From hurricanes and tornadoes to floods and droughts, we thought when it came to natural disasters that Texas had seen it all—but now we can add arctic deep freezes to that list, too. For the first time in history, the National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings across the entire state of Texas in February 2021 as Winter Storm Uri wreaked havoc on our electric grid, our pipes, our roads, and our fellow Texans’ health and wellbeing.

By now everyone should know that every business, brand, and organization is bound to experience crisis. A crisis may not be happening within the four walls of your operations or directly calling you out for a customer service experience gone wrong, but we know that natural disasters, global health crises, and community unrest affect everyone.

If you feel like you’ve heard “unprecedented” and “together” over and over again, you’re not imagining things. In fact, the descriptors capture the spirit of how the world was caught off-guard as COVID-19 challenged our way of life, and how collaborative solutions are needed to lessen the pain of those most affected.

CKP’s crisis protocols have steered small nonprofits, medium-sized operations, and global brands through tough times. The right response in these moments is key: what your brand says during a crisis can have long-lasting effects, creating deep affinity and turning customers into fans, or alienating their audience. Date: Thursday, June 4, 2 pm CDT.

In times of crisis, our natural impulse is to lend a helping hand. With the highly contagious coronavirus spreading and social distancing guidelines in place, lending a literal helping hand is dangerous. In the days and weeks following Hurricane Harvey, Houston’s civic leaders, its citizens, and its business community rallied to meet the challenge with positivity, hard work, and good humor.

The Public Relations Society of America-Houston Chapter recognized CKP with the top two honors of the 2019 Excalibur Awards event, 2019 Agency of the Year and the coveted Grand Excalibur Award given to the top performing campaign of the year.

Just weeks before Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in August 2005, I moved to Houston. About a month later, I was one of the millions of Houstonians who attempted to evacuate in anticipation of Hurricane Rita. In 2008, I “hunkered down” during Hurricane Ike.

Every company must be prepared for the possibility of a public relations crisis. Whether it's a data breach, an executive scandal or just a bad piece of press, any negative event connected to your brand requires a swift and carefully crafted response if you want to keep your reputation intact.