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You've been on the job for a couple of months on the job and your utility is hit by a non-pathogenic bacteria and increases the chlorine level in the region's drinking water from 1 part per million to 10 parts perm million - which doesn't sound like much until you realize it is ten times the maximum level of chlorine allowed in a backyard swimming pool. When faced with this challenge at the South Central Connecticut Water Authority, I worked with the top management team to keep our 400,000 consumers informed. Thanks to the strong support of top management and technical experts, we developed a media plan that kept consumers, reporters, municipal chief elected officials, lawmakers, members of our Boards, and employees informed. Our strategies ranged from having a media release a day for the first week of the crisis to going live on television news and radio talk shows. We involved state regulators and Yale public health experts in the process. Our customer service representative pitched in and worked overtime. Together we reassured consumers that while there was more chlorine in the water, it was still safe to drink. Results: Tanks to our team effort, public opinion survey data developed by an independent contractor showed consumer confidence in the regional water utility remained high. Consumers heard our message and appreciated our effort. Follow up polling showed they only became concerned when the crisis had passed, the level of chlorine had fallen and we were not in the news. |
