Tragedies come in all shapes and sizes. The recent pedestrian bridge collapse at Florida International University (FIU) is another example of the unexpected occurring with devastating consequences, including the death of six people. What happened at FIU is what keeps construction and related industry executives up at night.

While the FIU pedestrian bridge collapse is the current headline, there’s no limit to the type of scenario that can negatively impact a company. Sexual harassment claims, employee violence, cyberattacks, executive succession and unfavorable online employer reviews are just a few examples of scenarios that will have a negative impact on a company.

At a time of crisis, a company’s narrative can spin and contort at the speed of lightning. From screaming headlines to heated online accusations and from the internal staff rumor mill to backchannel dialogue, companies in the construction industry need to be prepared to respond to a crisis scenario and should be ready to communicate within the first hour after an incident occurs.

Take control

Think of this: It’s windy downtown Chicago and a piece of scaffolding falls from a construction site at 5:30 a.m., injuring a pedestrian. News crews are on the scene at 5:45 a.m. and online social media posts and comments have already begun. To take control of the narrative, communicating in the first hour after a crisis occurs is imperative. Even if it’s only an update with limited information, the posture of proactive behavior is an important message to send.

While most companies have a protocol and process established for operational crises, it’s common to let the crisis communication planning fall by the wayside until it’s too late. During a crisis, when the window of opportunity to communicate effectively closes, it slams shut, leaving even the best organizations in a lurch to find the right words while the story is defined by others. In a best-case scenario, the communication and operation functions should work closely in tandem. A communication expert should not be working in isolation and a risk manager should not work by themselves to figure out an approach to operational catastrophe.

Create a plan

When developing a crisis communication plan, representatives from company departments should be at the table, such as human resources, legal, risk, superintendents, information technology, innovation, sustainability and more. Differing perspectives are paramount to developing a robust crisis communication plan that is designed to respond rapidly to the wide-ranging scenarios facing companies today.

Given the perils of the construction industry, it is essential to have someone who is a catastrophic thinker. A catastrophic thinker is an individual who is able to take a high-level view of the company and its operations to demonstrate how easily the very worst could happen. This person thinks creatively and will be able to challenge even the most tenured safety experts. On the other end of the spectrum, it is also essential to have tactical thinkers in the planning process.

While the crisis communication plan is important, it’s the planning process itself that yields the most rewards. This type of open dialogue conducted before a crisis occurs often uncovers operational deficiencies or opportunities that can prevent potential disasters. For example, during the planning process the head of HR could bring up that former employees are posting damaging company reviews on popular workplace ratings websites. During this conversation, someone else on the team could suggest a radically different approach to achieving employee satisfaction before a potential exit and subsequent online rant takes place.

The crisis communication planning process should also include a thorough discussion of every single target audience for the company. It’s typical for a company to focus almost exclusively on traditional media. While media is a high priority, it’s one audience of many. Consideration should be given to a company’s clients, board members, partners, employees, community leaders, elected officials and others. Each crisis is different, but these contacts should be easy to access and prioritize within the crisis communication plan.

The communication strategy is another area where companies often misstep. These strategies dictate how the company will handle and conduct itself in times of crisis. They are reflective of the true character of a company. If the company is known to behave dishonorably with its clients, for example, this will come out in its approach to communications. How does a company want to be perceived, not only during a disaster but also when times are good? These company principles should be supported by a company’s communication strategies every day of the year.

Catastrophes happen, despite the best intentions. As a structure would never be built without drawing up plans and conducting pre-planning, a crisis should never be faced without a sound plan of communications.