In my blog post last week, I covered how to plan ahead and prepare for a crisis. This week, I want to move to how you respond when your worst fears come true. A crisis moves fast in the first 24 hours, then differently in the week that follows….
Tom Rawlings and I will be presenting “Planning Now for a Crisis” at CAFO’s 2026 Summit, September 23-25. This post hits the highlights of what we’ll be presenting, but we hope you’ll be able to discuss the topic with us in person in Atlanta. A crisis does…
Imagine your phone rings on a Friday night. A parent says something happened to their child at your program. Within days, your lawyer may tell you to do what a South Carolina pastor just went through: a pastor who refused to answer shouted questions at a…
Ask any administrator whether their organization keeps records on staff and volunteers, and the answer is almost always yes. Ask that same administrator how quickly the organization can produce every record connected to one specific person, from every system. Their confidence usually drops. The problem…
Your organization’s legal exposure does not end with an injury or claim. What your program directors, operations staff, and child safety coordinator say after an incident, in emails, in conversations with parents, in staff meetings, and on social media, can come back as evidence against…
A story from New York City illustrates the sad fact that even good crisis response can have difficult consequences. The reporter starts with the bombshell fact that the health department “received a complaint” about staff abuse of children at a Bright Horizons childcare center. You…