Running Head: ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION FOR LEADERS ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION FOR LEADERS 9 Crisis Communication Plan Table of contents Item Page 1.0 Introduction………………………………………………………………. 3 2.0 Background………………………………………………………………… 3 3.0 Purpose……………………………………………………………………. 4 3.1 Financial…………………………………………………………… 4 3.2 Personnel…………………………………………………………… 5 3.3 Benefits……………………………………………………………. 5 4.0 Crisis management team……………………………………………………. 5 5.0 Third party supporters and experts…………………………………………. 6 6.0 Immediate response checklist………………………………………………. 7 7.0 Procedures for dealing with media…………………………………………. 7 8.0 Press release template………………………………………………………. 8 9.0 Evaluation……………………………………………………………………. 8 1.0 Introduction A crisis is a situation that has the potential of negatively affecting the operations of an organization or a business (Miller, 2012). In the course of operations, business organizations are likely to be faced by circumstances that can potentially interfere with their competitiveness in the market. Such instances are referred to as crises. As much as at some point they can be foreseen, businesses might not have many options with respect to how to deal with such situations. It all depends on the experience of the management team. It should be noted that regardless of the industry in which an organization operates, at some point, it might be hit by a crisis. However, it should be kept in mind that the specific nature of crises that can hit different organizations vary depending on various factors such as the size of the organization, its activities or the industry in which it operates. As aforementioned, crises have negative impacts on the affected organizations and this likely to derail such organizations in terms of achieving their goals and objectives. Keeping this in mind, it is important for businesses to do whatever they can to make sure they reduce the chances of being hit by crises. In addition to this, it is important for the most effective crisis recovery strategies to be utilized to make sure businesses are back to normal operations as soon as possible. 2.0 Background Microsoft is a technology company that was established in 1975 by Bill Gates. It is among the giants in the technology companies today especially through its dominance in the software industry. As much as it offers a variety of products and services, Microsoft is famously known for its Window Operating System that runs on personal computers and other devices such as tablets and smartphones. Over the years, Microsoft has been known for the PC Windows Operating System, however, the technology giant thought of expanding its reach so as to also introduce the Windows Phone Operating System. This was a move that saw the company take over another technology giant, Nokia. The strategic move was intended to strengthen Microsoft’s grip in the market. Despite the great entry as well as high expectations, it was necessary for th.

1. Running Head: ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION FOR
LEADERS
ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION FOR LEADERS 9
Crisis Communication Plan
Table of contents
Item
Page
1.0
Introduction…………………………………………………………
……. 3
2.0
Background…………………………………………………………
……… 3
3.0
Purpose………………………………………………………………
……. 4

2. 3.1
Financial……………………………………………………………
4
3.2
Personnel……………………………………………………………
5
3.3
Benefits……………………………………………………………. 5
4.0 Crisis management
team……………………………………………………. 5
5.0 Third party supporters and
experts…………………………………………. 6
6.0 Immediate response
checklist………………………………………………. 7
7.0 Procedures for dealing with
media…………………………………………. 7
8.0 Press release
template………………………………………………………. 8
9.0
Evaluation……………………………………………………………
………. 8
1.0 Introduction
A crisis is a situation that has the potential of negatively
affecting the operations of an organization or a business
(Miller, 2012). In the course of operations, business
organizations are likely to be faced by circumstances that can
potentially interfere with their competitiveness in the market.
Such instances are referred to as crises. As much as at some
point they can be foreseen, businesses might not have many
options with respect to how to deal with such situations. It all
depends on the experience of the management team. It should be
noted that regardless of the industry in which an organization

