The disaster has taken a turn for the worse today, just as BP put Gulf Coast native and BP executive Bob Dudley in charge of the cleanup effort.   The last few weeks have certainly dropped communication expectations, and everything that has appeared in print with regard to Mr. Dudley  indicate he will do a much better job than his predecessor.

11 More Steps BP can take right now:

(1.) Actions speak louder… Stop Talking – Communicating is always preferable to silence, except when it is covering up inaction or irresponsibility. If you have nothing good to say, say nothing. Following Mr. Hayward’s latest testimony before Congress, the public is no longer listening;

(2.) The whole truth…What You Say - “We are a responsible party. Our obligation is to deal with the spill, clean it up and make sure the impacts of that spill are compensated. And we’re going to do that.” The two words that followed, both from BP CEO Tony Hayward and BP America President Lamar McKay undermined that entire message:  “Legitimate Claims.”  This word combination completely neutered the effectiveness of the earlier message and has been derided repeatedly in the media.

(3.) And nothing but the truth… How You Say It –BP America President Lamar McKay, in an exchange with Senator Maria Cantwell,  looked and sounded a lot more like a defendant on trial than the President of one of the world’s largest companies.  BP CEO Tony Hayward was abrupt when answering questions in front of the House this week, answering some version of “I don’t know” 66 times… Not good.

(4.) So what to do… Restructure Leadership, Immediately— If the faces of the disaster don’t change, the reputational damage won’t change. Right now, the “faces” are damaged wildlife, angry elected officials, and current BP leadership. As of today there are conflicting reports as to who is in charge – not exactly reassuring to the masses…The change that came today comes on the heels of a similar change last week that caused a great deal of confusion.  BP handled today’s switch much more effectively. – STEP TAKEN

(5.) Your local heroes…Major Relief Fund – directed by local officials – The locals are saying they can do it better – let them try. It will at least re-direct some of the attention – the best case scenario for BP right now.

(6.) Sacrificial lambs… Show some sacrifice –So far, the sacrifice that BP gets credit for are the comments from Mr. Hayward and a fund that was set up after meeting with the President.  Appearances matter.  Put A LOT of money into local nonprofits now. Reduce headcount and replace with affected locals. Invest in these communities for things having nothing to do with the environment.

(7.) No good deed… Non Profit Support –When you input the term “BP charity” or “BP nonprofit” into Google News, very little comes up. Not good.

(8.) Retrain or repurpose… Retraining Stations - There are now entire industries that may no longer exist. Set up retraining stations to work in oil and gas exploration and give those displaced apprenticeships and permanent jobs; Start the retraining now

(9.) Fish & Fowl Friendly… ASPCA, etc. –Give EVERY major animal rights and environmental organization you can nonprofit funding, fly them down, and get them on the ground on your dime to help. As of yesterday some animal rights groups have begun to file suit – this could have been avoided.

(10.) Accept Blame – Direct any and all blame inward. Someone internally needs to comment on how BP handled this from the jump – taking the heat. Americans are very forgiving, but only if given the opportunity.

(11.) Message Discipline – The CEO was photographed, days after being ripped for his testimony on the Hill, watching a prestigious yacht race.   After being criticized for his handling of the entire disaster and the perception of a lack of caring for those affected.  He may very well have deserved a break, but there should have been some thought put into taking the break publicly, at a prestigious sporting event. Everything sends a message, and this sent a big one.

(12.) Pipeline Meltdown - Focus on the hole in the pipe, not in your communications – Another recent communications disaster resulted when BP decided it was a good idea to tell everyone that the company is going to use profits from any recovered oil to help the ecosystem that is now in chaos. Profits; repeat Lesson 1 – Stop Talking!

When testifying, whether before a legislative body or in a courtroom, the message begins the second you arrive, and components of that message include:

1) Your clothing; your hair; your makeup; your shoes; jewelry;

2) How you exit the car; your stride; where your eyes are focused; facial expressions; body language

Once you enter the arena (and a legislative body or courtroom is an arena), message development continues:

How you approach the legislative body; how you sit (or stand); who you sit with; where your hands and arms are; facial expressions; what material you have….

