12 Crisis Communication and Reputation Management in Sports

Crisis Communication and Reputation Management in Sports

Key Concepts

• Strategic Communication: Crucial for organizational success—revenue and reputation are key metrics.

  • Profit-driven sports organizations must generate more revenue than they expend.

  • Reputation affects attractiveness to customers, employees, and investors.

Impact of Reputation

• Reputation often seen as a social evaluation of an organization.

• Example: NBA's 2019 fallout with China costing ~$400 million due to reputation damage from controversial comments.

• Crises pose significant threats to reputation and require effective crisis management strategies.

Understanding Crisis Management

• Crisis: A serious threat demanding managerial attention; it is defined as a perceived violation of stakeholder expectations (Coombs, 2019).

• Stakeholder expectations can include: product safety, employee behavior, and ethical sourcing.

Crisis Types

• A crisis may be perceived as a single event or a shift in societal values leading to reputational damage, as seen with the rebranding of the Washington Football Team due to racial sensitivities.

• Understanding crises as a process can improve management effectiveness, broken down into three phases:

  1. Pre-crisis

  2. Crisis response

  3. Post-crisis

Sports-Specific Crisis Context

• Sports crises typically focus on reputation rather than operational disruptions, although operational crises can occur (e.g., COVID-19).

• Athlete Reputational Crises (ARC): Specific to sports, these crises arise from athlete behavior affecting their reputation.

  • Four categories of ARCs:

    1. Intentional and on-field actions (e.g., performance-enhancing drugs).

    2. Unintentional and on-field actions (e.g., a cold medication containing banned substances).

    3. Intentional and off-field actions (e.g., domestic violence).

    4. Unintentional and off-field actions (e.g., a DUI incident).

Scansis: A Unique Crisis Type

• A scansis combines scandalous behavior with a crisis, causing significant management challenges by evoking moral outrage.

• Effective crisis communication must acknowledge moral violations and prevent reoccurrence.

Crisis Communication Lifecycle

Pre-Crisis Phase

• Focuses on mitigation and readiness to respond to crises.

  • Mitigation involves identifying risks and social listening to detect shifts in public sentiment.

  • Crisis Communication Plan (CCP): Essential for an organized response in crises, outlines pre-drafted messages and assigns tasks, ensuring rapid action.

Crisis Response Phase

• Marks the organization's public response to a crisis, emphasizing:

  • Consistency and transparency in messaging.

  • Quick reaction while still ensuring accuracy; utilize pre-drafted hold statements as initial responses.

  • Stealing Thunder: Proactively announcing the crisis before external sources report it can mitigate damage.

Post-Crisis Phase

• Involves follow-up communication, memorializing victims, and learning from the crisis.

  • Organizations often struggle with learning from crises due to fear of blame.

Unique Demands of Sports Crisis Communication

• Fans: Typically resilient during crises, often defending their teams, especially when identified strongly with them.

• Sponsors: Play a significant role in financial recovery post-crisis; continued support can dilute reputational damage.

• Crisis Levels: Crises can affect athletes, teams, and leagues, with potential spillover effects.

  • Example: Domestic violence incidents involving individual players can escalate into league-level crises.

Conclusion

• Effective crisis communication is paramount for sport organizations.

• Being present and engaged in crisis communication fosters respect and trust among stakeholders.

• A strategic communicator must understand and navigate the unique crisis landscape in sports to manage reputation effectively.

Crisis Communication and Reputation Management in Sports

Key Concepts

• Strategic Communication: Strategic communication is essential for the success of sports organizations, where both revenue generation and maintaining a positive reputation are key metrics for sustainability and growth. For profit-driven sports entities, it is crucial to generate more revenue than what is expended, which often hinges on public perception and brand prestige. A strong reputation enhances attractiveness to customers, employees, and investors, thus directly impacting financial performance.