3. operates, at some point, it might be hit by a crisis. However, it
should be kept in mind that the specific nature of crises that can
hit different organizations vary depending on various factors
such as the size of the organization, its activities or the industry
in which it operates.
As aforementioned, crises have negative impacts on the
affected organizations and this likely to derail such
organizations in terms of achieving their goals and objectives.
Keeping this in mind, it is important for businesses to do
whatever they can to make sure they reduce the chances of
being hit by crises. In addition to this, it is important for the
most effective crisis recovery strategies to be utilized to make
sure businesses are back to normal operations as soon as
possible.
2.0 Background
Microsoft is a technology company that was established in
1975 by Bill Gates. It is among the giants in the technology
companies today especially through its dominance in the
software industry. As much as it offers a variety of products and
services, Microsoft is famously known for its Window
Operating System that runs on personal computers and other
devices such as tablets and smartphones.
Over the years, Microsoft has been known for the PC
Windows Operating System, however, the technology giant
thought of expanding its reach so as to also introduce the
Windows Phone Operating System. This was a move that saw
the company take over another technology giant, Nokia. The
strategic move was intended to strengthen Microsoft’s grip in
the market. Despite the great entry as well as high expectations,
it was necessary for the crisis team to be on alert that it was not
a guarantee that the new move would work. It is important for
them to consider the various challenges that the company was
likely to encounter under its new investment. It was later
evident that the company’s move to invest in Windows Phone
Operating System would be a crisis that would have a

4. significant impact on operations. It was a crisis that needed
strategic intervention.
3.0 Purpose
The plan’s main purpose is to enable the company to
recover from the potential crisis and how it can stabilize itself
once more. The crisis plan should basically restore the
organization to its former condition of productive operations. In
the case of the failure of the Windows Phone Operating System,
below are the various crises that Microsoft plunged itself into.
3.1 Financial
The company suffered a financial crisis because of the huge
investment that it put into the project. The development of the
Windows Phone Operating System, as well as the takeover
Nokia, was a huge financial investment. Given the fact that it
did work out, the company a huge financial crisis.
3.2 Personnel
The company also suffered a personal crisis because it had hired
additional employees especially in the field of software
development but since the investment was not successful, the
new employees had to be laid off. The purpose of this crisis
plan is to establish how such a situation could be contained with
minimal damage to the affected individuals.
3.3 Benefits
Microsoft expected a range of benefits from the new investment.
The benefits include an increased market share, profitability,
increase in customer numbers, and general company
performance among others. The company had future plans that
were based on these benefits; however, they did not come to
pass. This implies that it is a crisis because it largely affected
the company’s situation.
4.0 Crisis Management Team
The crisis management team basically refers to a team of
individuals whose purpose is to deal with the crises that arise
within an organization. Basically, it is a team made of the top
leaders and managers who make strategic decisions for the
organization at different moments. Below is the list of

5. Microsoft’s crisis management team (Microsoft, 2019)
1. Satya Nadella – Chairman
2. Judson Althoff – Executive Vice President, Worldwide
Commercial Business
3. Scott Guthrie – Executive Vice President, Microsoft Cloud
and AI Group
4. Kathleen Hogan – Executive Vice President, Human
Resources
5. Peggy Johnson – Executive Vice President, Business
Development
6. Amy Hood – Executive Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer
7. Bill Gates – Founder and Technology Advisor
8. John Thompson – Board Chairman
The mentioned individuals have vast knowledge in different
areas of specialization, and this puts them in the perfect
position to handle the various crises that the company faces.
Each of them contributes their ideas and together they can find
the best solution that enables the company to recover from the
crisis.
5.0 Third party supporters and experts
Third party supporters and experts are basically external
stakeholders who have expertise in different areas of
specialization that of interest to Microsoft. Simply, they are
expert other organizations whose input is useful to Microsoft. In
this case, third-party supporters and experts are major members
of the board. They include the following.
1. Reid Hoffman – Partner, Greylock, Partners
2. Hugh Johnston – Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer,
PepsiCo
3. Teri List-Stoll – Executive Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer, Gap Inc.
4. Charles Noski – Former Vice Chairman, Bank of America
Corp.
5. Helmut Panke – Former Chairman of the Board of
Management, BMW AG.

