Oh Crap: The Crisis Management Podcast

Confused about the recall? Meredith & Frank explain what went wrong and why it matters – from quality control, customer service, medical, and personal perspectives. That includes the personal cost: Meredith’s daughter was sickened by the tainted cereal.

Confused about the recall? Meredith & Frank explain what went wrong and why it matters – from quality control, customer service, medical, and personal perspectives. That includes the personal cost: Meredith’s daughter was sickened by the tainted cereal.

Confused about the recall? Meredith & Frank explain what went wrong and why it matters – from quality control, customer service, medical, and personal perspectives. That includes the personal cost: Meredith’s daughter was sickened by the tainted cereal.

What can we learn from the recent scandal to hit Volkswagen? In an age where we need experts to run our world, what role does trust play and what happens when it is violated?

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 9, she continues her discussion of how the language is already biased to exclude those who are not familiar with Quality.

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 8, she discusses how the language Quality professionals use limits their ability to communicate clearly.

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 7, she discusses how useful the tools are but also how they limit what we can talk about.

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 6, she discusses how Quality is applied in theater and why it's germane.

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 5, she discusses how she got into Quality.

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 4, she discusses that she's not against certifications; the purpose they serve; and what needs to be done to make them more relevant.

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 3, she discusses how the Quality industry is trapped into a self-fulfilling prophecy because it's biased towards what is current using Quality.

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 2, she discusses the biggest problem that occurs because of the cultural bias in the Quality industry.

Meredith was interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality management community. In part 1, she discusses the limitations the Quality industry has because of its past.

Meredith is interviewed about cultural bias in the Quality Management community. In Part 10, she discusses the need to redefine Quality so it can become the universal language it should be.

The business is growing and is successful - so why do women give up on the business? Meredith discusses why women have a built in bias for giving up just when they should be celebrating their success. From her address to the National Association of Women Business Owners.

Meredith has nothing against MBAs - she just explains why being a theater major was better training for being an entrepreneur and small business owner that business school. From her address to the National Association of Women Business Owners.

Female business owners have special situations that cause them to fail - but there's a way to break the cycle. Meredith uses a real world example she dealt with to illustrate. From her address to the National Association of Women Business Owners.

Getting an angel investor to invest in your company is the Holy Grail - or is it? Why wouldn't you want angel investment? Meredith gives you several reasons why angel investment may not be right for you.

There are a lot of lessons to be learned from your favorite restaurant - Meredith discusses a lesson she learned from her favorite sushi restaurant.

Crisis managers are the ones who hide the dead bodies - right? Not according to Meredith who discusses what real crisis managers do.

Why do smart people ruin businesses? It's not because they're dumb. Meredith discusses the Science of Quality - from her address to the National Association of Women Business Owners .

Meredith continues her discussion of scams you will see when you file a trademark application.

Meredith describes how you can spot scams when you file a trademark application - and what you can do about them.

An except from an address to the National Association of Women Business Owners about how Deming's 14 points help solve problems.

How do you explain complex concepts to your customers without coming off as a pompous know-it-all or boring them to tears? Meredith points out what you need to focus on.

Meredith discusses how a autoimmune disorder helped her to understand the importance of understanding what your assumptions are.

How do you tell if you are having a business problem or a business crisis? Meredith discusses the difference in this podcast.

We all face crises – whether they are personal, business or community-wide. When you first realize that you are dealing with a crisis, what should you do? Meredith discusses the first two minutes and what you should do in a crisis – it will surprise you!

Did Ken Lay wake up one day and decide to ruin Enron? Why did it happen? Frank discusses why people end up making stupid decisions and a simple test of your decisions and actions to prevent you from doing something stupid.

Are you having misunderstandings at work or in social situations? Perhaps your best approach is to just shut up and listen because if you don’t you might end up being an ass.

