Strategies 360 draws on the extensive experience of dozens of communications professionals across our footprint to provide comprehensive crisis and strategic communication support. Our experts come from major news organizations – TV stations, newspapers and radio – as well as the press secretaries for political campaigns, governors and members of Congress and communications officers for private companies from a variety of industries.
S360 has provided proactive crisis communications plans as well as immediate crisis communications support for clients from a variety of industries, including:
- Government agencies
- Municipalities
- Higher Education
- School Districts
- Healthcare
- Non-Profit
- Corporations
- Financial Institutions
Why choose Strategies 360 for your crisis communications needs?
Few firms have the experience necessary to not only provide immediate support as a crisis unfolds, but also the expertise in building robust communications plans to help an organization prepare for future crises.
S360’s team can jump into action immediately when your organization’s reputation is put at risk. We are adept at providing quick analysis of the crisis and creating a strategy to help manage the threat. That includes on-call support, providing guidance on media inquiries, addressing social media chatter, drafting public facing and internal statements, creating talking points/messaging and adjusting them to fit any member of your organization and an after report once the crisis is over to provide guidance for the future. Our goal is to give you the confidence that you have a trusted team to guide you through the crisis.
Many organization are looking for ways to better prepare themselves to address future crises. S360’s team has created crisis communications plans for a clients from a variety of backgrounds. These plans provide a blueprint for your organization to follow when the next crisis unfolds.
To create this plan, S360 will first conduct an audit of your organization’s current crisis communications preparedness, establishing a baseline and understanding internal processes, strengths and areas of opportunity.
In partnership with your organizations leadership and communications team, we will produce a fully developed plan that prepares key staff to effectively and nimbly manage crisis communications, support your organization in responding in a unified, professional manner that reinforces its mission, vision and values, protect your reputation through consistent and transparent internal and external communications, manage the distribution of critical information to relevant stakeholders ( including employees, media and the public) and identify potential spokespeople.
To achieve these objectives, the plan will develop protocols and procedures to guide you through a crisis situation, and will include sample materials including holding statements aimed at responding to the most likely reputation threat scenarios.
Once your organization has a crisis communications plan in place, it is often helpful to provide an opportunity to test it out before an actual crisis takes place. Using the vulnerability assessment developed while creating the plan, S360 will create a crisis communications scenario and then conduct a real-time simulation involving key members of your team. During the day-long training, staff members will have to deal with a public facing crisis, including message development, press release drafting, social media management and live interviews. S360 team members will provide updates to the crisis throughout the day, testing your team’s ability to adjust approaches to best succeed in addressing the crisis. Once the exercise is complete, S360 will develop a detailed debrief document on the simulation. This document will provide constructive feedback that you can use to strengthen its crisis response abilities.
The key to an organization’s successful messaging is knowing how to effectively and clearly communicate with members of the media across multiple platforms. Strategies 360 draws on the extensive media background of its company-wide communications team to provide training that is essential to promoting your organization as well as responding to any crisis that should arise. Working with our team, you will identify potential spokespersons within your organization that will be part of any media outreach or response. As part of the media training, your organization will learn:
- Knowing how best to respond to a media inquiry
- How to conduct yourself during an interview with the media
- The best practices for responding to the media regarding a crisis that might involve your organization or the industry at large
- Knowing when or when not to engage with the media
Our media training includes:
- Introduction to how news media, journalists work
- General communications, adjusting message to audience
- Identifying potential stories or crises hospital systems could be involved in
- Step by step do’s and don’ts on responding to a crisis
- One-on-one practice sessions on how to respond to a crisis
- Real-time feedback and critiques for trainees
TEAM
Taylor Bickford
Washington
As S360’s EVP for Communications Strategy, Taylor advises clients across the S360 footprint on how to navigate the intersection of communications, business and public policy. He oversees the S360 firm-wide communications team and works with clients ranging from tribal organizations and energy companies to top non-profits, healthcare organizations, and fishing companies. Taylor’s extensive knowledge of the communications landscape and expertise across public affairs disciplines has helped moved countless client issues forward.
Taylor is a graduate of West Virginia University with a B.A. in political science.
Nathan Wilson
CaliforniaWashington
As the Vice President of Communications, Nathan helps lead S360’s Crisis Communication practice, both in long term planning and training as well as immediate, strategic support during a sudden crisis. In addition to his crisis work, Nathan also assists clients with general communications support, messaging as well as earned & owned media strategies.
A 4-time Emmy Award winner, Nathan has over 15 years of experience in television news, during which he led major market newsrooms and coordinated investigative and political coverage. Nathan’s clients benefit from this experience with his inside knowledge on how to connect with reporters and assignment managers, achieve media mentions, and garner growth in reach, impressions and engagement through earned media.
During his time at S360, Nathan has also become the go-to person for media & messaging training for clients across the firms footprint. Conducted both virtually and in-person, these trainings help clients learn about how to engage with the media, identify key talking points and stay on message when interacting with key stakeholders or reporters.
Originally from the Midwest, Nathan currently lives on the West Coast assisting clients in both California & Washington. He is dedicated to community engagement, volunteering and supporting arts organizations. He holds a BPA from Oklahoma City University.
Alyson Marchi-Young
Oregon
As Vice President of Communications, Alyson drives internal communications for S360 and supports client needs across the firm footprint. Experienced in policy, non-profit, and corporate communications strategies, Alyson wields her diverse background to grow the impact and outreach of S360 clients across the West. She specializes in content development, creating compelling messages and human-centered stories to amplify client’s outreach goals. Additionally, she is skilled in strategic communications planning, earned media support, social media planning, speech writing, event planning and brand communications. Alyson has a passion for DEI-conscious projects that amplify oft underheard voices.
In her time with S360, Alyson has worked closely with education, environmental, social justice, housing, transportation and tech organizations. Notably, she has written work that has been featured in publications including The Hill, LA Times, CalMatters, SF Chronicle, The Portland Tribune, The Oregonian, Tacoma News Tribune, The Olympian and the Spokane Review. Her work has helped pass statewide funding for early childhood education, youth criminal justice reform, and comprehensive affordable housing policies.
Alyson cut her teeth in policy communications as the Marketing and Communications Strategist for 1000 Friends of Oregon. Here her work supported the passage of the 2017 transportation package with robust funding for transit, pedestrian, e-vehicles, and bikes. She also delivered successful communications support and plans for pro-housing and affordable housing bills, and land use policies that protect farms and forests.
Previously, she served both the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry and Oregon Public Broadcasting as a corporate fundraiser. Alyson drove millions of dollars in investments to both organizations through innovative sponsorships, cross-promotional outreach programs, event strategies, and comprehensive media plans.
Alyson knows the West. A sixth-generation San Franciscan, Alyson moved to Portland as a child then attended the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma Washington. Alyson earned her degree at Southern Oregon University and lives in Portland with her husband, son, rescue dog and six chickens.