6. 6. Sandra Peterson – Former Group Worldwide Chairman,
Johnson & Johnson
7. Penny Pritzker – Founder and Chairperson, PSP Partners
8. John Stanton – Chairman, Trilogy Partnerships
6.0 Immediate Response Checklist
Dealing with a crisis requires several items to be accomplished
to make the process successful. Below is the immediate
response checklist.
1. Suspend the production and updating of the Windows Phone
Operating System
2. Determine the various damages the crisis has had on the
company
3. Conduct research on what led to the failure of the project
4. Establish the specific departments that are most responsible
for the crisis
5. Assess the level of damage the company has suffered
6. Put in place a plan for crisis recover
7.0 Procedures for dealing with media
Given the size of Microsoft, such a crisis attracts media
attention. Various media houses will be interested to know what
really happened for the company to be where it is. It should be
kept in mind that some of the reasons for the crisis are strategic,
therefore, the company should be careful with respect to the
nature of the information that it releases to the media (Frandsen
& Johansen, 2016). The first step in the procedure is to make
sure sensitive information is not given out, only general
information should be shared with the media. The second step in
the procedure is to make sure the director of communication is
the one to release the information to the media. He is well
informed about anything that happens in the organization;
therefore, he is better positioned to give the right information
with respect to the crisis at Microsoft. Following this procedure
will ensure the media is only given the necessary information.
8.0 Press release template

7. Discontinuity of Windows Mobile
Microsoft hereby announces its discontinuity of producing
or upgrading Windows Phone Operating System. Due to
unavoidable circumstances, the company has suspended the
service until further notice. Additional detailed information
concerning the issue will be released in due time. Customers
and other partners are asked to stay calm as the company
launches investigations into the issue. Any inconvenience
created is highly regretted.
9.0 Evaluation
It is evident that the crisis has had a significant negative
impact on the company. However, the damage has not been fully
established. At this point, the evaluation basically looks into
determining the extent to which the company has suffered
(Blaschke, 2016). The first procedure in the process involved
thorough research into the project to establish the exact point
where the problem started. This will reveal important details
that will enable the company to take the next step in terms of
recovering from the crisis. It should be kept in mind that prior
to effectively managing a crisis, its cause must be clearly
established. This is a critical procedure in the evaluation
process because it enables the crisis management team to have a
clear understanding of what happened so that the right
corrective steps can be taken to salvage the situation. The
evaluation process requires a variety of resources which will
enable the experts to effectively deliver their duties and
responsibilities.

8. References
Blaschke, S. (2016). Organization as Communication:
Perspectives in Dialogue. New York: Routledge.
Frandsen, F. & Johansen, W. (2016). Organizational Crisis
Communication: A Multivocal Approach. London: SAGE.
Microsoft. (2019). Leadership. Retrieved from
https://news.microsoft.com/leadership/
Miller, K. (2012). Organizational Communication: Approaches
and Processes. London: Cengage Brain.
PowerPoint (or Prezi) Presentation for Residency: YOUR
CHOICE: Research Paper OR Crisis Communication Plan: (10%
toward final grade) – Due Week 14 during Residency
Prepare a PowerPoint (or Prezi) presentation (minimum of 20
slides with notes section included) to present either your
Research Paper findings or your Crisis Communication plan to
the class. Your presentation should last 10-15 minutes with a 5
minute Q/A period following the presentation.
PowerPoint Presentation Rubric
CATEGORY
Meets Expectations
15-20
Proficient
10-14
Needs Improvement
5-9

9. Incomplete/Nonexistent
0-4
Content - Accuracy
(20 slide minimum)
and
Sequencing of Information
All content throughout the presentation is accurate. At least 20
slides.
Information is organized in a clear, logical way. It is easy to
anticipate the next slide.
Most of the content is accurate but there is one piece of
information that seems inaccurate.
Most information is organized in a clear, logical way. One slide
or piece of information seems out of place.
The content is generally accurate, but one piece of information
is clearly inaccurate.
Some information is logically sequenced. An occasional slide or
piece of information seems out of place.
Content confusing or contains more than two factual errors.
Fewer than 20 slides.
There is no clear plan for the organization of information.
Notes (bottom of PowerPoint slides)
Project includes all notes needed to give a good understanding
of the topic.
Project is lacking in one or two key areas of notes.
Project is missing more than two key notes.
Project has no notes at the bottom of the PowerPoint slides.
Use of Graphics
All graphics are attractive (size and colors) and support the
topic of the presentation.
A few graphics are not attractive but all support the topic of the

