AFTER THE SHOOTING: A Tale of Two Recoveries [Risk Management]

After gunmen killed multiple victims at their places of business, the owners of the Aurora cinema and Wisconsin spa took two different approaches to confronting the tragedy and getting back to work.

IF there was ever any question. - 2Û12 was the year that proved, once and Fot a]], thai "it can't I I happen here" i5 a myth no organisation can afford to I rust. During An opening-night showing of the latest Batman film at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, 12 people were killed and 58 injured by a heavily armed and armored gunman. In Brookfield, Whitman, three people were killed and four injured*! Anna spa. In Oak Creek, Wisconsin, jix people were killed and three injured at a Sikh temple shortly before services, were set to begin. At a California university, seven people were killed and three injured by a gunman, reportedly * form« nursing student. In Seattle, five people were killed and one injured during a shooting spree that began in an independent coffee shop. At a Minnesota sign-mating company, six people were killed and three injured by a fotmet employee. And at Sandy Hook Elementary School in New Town, Connecticut, 27 people were killed and mil injured, mast of them young children.

As disasters go, ma."shootings fill a unique niche and ??? unique challenges. No place of education, refuge, entertainment, worship, employment or relaxation if immune. Unlike fîtes, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, chemical release or terrorism. they rarely result in substantial property damage. The shooting event itself usually lasts only minutes, and oncc the crime scene has been secured and investigated, there is usually no physical reason that a business could not immediately reopen its doors. Thete arc often other, very real reasons it docs not, however.

With the current cultural focus on shootings and gun control, ir is now almost certain that any act of gun vio* I«ice perpetrated in a public place with multiple victims will receive national (and sometimes international) media attention. As headlines grow and becOtnc permanent on the interne!, whit on« may have been a personal tragedy for those dose to the vierimi has become a very teal threat ro the future of an affected company or organitarion. For a tetail or service business that relies on public foot traffic, an internet search profile that turns up references to a mass shooting rather than the com» pany's website could mean the end of the business; itself.

Shooting at the Spa and Cinema

Two shootings illustrate an important concept of post-disaster recovery: no two disasters-and no two recoveries- ate the same. Both the Brnokfield spa and the Aurora movie theater tragedies involved a gunman killing multiple victims on the premises. Both received national media attention.

The A/ana spa reopened after six weeks. The entire Aurora multiple* remained closed for six months, however. While downtime for any business can pose a tremendous financial burden, depending on insurance coverage, in m tut cases the mote significant risk from being closed for any length of rime is that once-loyal customers will take their business elsewhere. It is largely for this reason that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) estimates ? hat 75% of companies without well-conceived and tested busine» continuity plans will go our of business within three years of being afiêcted by a major disaster.

The reopening of the Aaana Salon and Spa received uniformly positive and hopeful coverage from the local media. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, for example, highlighted die succcsfol fundraisers that had been held for the victims of the shooting, the resilience of the business, the determinación of its owner and the salon's tasteful memorial to the victims, Words used or quoted in the story describing the spas reopening include: "newly remodeled and redecorated,' "warm and homey' and "gorgeous." The local NBC affiliate's coverage was titled "Healing at the Spa" and noted that the salon was reportedly "nearly folly booked" and "even welcomed some new customers,"

Conversely, the Aurora movie cheater reopened to some controversy. The opening received national media coverage that typically mentioned a brief memorial ceremony, bur also described the anger felt by some of the victims and their families against che theater's owner. The New York Timei described the "toad to reopening" as "painful and divisive," noting that "some families touched by the massacre thought it was too soon, or simply insensitive, to once again screen shoor-'em-up blockbusters and sell expensive snacks in a building where their loved ones had been killed." USA Today* coverage featured multiple family members of victims who expressed their displeasure with the cheater's actions since the shooting. * There's been no condolence tetter, no reaching out, no apologies, then,,,we get thii invitation to attend a reopening of a killing field," said one grieving father. Both papers mentioned that several lawsuits had been filed against Cincmark Holdings {the owner of the theater), alleging negligence that contributed ro the shooting's terrible conséquences.

Community and Employee Outreach Strategies

The owntn of these two aficcted companies followed AurkJy different #tnrCgies in the aftermath of their respective tragedies, especially in terms of their community relations efforts. Tim Warner, president and CEO of Cinemark, answered a few questions on camera and traveled to Aurora shordy after the shooting, reportedly to prov ide Support to the victims and community. However, spirt from speaking if (he dieater reopening ceremony si« months Later. Warner provided very few other public statements or interactions with the media or those personally affected by the shooting, "litis repotted lack of communication was a prime complaint of several victims" family members.

