TALKING POINT
The reputation of a company can be won or lost on the action taken in the fi rst hours after a serious incident. It can be quite hard to recover if you have the wrong response
Brigid Simmonds OBE
British Beer and Pub Association, chief executive
Customer-facing organisations will, or should have, crisis management plans. If your business involves serving people, you need to know how you will react to a crisis and who will take the lead. The reputation of a company can be won or lost on the action taken in the fi rst hours after a serious incident. In some cases it can be hard to recover if you have the
wrong response. Look at BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, which led to CEO Tony Hayward stepping down over his reaction to the fatal event. As with any incident where the press is involved, you cannot shirk from your responsibilities and you have to be clear on your message and be open to speaking to all, even if it’s diffi cult and at inconvenient times of the day and night. “No comment” is simply not acceptable. When a crisis occurs you need to be quite clear on your
plan of action. What happened at Alton Towers was a terrible incident and heart-breaking for everyone involved: fi rst and foremost, for those injured and their families; but also for Nick Varney and the staff at Merlin. I think Merlin’s handling of the incident has been commendable. They’ve been open and Varney has taken full charge of the situation and been the spokesman in the media and through the press. I am certain this was the right course of action.
bsimmonds@beerandpub.com
The key to improving safety is the constant exchange
of information that takes place between and among park personnel and manufacturers following an incident
Gerardo Arteaga
IAAPA, chairman of the board
As industry professionals, safety is our top priority and we are constantly working to improve the safety of our parks and attractions for our guests and employees. IAAPA focuses on safety above and beyond all else and is concerned with any incident that occurs. The association works tirelessly to help develop, promote and maintain the highest industry standards possible throughout the world. Of equal importance is the proactive engagement of members in the
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association, not only to support the standards development process
but also to reinforce best practices and reduce risks. We, as members of the association and committed partners in the industry, must work together to ensure the safety of our guests and staff on a daily basis. The key to improving safety is the constant exchange of information that takes place between and among park personnel and manufacturers following an incident. If there is new learning that comes from an incident, I’m confi dent it’s shared within the industry and appropriate changes to safety standards specifi ed by ASTM or EN are made. Also, it’s important when discussing incidents to
keep in perspective how rarely they happen in the attractions industry. Here are a few facts to better explain how rarely injuries occur on fi xed-site rides each year: ■ There are approximately 300 fi xed-site amusement parks in Europe that entertain approximately 183 million guests annually. ■ Those same 183 million guests safely enjoy 1.1 billion rides taken annually. ■ The likelihood of being seriously injured (require overnight hospitalisation for treatment) on a permanently located amusement park ride in the US is 1 in 24 million. ●
@IAAPAHQ AM 3 2015 ©CYBERTREK 2015
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