10. presentation.
All graphics are attractive but a few do not support the topic of
the presentation.
Several graphics are unattractive AND detract from the content
of the presentation.
Text - Font Choice & Formatting
and
Spelling and Grammar
Font formats (color, bold, italic) have been carefully planned to
enhance readability and content.
Presentation has no misspellings or grammatical errors.
Font formats have been carefully planned to enhance
readability.
Presentation has 1-2 misspellings, but no grammatical errors.
Font formatting has been carefully planned to complement the
content. It may be a little hard to read.
Presentation has 1-2 grammatical errors but no misspellings.
Font formatting makes it very difficult to read the material.
Presentation has more than 2 grammatical and/or spelling
errors.
Links to Textbook or Research
Text/Research concepts are mentioned at least 6 times
Approximately 3-5 links to text/research within paper
Brief, but unsubstantial links to text/research
No mention of any information from the text/research
Tips for Effective PowerPoint Presentations
Preparing Your Slides:
· Presentation Design
1. Don’t overload your slides with too much text or data.
2. Let the picture or graphic tell the story. Avoid too much text!
3. Type key words in the PowerPoint Notes area listing what to

11. say when displaying the slide. The notes are printable.
4. Number your slides and give them a title.
5. Use the “summary slide” feature in slide sorter view to
prepare an Agenda or Table of Contents slide.
6. Prepare a company logo slide for your presentation, if you
wish.
7. You can add a logo and other graphics to every slide using
the slide master feature.
8. Proof read everything, including visuals and numbers.
9. Keep “like” topics together
10. Strive for similar line lengths for text.
· Visual elements
1. A font size of 28 to 34 with a bold font is recommended for
subtitles. The title default size is 44. Use a san serif font for
titles.
2. Use clear, simple visuals. Don’t confuse the audience.
3. Use contrast: light on dark or dark on light.
4. Graphics should make a key concept clearer.
5. Place your graphics in a similar location within each screen.
6. The drawing toolbar is extremely useful You can:
1. Insert clip art
2. Insert pictures
3. Use Word Art
4. Use text boxes
5. Insert charts and diagrams
6. Insert arrows, banners, and thought balloons.
7. To temporarily clear the screen press W or B during the
presentation. Press Enter to resume the presentation.
· Text
1. Font size must be large enough to be easily read. Size 28 to
34 with a bold font is recommended.
2. It is distracting if you use too wide a variety of fonts.
3. Overuse of text is a common mistake.
1. Too much text makes the slide unreadable. You may just as
well show a blank slide. Stick to a few key words.
2. If your audience is reading the slides they are not paying

12. attention to you. If possible, make your point with graphics
instead of text.
3. You can use Word Art, or a clip art image of a sign, to
convey text in a more interesting way.
· Numbers
1. Numbers are usually confusing to the audience. Use as few as
possible and allow extra time for the audience to do the math.
2. Numbers should never be ultra precise:
1. “Anticipated Revenues of $660,101.83” looks silly. Are your
numbers that accurate? Just say $660 thousand.
2. “The Break Even Point is 1048.17 units. Are you selling
fractions of a unit?
3. Don’t show pennies. Cost per unit is about the only time you
would need to show pennies.
3. If you have more than 12-15 numbers on a slide, that’s
probably too many.
4. Using only one number per sentence helps the audience
absorb the data.
5. Use the same scale for numbers on a slide. Don’t compare
thousands to millions.
6. When using sales data, stick to a single market in the
presentation. Worldwide sales, domestic sales, industry sales,
company sales, divisional sales, or sales to a specific market
segment are all different scales. They should not be mixed.
7. Cite your source on the same slide as the statistic, using a
smaller size font.
· Charts/Backgrounds
1. Charts need to be clearly labeled. You can make more
interesting charts by adding elements from the drawing toolbar.
2. Numbers in tables are both hard to see and to understand.
There is usually a better way to present your numerical data
than with columns and rows of numbers. Get creative!
3. PowerPoint deletes portions of charts and worksheets that are
imported from Excel, keeping only the leftmost 5.5 inches. Plan
ahead.

13. 4. Backgrounds should never distract from the presentation.
5. Using the default white background is hard on the viewer’s
eyes. You can easily add a design style or a color to the
background.
6. Backgrounds that are light colored with dark text, or vice
versa, look good. A dark background with white font reduces
glare.
7. Colors appear lighter when projected. Pale colors often
appear as white.
8. Consistent backgrounds add to a professional appearance.
9. For a long presentation, you may want to change background
designs when shifting to a new topic.
Slides should be visually appealing!
**Tips for designing effective PowerPoint slides are located at
the end of this syllabus.