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It was a frosty June morning, deep in the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic. Like all Victorians, we had been confined to our homes for months. Fortunately, we set up our phones to take calls from our clients' members, ensuring our services continued uninterrupted.
Association Executive Services provides back-office support as part of our business model to diverse professional and industry associations, such as handling general inquiries and phone calls. I managed the calls on this specific day since our admin staff were occupied. We have approximately eight dedicated phone lines; when a call is received, the organisation's acronym shows up on the digital display, revealing which client is being reached out to.
One of our clients is a well-known professional medical association staffed only by the CEO and a board of about 13 representatives. We typically receive general inquiries from its members, which our administration team efficiently handles.
But this morning was different!
With most of the team occupied, I volunteered to take calls from this medical association. I knew enough about them to handle general inquiries. However, the next set of calls was unlike anything I had experienced.
For over an hour, I received calls from major media outlets wanting to speak with the President. "Can I get a comment on his statement?" they asked. It was clear the President had made a statement to the press, but I had no idea what it was about until an hour later. I learned that he had made a controversial statement about the COVID-19 vaccine, which contradicted the information provided by the Federal Government.
The President's prominent role in a respected health organisation made his statement newsworthy. Naturally, one would assume he was reflecting the views and policies of his association—or was he?
I soon realised that the President was not reflecting the views or policies of his professional association. Instead, he conveyed his personal opinions, which the organisation had not endorsed.
After an hour of handling media calls nationwide, I rang the CEO. "I'm getting media calls from everywhere. How do you want us to manage this?" I asked.
She recommended that all media responses clarify that the President's comments did not represent the association's views. However, it was too late. The media had already picked up the story, and the Federal Health Minister soon condemned the President's statement.
By mid-afternoon, the association released a statement retracting the President's comments. However, the damage was done. The association's and its members' credibility had been compromised.
So, how might we have prevented this? Here are some key steps:
And here's my final tip when talking to the media:
Please don't take live phone calls from the media. If a radio station wants to go live, tell them you will call them back. Take control of the communication process.
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