Your stakeholders are emotionally overwhelmed in a crisis. How can you effectively communicate with them?

The increasing frequency and intensity of PHEs in Ethiopia and all over the world demands a shift. We need to anticipate threats, mitigate risks, and build resilience before emergencies strike. key areas for proactive emergency management includes 1. Data-driven decision making: Leverage data analytics to predict potential hazards, identify vulnerable populations, and optimize resource allocation. 2. Investing in infrastructure: Strengthening critical infrastructure and real time communication systems minimizes disruption during emergencies . 3. Community preparedness: Empowering communities through health education and stockpiling plans fosters self-reliance and faster response times. 4. Collaboration across sectors and partners:

One thing I’ve found helpful is ensuring to quickly identify an individual within the affected group that already has the respect and influence of the collective members. Quickly communicating with this individual to find out what the community needs and wants are will be have a quick impact on the success of moving forward.

"At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea," Like 1:39 (NIV) As mentioned above, acknowledging emotions should be done hastily, regardless of situations. Mostly while hurry up for a solution will make too much of troubles, without any idea about what all are the parameters going to be faced. To achieve a great success, you should have a risk management strategy. If your schedule is ready to go ahead to accommodate risk management, it is better to have a couple of software tools like PERT Master,Primavera, MSP, K-Plato, SAP PS, etc. All these will help you to plan your risk before going to face it. So it is important to have a risk management schedule before acknowledging your emotions.

In acknowledging emotions, you also need to acknowledge that all emotions are appropriate. Staff will have a myriad set of emotions (and most more than one) based on their experiences, background, preparedness, and general emotional state. By acknowledging their emotions, you are allowing them to acknowledge their emotions themselves ("Yes, I am scared"). Once they acknowledge what they're feeling, they can work to stabilize their emotions, and become more effective in the response.

Recognize and validate the emotions of your stakeholders during a crisis. Show empathy and understanding by acknowledging their feelings of stress or overwhelm. This helps build rapport and demonstrates your sensitivity to their emotional state.

100% Cognitive overload means people ( regardless of how smart they are) have a narrow field of what they can take on board. Short words and sentences and clear, action-focused information are key. And repetition. People often need to hear something multiple times before they can overcome the inertia and take the required action.

This is relevant for all emergency communications. Being clear and concise is a must. You don't want someone wondering what you meant when time is of the essence to respond or take action. It also goes a long way in reducing anxiety at one of the most stressful times. Not understanding what is happening or what action to take will only add to the frustration - which can turn into panic and chaos.

Along with clarity (K.I.S.S.), understanding is critical. In EMS, during critical tasks (such as doing CPR), repeating back the order/request clarifies on both sides. (Team Leader: "At 2 minutes, you start compressions" Member: "At 2 minutes, I will start compressions.") It validates that the person heard you correctly in what to do.

Cut out the BS jargon and speak clear plain language. When delivering essential communications (transmitting) make sure your communication is direct, accurate, clear and loud enough to be heard and also add pauses in between words and sentences or transmissions. Ensure words used are pronounced correctly and in order to convey accurate information. This way your communication will install confidence in your audience who are already experiencing increased emotional overload. Send the message again if required, when possible ensure the receiving audience understand the communication. Try Stay away from using your typical slang speech and yes that’s you my Australian friends :)

Offer clear and concise information about the crisis, including what is known, what actions are being taken, and what stakeholders can expect next. Use simple language and avoid technical jargon to ensure your message is easily understood amidst the chaos of the situation.

Maintain a consistent flow of communication to keep stakeholders informed and minimize confusion. Regular updates reassure stakeholders and provide them with a sense of stability during uncertain times. Consistency in messaging helps build trust and credibility.

Information is an asset, as i indicate earlier public infornation officer is the one having the wright to produce , deciminate info with the consent of incident comander. Etc....

Someone who is consistent always behaves in the same way, has the same attitudes towards people or things, or achieves the same level of success in something,

In every crisis communications class I have ever taught. I teach my students to always lead with empathy. To me, having empathy for constituents’ situation and needs demonstrates awareness and unity with the situation.

This one feeds back to the first one, in acknowledging and accepting their emotions. Your staff is your most important asset, so it is critical to maintain their safety throughout. Additionally, you need to acknowledge the needs of their families (in widespread disasters) and that it will be their priority.

Demonstrate genuine care and concern for the well-being of your stakeholders. Express empathy in your communication and offer support wherever possible. This compassionate approach helps foster a supportive environment and strengthens relationships during challenging circumstances.

Empowering action means understanding action, through repeating of the command/request, and clarifying any ambiguity. This is also the point where you may need to acknowledge a skills or time gap that may be present. You can ask someone to do something well outside their expertise, and need to accept if they respond they are unable to do so. You need to quickly move on. This is not the time for disagreement or put-downs.

Provide stakeholders with actionable steps they can take to contribute to the resolution of the crisis or to manage their own well-being. Empowering stakeholders with a sense of control helps alleviate feelings of helplessness and encourages proactive engagement in the situation.

Active listening requires you to listen attentively to a speaker, understand what they’re saying, respond and reflect on what’s being said, and retain the information for later,

Actively listen to stakeholders’ concerns, questions, and feedback. Pay attention to their needs and perspectives, and respond thoughtfully to demonstrate that their voices are heard and valued. Active listening fosters trust and allows you to address issues more effectively.

The crisis in itself is chaotic enough without leadership adding what I call “artificial chaos” to a crisis team in action. Let the team do the job they were hired and trained for. Leadership should take a participative approach, not a helicopter approach which is both frustrating and infuriating to team members working the issues and getting it done. Also, factor in the human experience of your team. Allow them to have some downtime which includes scheduled and adhered to operational periods which allow them to go home for proper rest and a designated, cool, dark, breakout room for some quiet time. Provide healthy snack and hydration options.

I concur with Steve, but I would like to add...the incident responders are trained so much that their bodies inherently do what they are trained to do. This reduces the immediate impact of the physiological stress response (an area I have studied for 20 years) to allow the job to get done as safely as possible. We know there are challenges after the fact (PTSD, etc.), but the stakeholders do not train for their response to incidents either at all or very well, in my experience. Including them in ongoing training through the OEM helps give them the perspective of incidents and their role in them. This can help reduce their stress as well.

Communicate Confidence, Calming and Continuity. An Emergency Manager needs to exude Calm and Control. Suck it up and wear your game face because nervousness and insecurity are muy contagious and they are extreme focus killers. In chaos, in an emergency, in a disaster, self focus has a natural tendency to move inward and then expand. Your safety, those under your immediate control (family, team, mission), all of these concerns can be overwhelmed in the immediacy of a claustrophobic event. Having confidence in your leadership, the management, the back office, logs, the people who are supposed to have your back, having that confidence will allow you to focus on the tasks at hand, and that's true if you're a tier one or a social philanthropist.

Do your best to communicate somewhere away from the center of the crisis. Something as simple as sitting down together in an air conditioned trailer or away from televisions carrying the crisis can subside some of the stimuli that may trigger members of your team. Find some way to separate your team from the environment anytime you can.

Maintain transparency by being open about what is known and unknown, use multiple communication channels to reach all stakeholders effectively, and have a crisis communication plan in place to guide your actions. Follow up with stakeholders after the crisis to address any lingering concerns and reinforce your commitment to their well-being.