At this point, the beginning of your message, like it or not, has been developed.  Now the verbal component of your message begins, and the nonverbal component continues.

Tony Hayward, appearing before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee, was well dressed, his body language entering the hearing did not set a bad tone, and his decision to sit center stage by himself, without attorney’s or staff, sent a powerful message of responsibility and openness.   It was a great beginning.

As has been the case throughout this disaster, it quickly went downhill.

The sense of openness turned into 66 versions of “I don’t know.” The sense of responsibility turned into 23 versions of “I was not involved in those decisions.”  The sense of deep sorrow and guilt turned into both abrupt and hostile answers.  Body language and facial expressions turned defensive.

Granted, Mr. Hayward was in a no-win situation.  However, the responsibility to handle no-win situations and deliver the organization’s message effectively is the CEO’s responsibility, not that of the small people.

Oil is gushing into the Gulf every minute of every day, and any goodwill that BP may have garnered after meeting with the President left after Mr. Hayward’s performance.  Messages matter.

From Bloomberg Businessweek:

In his testimony yesterday, Hayward not only failed to convince lawmakers he was committed to making BP safer, he may have deepened suspicion of the company by repeatedly pleading ignorance to events that took place under his command, said Matt Eventoff, a partner at New Jersey communications firm, Princeton Public Speaking.

“Mr. Hayward’s comments today, saying ‘I don’t know’ 66 times, evaporated any feeling of responsibility,” Eventoff said. “Any goodwill that the company bought back yesterday eroded today with his testimony.”

I apologize in advance for two posts in one day, but……wow.

Leadership at BP really just doesn’t seem to understand crisis communication, at all.

I can’t even begin to make sense of this, and what BP thought they were going to accomplish by doing this tonight…completely contrary to what I believe BP should be doing.…

Courtesy of the Daily News:

BP says profits from spilled oil will benefit new wildlife fund

BY Meena Hartenstein
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

BP has a message for the oil-soaked wildlife off the Gulf Coast: we’re just here to protect you!

That’s right, the British oil giant – which has scrambled since April to stop the flow of millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico – announced Tuesday that it has created a new wildlife fund to benefit from any proceeds BP makes on the sale of captured oil from the spill.

“We’ve already launched the largest environmental response in history, and BP is committed to protecting the ecosystems and wildlife on the Gulf Coast,” said Chief Executive Tony Hayward.

The announcement comes as BP finally seems to be making some progress – and potential profits – on containing the oil. The company announced earlier Tuesday that it had collected 14,800 barrels on Monday, up significantly from the day before, and front month futures for crude oil are at $72 a barrel. In addition to the oil being harnessed by the well containment systems, proceeds from oil recovered through skimming operations will also go into the fund.

So just how much money can the impacted critters expect to see dedicated to their cause? In keeping with what Americans have come to expect from the oil company since the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion in April, BP admitted it can’t actually predict that number. Instead Hayward released a statement that said, “We believe these funds will have a significant positive impact on the environment.”

Oil from the spill has washed up all the way from Louisiana to Florida, decimating unknown numbers of birds and other wildlife. The Coast Guard estimates the cleanup process could take years.

This latest olive branch to the Gulf Coast isn’t BP’s only attempt at PR damage control. Many Internet users have realized the company is also buying up keywords on popular search engine sites like Google, Microsoft Bing, and Yahoo! so that typing in the words “oil spill” now leads to BP’s very own internal press page.

Seven weeks later, there are three givens: 1) much damage is being done to the wildlife and ecosystem,  2) no one is quite sure when, or how, this tragedy will end, and 3)  everything BP is trying to do from a public relations and communications angle just isn’t working.

Nine steps to take now:

1. Stop Talking – I always advocate communicating over silence, as do the most crisis communication professionals.  After seven weeks, all efforts should focus on action; the public’s appetite for communication is gone.  At this point, the public is looking for heads to roll;

2. Restructure Leadership, Immediately — If the faces of the disaster don’t change, the reputational damage won’t change. Right now, the “faces” are damaged wildlife, angry elected officials, and current BP leadership. Commercials, apologies and new communication, at this moment in time, won’t change that – people have made up their minds; in order to get the public to even potentially buy into an message BP sends, it needs to appear that the culprits, real or imagined, have been replaced.

