The Y2K Communications Quiz
It is important for every senior manager to rate the following 10 statements honestly - and then act on closing any gaps now. And if you depend on other organizations (and who doesn't!), maybe you should find out their answers to these questions.
We have a concise, well understood Y2K crisis management/crisis communications plan and process in place.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
Our senior management is committed to crisis management/crisis communications for Y2K.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
All our sites/facilities have designated local crisis management teams, with members and alternates who know their roles and what to do in a Y2K outage.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
Every person on our Y2K crisis management team will be in the office - or easily accessible - at all date-sensitive times.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
Someone is responsible and accountable for keeping our Y2K crisis management/communications plan current by checking and updating all lists and contacts monthly until March 2000.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
We have conducted, or plan to do table-top simulations for our Y2K crisis management team, with a full debrief and modifications to the plan and/or skill upgrades as required.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
We are conducting special Y2K media encounter sessions with our designated spokespersons.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
In our Y2K preparations we have met with representatives of key emergency services, our communities, elected and regulatory officials, and other key stakeholder groups to learn about their readiness and to keep them updated about our Y2K crisis management plans and procedures.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
We have examined - and planned for - alternative communication channels if there is a power or telecommunications outage.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
I am able to reach my senior executives promptly at any time.
Absolutely!
I'm pretty sure
I'm not sure
I doubt it
No Way!
So how do you rate?
Give yourself 10 points for every 'Absolutely'; 8 points for every 'I'm pretty sure'; 6 points for 'I'm not sure'; 4 points for 'I doubt it'; and, 0 for 'No way'.
90-100 Points
Wow, you're organization is among the exceptional well prepared for Y2K! You're probably among the top 10 percent in terms of preparedness in North America. Congratulations!
75-88 Points
Not bad at all. You're in the 'average' range. That means you're on par with many organizations that realize the need to get Y2K crisis management/communications right. But from our perspective, the reality is that while you're not there, you could easily get to the top level and be especially good.
60-74 Points
You're on the right track, but something's not quite right about your Y2K crisis communications preparations. Obviously, your organization has the interest to do things right, but too many key steps are being missed. This is a real crunch zone-you need to help management commit to moving to the next level - quickly.
Less than 60 Points
Pray you don't have a Y2K crisis, because if you do, chances are your organization will suffer more than immediate pain. Given our litigious environment of high expectations and low tolerance, your stakeholders will devour you. Can you afford that? No. So focus on doing what has to be done now, before it's too late!
Communicating Effectively in a Y2K World
Well, how did you do? Top grade of 92? Squeaking by with a 63? Heading for failure at 47? Wherever you stand, let's review what it takes to communicate effectively in this unique time of uncertainty. It takes a clear understanding of four influential and highly interactive components: people, perception, time, and technology. Your capability to have effective communications depends on the physical functioning of people and technology, and an acute appreciation of the abstract concepts of perception and time.
People are Key
People working together make your organization tick, as employees, suppliers and customers. Without them you're toast, a reality that has preceded many failures. Over the coming six to nine months you need understanding up and down your supply chain and a commitment to the organization. And in a Y2K world you need people with flexibility, experience with change, and an innate ability to 'think outside the box'. Take stock of who you are depending on... and treat them well, for in the next month you need them more than they need you. As many have said, "the strength of our organization is our people", not just the bricks and mortar.
Joined at the Hip
Today we are dependent on technology for much more than we realize. It is part of our daily lives - part of our culture. Witness the virtual collapse of the social infrastructure when electrical power is lost or systems malfunction. As we explore the implication of Year 2000, more and more layers of dependency are emerging; dependencies that have created vulnerabilities for our organizations. It is, in a large part, the recognition of dependencies that has led to the emergence of the business continuity/disaster recovery industry over the past decade. The primary technologies - power, telecommunications, computer systems - are felt, at least in North America, to have taken large strides towards "readiness". There may still be pockets of failure, but watching for 'glitches' will be a likely standing order for many organizations as they watch their systems rollover to 2000.
The Power of Perception
Among Marshall McLuhan's quips is an old favourite - "If I hadn't of believed it, I wouldn't have seen it" - which underlines the insidious nature of the so-called millennium bug, for people all too often come to decisions on the basis of inaccurate perceptions they take for reality. Indeed, in the Y2K environment, one's perception of the situation will be a mixture of confusion (what's this all about?), misunderstanding (it's only New Year's Day), denial (there is no problem; it won't affect my business), concern (what am I supposed to do?), anxiety (what if there is no heat/AC in January?), and fear (we'd better stockpile... everything!). Now superimpose all that one sees on television and hears through the 'grape vine' as additional influences, and we begin to see the complexity of the situation and the power of perception in our decision-making process. Understanding the significance of perception becomes crucial to your Y2K crisis communications plans.
