-735-2988 (voice). Aquanetta Brobston, Quality Assurance Coordinator/EO Officer/504 Coordinator, (254) 296-5300. campaign produced by pat davis design group, inc. www.pddesign.com Pat Davis Design Group, Inc. H 9