Last September 2017, I was invited to give a presentation for hundreds of PR practitioners all over the Philippines, about one of the most complicated, most challenging topics in the book – Crisis Communications. The Public Relations Society of the Philippines recognized that the company I work in- Manila Electric Company (the biggest electricity distribution utility in the country) is fairly familiar with the topic. After all, as a public utility, reputational issues are inherent in our business, managing them before they turn into a crisis is simply fundamental.
5C’S OF MERALCO CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS
My presentation opened with me discussing the basic principles that guide me and the Meralco Public Information Office. I call these the 5Cs of Crisis Communications: Care, Commitment, Competency, Community, and Continuity.
CARE – Our customers are our utmost priority, our reason for being. We may be a monopoly because of the nature of the wires business, but that does not stop us from being concerned about the well-being of our customers and our stakeholders. Customer service is at the top of our corporate values. We show to them our…
COMMITMENT – In times of crises, we view communications as an absolute necessity. Meralco remains a primary and consistent source of relevant, factual, updated information for all our stakeholders, utilizing media across all platforms as conduit. Thus…
COMPETENCY – is important. Customers and stakeholders demand value for services they pay for on a monthly basis, and it’s important they know that the company knows what it is doing, and that is solving the problem or crisis the quickest way possible. A competent, credible representative speaking to them via media is crucial.
COMMUNITY – With or without a crisis, Meralco keeps a close watch on building its community of allies and partners via relationship-building. This is true then when TV, radio, print dominated media, and this remains true now that there are a million channels where new communities sprout.
CONTINUITY – Meralco, for its part, adjusts the monthly electricity rates based on the prices of its suppliers, the generation companies. Whether it’s an increase or decrease, we continuously update our customers to help prepare them for the bills, and empower them with information for consumption management. Every month, there is a continued process of anticipating crisis, planning and facing new ones. It’s the same principle for other brands and companies. We’re just at it more often – we never stop monitoring, planning, anticipating for the next crisis.
CASE STUDY: SUMMER SUPPLY SHORTFALL OF 2015
The case study I shared was about the power supply shortfall threat that Meralco faced in the summer of 2015. The Department of Energy (DOE) warned the public that the whole Luzon region will experience 7-week brownouts in the summer months, due to a power supply shortfall. Add an increase in electricity rates to that situation and it was undoubtedly, a crisis situation.
This was an opportune time to put the 5Cs in motion.
First, we showed we CARE.
We put a communications plan in motion, anchored on empowering our customers and all stakeholders with information on how each of us can help in easing the supply shortage.
We empowered our COMMUNITIES with solutions.
Meralco customized approaches for different communities- for business customers, a demand-side management program was identified and propagated. For residential customers, an energy efficiency campaign via mass media and social media was put in place, for our homeowners to learn and implement in their own residences.
We brought forward our COMMITMENT to solve the crisis.
The crisis called for an integrated effort across all involved sectors, and that was showcased via consistent, unified communications, in partnership with the Philippine government, and business and media groups. The Meralco communications team also did not waste any opportunity to propagate the measures being undertaken – from press interviews to creative content development, months before summer even starts.
We built on our individual and group COMPETENCIES and lived up to our mission to be an enabler.
As the biggest electricity distribution utility, Meralco is also the go-to resource for consumption management information. The summer supply threat was the proper context to build on this, which Meralco utilized via creating programs that put forward demand-side management and energy efficiency.
Lastly, Meralco recognized that Crisis Communications is a continuing process.
Meralco started the summer crisis communication campaign several months before the summer season began, and continued the months after, up until the supply became stable.
Energy efficiency is also still widely communicated today, as we rally on with empowering solutions.
The communication efforts for the summer crisis campaign was well-received in the local industry, winning a Gold Anvil at the PRSP Anvil Awards and a Merit award at the IABC Quill Awards.
On the international front, the campaign won in the prestigious PR Week Awards Asia 2016 in Hong Kong, as the first and only Philippine Gold Winner in Issues Management & Crisis Communications category.
The summer crisis campaign also bested other cases from Asia Pacific at The Gold Standard Awards for Issues Management & Crisis Communications.
This was also a key contributor to the Meralco Public Information Office win as the first-ever PRSP Anvil Awards PR Team of the Year – a feat I so often say as the greatest achievement in my almost 30 years in the industry. Thank you again PRSP, for this recognition.
Let me conclude by itemizing the 5Cs once again… in times of crises, show you CARE. COMMIT to resolve the task at hand. Build on your COMPETENCIES and showcase them. Strengthen and grow your COMMUNITIES. And CONTINUE learning from each crisis encountered.
