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In a world increasingly defined by unpredictability, the role of crisis communication has never been more vital. In the third episode of For Every Response, I spoke with Amanda Coleman, a crisis communications expert who brings more than two decades of experience to the table – first in police communications, and now advising organisations around the world. Amanda hosted the Policing Stage at last year’s Emergency Services Show, so it was great to catch up with her on what she’s been up to since.
Amanda’s journey into crisis communications began in journalism, but it was her extensive experience working in police communications, culminating in her leadership during the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017, that shaped how she now thinks about crisis response. That moment was pivotal for her. It led to her writing Crisis Communication Strategies: How to Prepare in Advance, Respond Effectively and Recover in Full, and launching her consultancy just as the UK went into lockdown in 2020.
One of the main takeaways from our conversation was how Amanda defines a crisis – not by media attention or scale, but by impact. “A crisis is something which is incredibly difficult for an organisation at that point in time,” she said, “whether that’s operationally or reputationally, and it has an impact significantly on people and what that organisation does.” For her, it’s not a one-size-fits-all scenario. What challenges a multinational won’t be the same as what overwhelms a small business or a local council.
We spoke about the Heathrow Airport power outage, which caused a near-total shutdown for 24 hours. Amanda saw it as an example of what can go wrong in both planning and communications.
“How can one piece of infrastructure bring down a whole entire airport of that size?” she asked. “How was that risk identified or not identified, and why was there no backup?”
She gave credit to Heathrow for issuing a clear initial message, but confusion followed as different agencies offered conflicting updates – a common problem in major incidents. For Amanda, this reflects the reality of today’s crisis landscape: information spreads faster than it can be verified. In a world of social media and public scepticism, organisations are expected to communicate in real time, often before all the facts are known.
She likens crisis communication to “emergency PR.” While public relations is about building reputation in advance, crisis comms is what protects that reputation when things go wrong. And as Amanda pointed out, the message is only one part of it. How organisations behave is just as important.
“If the public’s lived experience is one thing, and you’re telling them something else, then you’re automatically undermining your crisis comms response,” she warned. That’s where accusations of gaslighting can arise – when people feel their reality is being dismissed.
She was clear that reputation management doesn’t belong solely to the comms team. It’s about how the whole organisation operates, from leadership through to culture. And there’s a leadership gap, she says, especially in lower-risk sectors where senior teams haven’t had the training to lead through a crisis.
We discussed the changing role of social media in emergencies too. Amanda sees a familiar pattern between the 2011 riots and more recent civil unrest – social media acting as both an organising tool and a vehicle for misinformation. She stressed the importance of having crisis-specific social media plans that include platforms like Telegram, WhatsApp and encrypted messaging services. Too often, organisations are under-resourced and still treat social media as a one-way broadcast, rather than a two-way conversation.
Even with digital dominating, Amanda reminded me that traditional media still has a crucial role to play – especially in a crisis. But years of cuts to comms teams and strained relationships have made that harder.
“Policing has got to build trust with communities. One of those communities is reporters, and if the reporters don’t trust you, then that’s a difficult position to be in.”
We talked about how organisations across the emergency services can learn from major incidents, including the Manchester Arena bombing. Exercises, she said, are a crucial tool – but they must reflect the real world.
“In reality, [crisis response] starts an hour before you’ve ever got anybody together to have a conversation. The comms person is probably fighting some social media posts, and media inquiries come in. We’ve got to make sure that these exercises replicate that, because that’s a reality that everybody’s going to face.”
Amanda’s call to action is to review your crisis comms plans, test them often and always see your response from the point of view of the people it affects.
You can hear our full conversation on the For Every Response podcast using the link below, or on your usual podcast platform.
