Week 6

The key messages of this weeks reading surround crisis and issue management. To plan ahead- All readings placed emphasis on the importance for organisations to have a well equipped crisis management team, consisting of experts and PR practitioners, and a plan in place to ensure their organisation is prepared if such crisis issues arise.

The key points in the reading can be applied to my group work in that they all address crisis management and demonstrate the importance of preparation in case of a crisis. This is exactly what our group is confronted with- to prepare a management plan for Hunter Valley Wine Country Tourism. Our job is to manage the boundary between the organisation and the external areas affecting the organisation, in this case the Cessnock community. The readings also discuss specific steps that can be taken to diffuse these issues that become problematic situations. I believe some of these steps are vital to take away and apply to our group project.

This weeks readings made me think more about PR theory and practise as they again prepared you for the real PR world. All past readings have addressed specific aspects that associate a PR practitioner at work. This week in particular stressed the importance for a PR practitioner to prepare simple steps to take in order to diffuse crisis situations, while also reinforcing key messages from past readings, like the importance for strong and clear internal and external relations.