Vol 6 Test 6 Part 4

20:49
You will hear a chemistry student giving a presentation on the colour purple and the development of purple dyes.
20:58
First, you have some time to look at Questions 31 to 40.
21:49
Section Four. You will hear part of a lecture to Business Management students about what managers should do when their organization faces a crisis.
First, you have some time to look at Questions 31 to 40 on page seven.
22:58
Now listen carefully and answer Questions 31 to 40.
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23:05
Today, I want to talk about how organizations can respond to a crisis — which happens when a serious problem occurs suddenly and must be dealt with quickly. I will talk about a theory that tells crisis managers how to communicate in different kinds of crises.
Some people ask why we need theory in crisis communication — isn’t logic enough? The answer is yes, sometimes, but organizations often handle crisis communication badly. What we find is that, in reality, much of the advice that organizations receive on how to respond to a crisis is just a guess. Theory and research allow us to take those suggestions and test them. Then managers can be given advice based on actual evidence of what works and what doesn’t.
24:10
The Crisis Theory has categorized three general types of crises.
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One type is a crisis where the organization is a victim and has very little responsibility. For example, this kind of crisis could be caused by a rumour.
The second kind is accidental. There isn’t much responsibility because there are other outside factors that contributed to it.
And the third one — and the most difficult to manage — is a preventable crisis. In this kind of crisis, those affected believe strongly that a mistake was made within the organization.
25:00
The type of crisis is important because the more people think the organization is responsible for the crisis, the angrier they become at the organization.
25:11
The theory begins by suggesting a two-part basic response that can be used in all kinds of crises.
The first part is to provide information to those affected so that they can protect themselves from further harm. Many crises pose a risk to people. For example, if there is a chemical release, people might have to evacuate an area. Or, if there is a product which could be harmful, people need to be told about it so they don’t buy it — or, if they have bought it, they can return it.
25:51
The second part of the basic response is to communicate the action the organization is planning in order to prevent another crisis. This is important because those affected by a crisis are often concerned that it is going to happen again.
26:14
Beyond this, crisis managers also have other tools to shape how people think about the crisis. They can use several strategies to do this.
One strategy is to diminish the crisis. If crisis managers have proof which is convincing, they can argue that a crisis is not as bad as people think. If they can argue this successfully, the harmful effects are reduced.
26:47
Another way to shape thinking is to give excuses which emphasize a lack of intent. Therefore people will see the crisis as an accident. This is important because an accidental crisis is much easier to manage than an intentional crisis.
27:09
Crisis managers can also protect the organization’s reputation. When there is a major crisis, their first goal is to reduce the negative opinions generated by the crisis. This can be done by presenting new positive facts and figures about the organization, or by reminding people of past good works done by the organization.
27:37
Rebuild strategies are useful for preventable crises, or when there has been a series of accidental crises, as these crises present a severe threat to the perceived reliability of the organization. For example, a crisis where the organization is clearly at fault or broke a law can be very damaging and can result in loss of business.
Rebuild strategies can also be used to reduce the impact of the crisis. To do this, crisis managers say and do things to benefit those affected by the crisis.
28:22
The reputation of the organization can also be protected in practical ways. The problem can sometimes be addressed by offering an apology to those affected by the crisis.
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This may be sufficient action when the problem is relatively minor. However, if the crisis is very severe, the most common strategy is to offer compensation to those affected.
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So, to summarize: crisis communication theory is interesting to managers because it gives positive guidance on how to respond. It can help them figure out which strategy is appropriate for which type of crisis.
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29:11
That is the end of Section Four. You now have half a minute to check your answers.
29:46
That is the end of the Listening Test. You now have 10 minutes to transfer your answers to the listening answer sheet.