All organizations – corporate, government, trade association, non-profit – are at risk of a crisis and require a crisis management plan. Crises interrupt organizations’ routines and attract negative public and media scrutiny. In some instances, a crisis can result in long term consequences that potentially destroy the organization’s reputation. Ideally, in these instances, the organization has expected and prepared for this event. This expectation can be easily achieved with effective crisis management and communication via actions that restore credibility, confidence and control.
 

The modules in this four-week certificate program enable professional communicators to act quickly to assess a possible critical situation and disseminate key messages to the appropriate audiences. Upon successful completion of this program, you will understand how to enhance your written communications to address crisis communications, issues monitoring and other public relations tactics.

 

Programs Associated with this Course

• Certificate in Crisis Communication

Who Should Attend

Some targets for this program include:

• Brand managers
• Nonprofit leaders
• Public relations specialists
• Emergency management directors
• Social and human service assistants
• Mental health and substance abuse social workers
• Healthcare social workers
• Small business owners
• Graduate students (Business, Communication and Operations)

 

Benefits

Some of the advantages of earning a certificate on this topic include:

• Knowing how to define what constitutes an organizational crisis.
• Being able to identify crisis warning signs and apply issues management strategies to prevent crises from occurring.
• Being able to define different types of crises and apply crises communication principles within specific contexts.
• Learning how to formulate strategic crisis responses for external and internal stakeholders to minimize the negative impact of a crisis.
• Practicing effective messaging and communications techniques required of a skilled spokesperson.

 

Professional Affiliations

Topics/Syllabus

 

• Writing and editing techniques
• Information dissemination strategies
• Writing for social media
• Adapting messages to unique audiences
• Applications of data analytics
• Reporting communication outcomes
• Creating budgets to optimize resources
• Identify crisis warning signs
• Applications of correct issues management strategies
• Formulate strategic crisis responses
• Crisis spokesperson preparation

 

FAQ

 

Where is this program offered?
Classes for this program are offered in person on the Lincoln Park campus.

Will I earn credit for this program?
No, this program is non-credit, but may be approved for Continuing Education Units (CEU) credit. This is a professional education class with different requirements than courses taken for academic credit.

Are there course materials?
There are no required textbooks.
 

Will there be tests or projects to complete?
There will be assessments and quizzes to ensure you are learning the material.
 

Do I need previous writing experience?
This is a course for beginners who are competent writers but don’t need lengthy writing experience to succeed.
 

Is this class offered in-class or online?
This four-week certificate program is only offered in-class.