Global AlertLink Software was specially developed for issues and crisis management

July 28, 2002

HIGH-TECH AID FOR EXECUTIVES
Bob Rayner
Times-Dispatch Columist

This might interest some of the country's embattled CEOs: a computer program designed to deal with a big crisis - any crisis.

A click of the mouse, and your troubles are over.

It's not really that simple, of course.

But a marketing firm with nearly two decades of crisis management experience has just unveiled a sophisticated software package for organizations that suddenly find themselves dealing with a big problem.

For Charles Ryan Associates, the timing could not have been better, even if they'd planned, which they didn't.

Pat Gallagher, the advertising and public relations agency's president, said the firm began developing the software more than a year ago at the request of a client, one of the Big Three automakers.

Ryan, which is based in Charleston, W.Va., and has an office in Richmond, has spent nearly two decades honing its expertise in helping companies survive trying times.

Its crisis management teams use all of the firm's skills to assist clients facing troubles, which can range from industrial accidents and labor disputes to product liability concerns and environmental issues.

"We bring all the entities in our firm into the crisis," Gallagher said.

They've faced some tough situations: advising Union Carbide after a chemical leak in India killed scores of people; working with Peabody Coal during a 14-month mine workers strike; and assisting employee-owned Weirton Steel with a stock offering.

"Every company has a crisis management plan. They're usually put together, then put on a shelf, where they gather dust," Gallagher said. "By the time they get to a crisis, the whole thing is out of date."

During a crisis, he said, communication becomes critical: connecting the right people and the right information, both inside and outside the organization, can mean the difference between managing a problem and having it spin completely out of control.

"Our aim was to create an Internet-based program, properly protected against invasion, that a company can use in a crisis."

The result was Global Alertlink, a comprehensive software package that sells for anywhere from $30,000 to $250,000 or more, depending on the size and the needs of the client.

"It's a crisis tool and an issues management package," Gallagher said.

Once it's properly set up, the program can send e-mails to alert people as soon as a problem is detected. Web pages can be created almost instantly to help speed communication, disperse information and gain some control over the situation.

Sites can be set up for the executives, employees, vendors, consumers, even the media.

Most important, perhaps, the organization's decision makers have access to a wealth of data at their fingertips that can be updated almost as quickly as events unroll.

"It allows mangers to monitor events on a real-time basis," said Jeff Thompson, a vice president of the agency's interactive division, which created the software. "In a crisis, top management often either makes a bad decision or no decision because they don't have the information they need."

In a time when headlines are dominated by corporate scandals and terrorist threats, Ryan believes Global Alertlink will find a receptive market in the business world.

Now, the agency is focusing on selling to large U.S. companies with international operations. But it believes the product could be attractive to smaller businesses, even municipalities interested in beefing up their homeland defense capabilities.

The package has been out a couple of months, but Gallagher said the initial response from potential buyers has been good.

That's not surprising. These days, lots of folks could use a high-tech crisis manager.