Slaves to Time
This leaves time, a concept with deep roots and a driving force in our lives. Time is the ultimate ubiquitous component; we simply cannot live without it, no matter how hard we try to. And in the Y2K environment time has two dimensions from a communications perspective.
The first dimension focuses on when a glitch occurs. The timing of an event will influence the type of incident control approach taken and the character of the communications component of that response effort. For Y2K, there are three periods to manage: now to rollover, the rollover period, and the post-rollover period. Each period demands a different approach and an understanding of the driving conditions.
From now to rollover, situations will likely evolve more slowly, providing opportunity for coordinated messages and delivery mechanisms. Of greater concern will be the risk of false attribution of normal failures to Y2K and the potential for public panic based on perception, especially after mid-October. For communications this can mean crisis stations, while most of the Y2K team is without a problem to fix - it only exists in people's minds! Consequently, this period is potentially volatile.
The rollover period will vary depending on your organization's exposure. Financial institutions for example, will likely be on 7x24 alert from about the 27th of December until the end of the first week in January. Some may have longer periods, others shorter. And some organizations will have only a monitoring team on duty during the rollover weekend, checking on system and building functionality. Driving forces during this period of extreme attention will be anxiety, power, and telecommunications. Yes, the first is our old nemeses, perception, and the other two literally fuel the economy. All eyes will be on the dials and ears to the dial tones. This is a period for a solid crisis communications capability. Knowing what to do, doing it, and doing it well, will be the order of the day.
The nature of communications activities during the lengthy post-rollover period that could last throughout 2000 and into 2001 will be significantly influenced in early 2000 by what happens globally during, and immediately after, the rollover. Should there be any significant failures (power, telcos, water, etc.), dealing with the fallout and rumours will drive your communications team, even if the events didn't hit you.
If on the other hand, it's a big snooze, we move into quite a different post-rollover period where public interest in Y2K drops like a stone and even real Y2K situations within your organization generate little or no interest. You re-enter a period of good old-fashioned business continuity /disaster recovery actions, where the character of your organizational response aligns closely to your normal non-Y2K response mechanisms. The communications function again depends on the crisis plan with the exception that many of your stakeholders will not be scrutinizing you quite so closely as in the rollover period. The challenge here will be to get consistent, accurate messages to stakeholders while not re-aggravating their old Y2K fears and setting the roller-coaster of public perception in motion.
The second dimension of time results from the structure of the global time zones. The Year 2000 come first to the towns and cities of New Zealand and then moves steadily westward to Asia, Africa, Europe, and finally, North America. As the clocks tick past midnight in New Zealand, organizations around the world will be closely monitoring what happens. With 17 hours lead time in eastern North America, and 20 hours for the west coast, there is a window of opportunity to fix, or mitigate, the type of glitches showing up in New Zealand, and a little later in Australia and Hong Kong. During this critical period you will need clear, dependable communications and accurate information, to make the best use of this limited window. Intelligence gathering, or access to a source you trust, should be an integral part of your communications plan.
Six Core Communications Considerations
Whether calamity strikes or we enter 2000 with a (technological) whimper, communications teams will have to prepare for, and potentially grapple with, six core issues regardless of whether you produce power or panty hose. These issues are:
- How will you reduce potential levels of concern/anxiety in your stakeholders?
- How will you help stakeholders understand their options should you be affected by Y2K?
- How much assurance can you really (and legally) give?
- How will your organization know what to do, and when?
- How will key Y2K potential failure dates be managed and explained to stakeholders?
- How will you select and use the most appropriate communications tools/modes?
Only behind ignorance can an organization hide from the Y2K issue, and with the exceptional publicity to date, and more to come in the fall, this defense has all but evaporated. So get down to work on the basic and crisis communication strategies to ensure the extraordinary effort and monies spent to date were not in vain.
Y2K as an Opportunity
With the focus squarely set on failure, too little has been said about potential opportunities the 'millennium bug' has created. More than survival must emanate from the countless hours of labour and lost opportunity cost of reallocated monies. Look for improvements to your customer service, better application management processes, an improved understanding of your operations, the smarter use of new and old tools, improved planning and project processes, and hopefully better utilization of your information technology capacity. In short, if you look at what your organization has learned, about itself, its supply chain, and its customers, you will discover things well worth celebrating after Y2K has become an interesting story we tell family and friends.Next in the series - The Human Dimension of Year 2000
Reader comments are welcome. Please send to John Newton, Fax:416.929.3621 / jnewton@interlog.com, Bart Mindszenthy, Fax:416.924-6545 / mr@mrcom.com, or Rex Pattison, Fax: 416.866.5706 / scotiabank@on.aibn.com.
