Toyota Recall

The current Toyota recall situation will likely become a key example of handling an external, or internal, company crisis. Jonathan Hemus in his article “Accelerating towards crisis: a PR view of Toyota’s recall” states:

“The most effective crisis management takes place before the problem escalates out of control during the “incubation” phase. Some of the biggest potential crises have been identified and addressed before they ever escalated out of control: this is crisis management at its best. This requires an organizational culture that is vigilant for potential crises, has open lines of communication from staff to management, and a willingness to address unpleasant truths.”

His article emphasizes figuring out the key flaws in a product and handling them before any problems get to the scale that Toyota is currently facing. This type of forward thinking directly relates to software development companies. The development and production phase of software development is where the “bugs” should be found and taken care of immediately. In the instance where a bug does not appear until after launch it is critical that software companies vigilantly review, fix, and update products already in use in the marketplace.

Utilizing agile development methods can help ensure that bugs are fixed in a timely manner by outlining individual’s roles and responsibilities and by opening a clear pathway of communication between staff and management. Furthermore, agile product development allows for swift adaptations to urgent needs enabling companies to respond immediately to their customers, and the general public, about the steps being taken to solve the problem.

Toyota’s slow public response to the issues plaguing their vehicles gives the appearance of a slow internal response to finding and fixing the problems present in their cars. From a PR perspective, one questions Toyota’s commitment to their product and their market; from a management perspective, one questions their review and decision making process.

Large companies like Toyota may be able to handle the bad PR from poor crisis management, but a smaller company may not be able to. It is imperative that smaller companies make sure they stop a crisis before it even occurs.