Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
because the investigators will assume something is being hidden. If the crisis has
progressed to this point, being defensive is unproductive. Accept the situation and
cooperate fully with the investigators rather than appearing to be acting against them.
Restitution
It is likely that your fi rst opportunity for restitution will be providing your customers
with assurances that they will be reimbursed for all product recalled, including any
additional charges to return or destroy product. Depending on the circumstances, it is
also important to offer to cover appropriate out-of-pocket medical expenses for those
directly affected by this situation. Consider how these actions will be perceived by
lawyers who will be handling these cases later.
Resolution
Not only is it important to convey in the message what is being done to address the
immediate situation, but it is also essential to show that efforts are being made to
resolve the problem and proactive steps are being taken to prevent it from happening
again. Based on information provided during internal and external investigations,
including advice from internal and external experts and the government, develop a
process improvement plan or corrective action plan to address those issues. Do not
commit to anything that will not be accomplished or corrected in the long term. Be
certain the response addresses the concerns of key stakeholders and that the corrective
action plan is effectively communicated to them. This is imperative in regaining the
stakeholders ' confi dence in the company's product. If the company is still viable, this
strategy will prove invaluable in regaining the business that was lost as the result of
the crisis.
Reform
Reform must be addressed if the investigation reveals that even the best practices are
not going to prevent such an event from recurring. This requires airing to all stake-
holders your learning experiences and the corrective actions needed to prevent this
from happening again. This reinforces the company's commitment to doing the right
thing and taking responsibility for the problem.
Review
Continuously reviewing the communications, corrective actions and stakeholder
response in an effort to gauge the success of your Incident Management Plan and
response is vitally important. If, for example, there are several of the same questions
about product codes, it is necessary to review and revise the communications to make
this point clearer. If the corrective actions are not adequate, revise them and make
them effective. If stakeholders are responding negatively to the company's communi-
cations and actions, fi nd out why and adjust. This type of analysis is widely used in
process improvement and should be included here. It will be extremely valuable as
the crisis evolves. Not adjusting during the crisis to the company's response to the
stakeholders' needs and expectations will be viewed as not taking responsibility for
the problem and will undermine the efforts that have been made in addressing the
crisis.