Impact of Reputation

• Reputation can be viewed as a social evaluation of an organization and can profoundly influence its operations. A pertinent example occurred in 2019 when the NBA faced a public relations crisis stemming from controversial comments related to China, resulting in an estimated loss of $400 million due to damaged relations and reputation. Thus, reputational crises pose significant threats that necessitate effective crisis management strategies to mitigate long-lasting impacts.

Understanding Crisis Management

• Crisis Definition: A crisis is recognized as a serious threat that demands immediate managerial attention. It can be firmly defined as a perceived violation of stakeholder expectations (Coombs, 2019). Stakeholder expectations generally encompass various aspects, including product safety, ethical sourcing, and appropriate employee conduct.

Crisis Types

• Crises can manifest in various forms; they may be seen as specific events or as shifts in societal values that lead to reputational damage. A significant instance of this was the rebranding of the Washington Football Team, which was triggered by growing societal sensitivity towards racial issues. By understanding crises as ongoing processes, organizations can improve management effectiveness. This process can suitably be divided into three phases:

  1. Pre-crisis: Identifying potential risks and preparing responses.

  2. Crisis response: Activating the crisis communication plan and managing public perception.

  3. Post-crisis: Analyzing the response and measures taken to improve future crisis management.

Sports-Specific Crisis Context

• In sports, crises typically center around reputation management rather than operational disruptions; however, operational crises do occur (e.g., the COVID-19 pandemic had widespread implications).

• Athlete Reputational Crises (ARC): These crises are unique to the sports domain and occur when athlete behavior negatively impacts their reputations. ARCs can be further categorized into four types:

  1. Intentional on-field actions (e.g., using performance-enhancing drugs).

  2. Unintentional on-field actions (e.g., using a banned substance unknowingly).

  3. Intentional off-field actions (e.g., involvement in domestic violence incidents).

  4. Unintentional off-field actions (e.g., driving under the influence).

Scansis: A Unique Crisis Type

• A scansis represents a hybrid crisis that combines scandalous behavior with crisis management, often resulting in heightened moral outrage and substantial complications for management. Effective crisis communication must acknowledge moral violations, address them candidly, and employ steps to prevent future occurrences.

Crisis Communication Lifecycle

• Pre-Crisis Phase: This phase concentrates on mitigation strategies and readiness to respond effectively to crises. Mitigation practices involve recognizing potential risks and engaging in social listening to monitor shifts in public sentiment proactively. A robust Crisis Communication Plan (CCP) is pivotal for an organized and swift response during crises, including pre-drafted messages and delineated responsibilities.

• Crisis Response Phase: This phase encapsulates the organization's immediate public response during a crisis, characterized by a commitment to message consistency and transparency. Rapid reaction is crucial, but it must be paired with accuracy; hence, utilizing pre-drafted hold statements can serve as effective initial responses. A strategy known as Stealing Thunder refers to proactively announcing the crisis ahead of external reports to minimize repercussions.

• Post-Crisis Phase: This phase involves continued communication, honoring victims involved, and a thorough examination to learn from the crisis. Organizations often struggle to learn effectively from crises due to the associated blame and fear of reputational damage.

Unique Demands of Sports Crisis Communication

• Fans: Fans typically demonstrate resilience during crises and often defend their teams, especially if they have a strong identification with the team. Their loyalty can significantly influence the management of crisis situations.

• Sponsors: Sponsors have a critical role in the financial recovery process post-crisis; their ongoing support can help dilute reputational damage and stabilize the affected organization.

• Crisis Levels: Crises can affect individual athletes, teams, and entire leagues, with potential for reputational spillover effects. For example, domestic violence allegations against individual players can escalate to crises that impact the league as a whole.

Conclusion

Effective crisis communication is of paramount importance for sports organizations in maintaining their reputation and operational health. Being actively engaged and transparent during a crisis fosters trust and respect among stakeholders. A strategic communicator must adeptly understand the unique crisis landscape in sports to navigate challenges and manage reputational outcomes effectively.