They are always the manager’s nightmare – the new hire or intern – they know nothing and have to be told everything. Frank uses a story he heard in the Navy about recruits to discuss the proper care and feeding of that “nightmare” so they can become your dream.

A lot of people never deal with real customers – you know – the ones who give money for goods and services. So how do you identify your “customer?” Frank discusses a fundamental quality concept which helps everyone understand who their customer is.

When you’re running a small business, it often seems that everything depends on you. But does it? Frank discusses why small business owners find it hard to let go and how they can identify when they should let go.

What makes a real leader? Writing lots of books or making a lot of money? Frank discusses some real leaders that he’s worked with and studied and the one thing that made them real leaders – results.

There’s always a point in the lead up to a crisis where at least one person has the opportunity to be a hero or a louse. Frank uses real world cases to illustrate how not to be a hero.

What does driving in the snow teach you about business? A whole lot – Frank and Meredith discuss why driving in the snow is a lot like dealing with new situations using old experience without understanding.

What does black holes have to do with business? Event horizons – the point that you can see beyond – know what you don’t know but should.

Meredith, Deanna and Frank discuss how to deal with unethical social media practices and what to do and can’t do.

Meredith, Deanna and Frank discuss how not to be that guy – the guy that makes a problem into a crisis that never seems to end.

When and what parts of your business or life should you outsource? Meredith and Deanna discuss examples where outsourcing can help and how to avoid problems that outsourcing can make worse.

A crisis is usually not the real crisis but a symptom of what the real problem. Meredith discusses with Deanna Tiemann the nature of a “crisis” that Deanna had and what the solution was.

Got a table and a piece a of paper? You have everything you need to start a crisis management plan. Frank and Meredith explain how to use table top exercises to create simple, practical crisis management plans for almost no cost - and how they help you find hidden blind spots in your plans.

Meredith explains an epidemic hurting young professionals and undermining their credibility. Learn what it is, why it happens, and how to stop it from happening in your own organization.

People ask us - a lot - if we get lied to a lot. And the answer is YES. ALL the time. But we've learned that most people don't lie for malicious reasons. They lie because they're scared. Truth is the foundation for all correct responses, so most of what we do as crisis managers is try to eliminate fear and the causes of that fear.

When a scandal hits the news, the story you're reading is never the whole story -- and that's not an accident. Information leaks for a reason. Learn how you're missing the rest of the story with this current events case study of celebrity Paula Deen and her business in crisis - and how someone used her (very real and very wrong) racial slurs to distract America from the real crisis.

Learn the five ways people, media outlets, and politicians try to hide bad news and distract you from learning the truth in a crisis. Once you recognize them, you'll be able to solve problems in your life and business faster and more efficiently - and spend less time getting fooled.

Remember that time Benjamin Franklin convinced thousands of people that one of his competitors was dead just to boost sales of Poor Richard's Almanac? Except the guy was very much alive? No? Well... he did. Yup. Some of our founding fathers were kind of jerks. Learn what he did, and how someone may be doing the same thing to you or your business today.

Spin hurts. It undermines your credibility with customers and coworkers. It can lead to unbelievable consequences. In this episode, Frank and Meredith explain how spin can cost your business customers - and cost you worse. Learn the best possible response you can give to build trust when you don't know an answer. Part 3 of 3

You're especially vulnerable to using spin when you feel like you've lost control of a situation or your emotions - and you probably don't even realize you're doing it. Learn what makes you vulnerable to spin, and how to calibrate your own internal B.S. Detector. Part 2 of 3

Spin isn't just for talking heads and politicians - it's anything you say or do to influence another person or control their opinions. Ever given a vague answer to a hard question? Or insisted "everything's fine!" when it definitely WAS NOT fine? Congratulations! You're a spin doctor. And you need to be aware of it - because spin is always a symptom of a crisis. Here are the sneaky ways spin creeps into your daily business life - and how to make it stop so you can build real trust with your customers and coworkers. Part 1 of 3