Transparency and quick response are key while handling crises, especially in the age of social media.
On 9th April 2017, officials realised that United Express Flight 3411 from Chicago to Louisville, Kentucky was overbooked. They first asked passengers if any of them would like to volunteer to deboard. Since that did not get the desired response, the airline staff started randomly evicting passengers. One such passenger Dr David Dao resisted. Multiple smartphone videos captured the confrontation between him and the officials. In those videos, it was seen that Dr Dao was literally dragged from the airplane. He was subsequently hospitalised. The videos of the incident went viral globally within minutes. United was trending on social media for all the wrong reasons. Shocked and angry, passengers commented that they will never fly United again. '“If it could happen to Dr Dao, it could happen to any of us,” was the sentiment that resonated around the world. This impacted the company’s stock price, with reports attributing almost $1billion value of stock (4%) being wiped out in a day following the incident.
United’s response to this worsened the situation making it a global PR disaster. They initially issued statements that deflected legal blame, and then resorted to abject apologies that further incensed the public over what was seen as corporate bullying and indifference. Dr Dao filed a suit against United which was subsequently settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.
The incident raises some key questions: how do organisations be prepared to deal with crisis? What does it take to be crisis-ready in today’s social media age?
Bu hikaye Indian Management dergisinin July 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Indian Management dergisinin July 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Trust is a must
Trust a belief in the abilities, integrity, values, and character of any organisation is one of the most important management principles.
Listen To Your Customers
A good customer experience management strategy will not just help retain existing customers but also attract new ones.
The hand that feeds
Providing free meals to employees is an effective way to increase engagement and boost productivity.
Survival secrets
Thrive at the workplace with these simple adaptations.
Plan backwards
Pioneer in the venture capital and private equity fields and co-founder of four transformational private equity firms, Bryan C Cressey opines that we have been taught backwards in many important ways, people can work an entire career without seeing these roadblocks to their achievements, and if you recognise and bust these five myths, you will become far more successful.
For a sweet deal
Negotiation is a discovery process for both sides; better interactions will lead all parties to what they want.
Humanise. Optimise. Digitise
Engaging employees in critical to the survival of an organisation, since the future of business is (still) people.
Beyond the call of duty
A servant leadership model can serve the purpose best when dealing with a distributed workforce.
Workplace courage
Leaders need to build courage in order to enhance their self-reliance and contribution to the team.
Focused on reality
Are you a sales manager or a true sales leader? The difference, David Mattson, CEO, Sandler® and author, Scaling Sales Success: 16 Key Principles For Sales Leaders, maintains, comes down to whether you can see beyond five classic myths that we often tell ourselves about selling.