3. Major Relief Fund – directed by local officials – The locals are saying they can do it better – let them try. It will at least re-direct some of the attention – the best case scenario for BP right now.

4. Show some sacrifice – So far, the sacrifice that BP gets credit for are the comments from Mr. Hayward. Put A LOT of money into local nonprofits now. Reduce headcount and replace with affected locals. Invest in these communities for things having nothing to do with the environment.

5. Non Profit Support – When you input the term “BP charity” or “BP nonprofit” into Google News, very little comes up. Not good.

6. Retraining Stations - There are now entire industries that may no longer exist. Set up retraining stations to work in oil and gas exploration and give those displaced apprenticeships and permanent jobs; Start the retraining now

7. ASPCA/Etc. – Give EVERY major animal rights and environmental organization you can nonprofit funding, fly them down, and get them on the ground on your dime to help.

8. Fall on the Sword - Now is the time to direct any and all blame inward. Someone internally needs to comment on how BP handled this from the jump – taking the heat. Americans are very forgiving, but only if given the opportunity.

9. Fall on the Sword, Pt II – BP station owners, who have little or no affiliation with the parent company, are victims as well. Defend them. Something along the lines of:

“Any anger should be aimed squarely at us. Most BP stations are owned by small business owners, your neighbors, and hard working people who have NO HAND in anything the company has done. Your anger, deservedly, should be pointed at BP, and we understand protests of BP; please don’t misdirect anger at station owners who have no connection to BP or any responsibility for the disaster.”

Unfortunately, the only formula for BP in terms of repairing damage to the corporate name is time – commercials and appearances won’t work.

BP, after a late start getting out of the “damage control gate”, developed a fairly effective central message:

“We are a responsible party.  Our obligation is to deal with the spill, clean it up and make sure the impacts of that spill are compensated. And we are going to do that.” – BP America CEO Lamar McKay May 11, 2010

However, a number of comments that followed were decidedly off-message.  There will be myriad lawsuits filed in this case, and litigators are not going to have to wait for discovery to start developing story lines around key quotes.

One has to wonder what a juror will think after being exposed to these quotes from, or attributed to, CEO Tony Hayward :

“What the hell did we do to deserve this?” [New York Times, 4/30/10]

“The Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean. The amount of volume of oil and dispersant we are putting into it is tiny in relation to the total water volume.” [Guardian, 5/14/10]

“I think the environmental impact of this disaster is likely to be very, very modest.” [Sky News, 5/18/10]

“We’re sorry for the massive disruption its caused their lives. There’s no one who wants this over more than I do. I would like my life back.” – CNN, 5/30/10

(collected by ThinkProgress.org)

Come on, this is America, of there will be frivolous lawsuits —   Shep Smith, Fox News, had pretty powerful comments about this one.

Referring to the 9 cleanup workers who have been hospitalized:

BP CEO Hayward told CNN that the sick workers, who blamed their nausea, headaches and chest pain on the oil cleanup at the beach at Grand Isle, probably got sick from food poisoning.

“I’m sure they were genuinely ill, but whether it was anything to do with dispersants and oil, whether it was food poisoning or some other reason for them being ill,” Hayward said. “You know, food poisoning is clearly a big issue when you have a concentration of this number of people in temporary camps, temporary accommodation. It’s something we have to be very, very mindful of. It’s one of the big issues of keeping the army operating. You know, armies march on their stomachs.

I am an advocate of the CEO being front and center when a crisis strikes; that is why CEO’s need to be media trained and have crisis communication plans drawn up prior to being in the line of fire.

What you say can and will be used against you in court and the court of public opinion.  Jurors are individuals, and members of the public. Hence, comments that can be interpreted as callous by the public can be interpreted as callous by a juror.  Jurors will determine what claims are legitimate.

What you say and how you say it matters. Case closed.