According to the New York Times, one victims parent reported that Cinemark did not send her any direct communications until vlie rKeived an invitation in the mail to intend the theater reopening. Another parent reported to USA Today that he had tried to teach our to Cinemark himself, but that "they've shown no interest in speaking to any of u*-no compassion for the families who lost someone. They've been very, very insensitive." Multiple news oudcts also indicated in their coverage that thev had reached out to Cinemark for interviews and comments on thrir reporting with no response, (Messages sent to Cinemark for chis article were not returned.)

"Iami Gemmell, owner of the Azana Salon and Spa, while being selective and very intentional about the times and places of her public statements and interviews, maintained a strong presence in the media and the community. The shooting at the Ajana Spa occurred during the late morning of October 2!, 2012. Within hours, the officiai Fawbook profile for the spa urned the following message: "ATTENTION AZANA EMPLOYERS please do not speak to the media, it is so important that things get figured out and settled first. THANK YOU so much to everyone for your thoughts and especially your prayers. Please continue to pray for ail of those involved." From the very first day, Gemmell recognized the importance of achieving and maintaining control over the spa's message. She utilixed wcial media ti> communicate-with employees, customers, and die broader community throughout the port-disaster period.

Two days after the sh wtitig, Gcmmell organised a prívate meeting wirli her employees to maintain direct communication with them, one of the most often-overlooked components of crisis communications and disaster planning and response. Without lis key employees, a business can ^11 just as easily as if it loses its key customers; Gemmdl would later announce that she paid her employees throughout the period the spa was dosed, contributing to the eventual rcsulr that the vast majority of her employées returned when the spa reopened. After the employee meeting, she issued a brief statement mourning the loss of the women who were killed in the shooting while refusing to take questions from tire pre«, an action thai again helped her maintain control over rhf media's coverage. That same day, Gemmell established the Azana Victims Fund at a local bank and once again co mm un i cat cd this information to the public via the spas Face book page,

Divergent Strategies

At this point tn the post-disaster recovery, the two companies' strategies diverged even fortlief. Cinemark's Warnet was quick in his few initial comments t? state that "this is just an isolated, deranged gunman" and that "1 do feel this was an isolated incident." This was a theme he would re-emphasLic during his remaries at rhc theater's reopening, when he called the shooting "a single terrible act of random, unpredictable violence."

As opposed to the Cinemark strategy of attempting to dismiss the Aurora shooting as an unforeseeable event, Gemmell chose to publicly link the Azana Spa shooting ro the broader social issue of domestic violence. (It was public knowledge shortly after the shoo ring that the gunman was rhc husband of one of the victims and had recently been served with a restraining order after slashing his wife's tires.) Within less than a week of the attack, GcmmcU announced die formation of a purple-ribbon fondraising effort in conjunction with the national "Cut It Out-campaign against domestic violence in the salon industry. The spa would later be featured in an issue of Cefmopoiitan magazine for its efforts in this cam' paign, again achieving positive national media attention.

Whereas the Azana Spa tragedy became a rallying cry for a supportive local community and a fixture in a national movement, the owner of the Aurora theater attempied to rurn the shooting inro something ?? fotger. Cinematic remodeled and renamed the theater, choosing not to establish any kind of permanent memorial in the process. While the Azana Spa was also remodeled, in the place of one of the victims' former workstations there is now a table with three flowers and a candle in memory of the employees who lost thiir jives. This visual dedication serves as a daily reminder of die tragedy to employees as well as customers, but it also connects those visiting the spa to a larger cause.

Only rime will tell how each of these post-disaster strategics will affect each respective business over the long term. In the meantime, it Is important to consider why each business took the actions ir did. Although at first glance, one might think that the larger scale of the Aurora movie theater «hooting would require a much more expansive community relations effort than the Azana Spa shooting, this is not automatically the case.

Ctnemark is reportedly rhe third-largest movie theater chain in the Un Lied Starts, wich nearly 300 (heaters domestically 35 well as a major international presente. Although the ihooring at its Aurora (heater was 1 tragedy, it was nor likely to pose a significant risk t? Cinemark as a whole; even if that particular theater never reopened, Cinemarks stability and financial strength Would not have been affected. Et ii likely that in the view of company management at the time, the greatest perceived risk to rhe company was the set of lawsuits from victims and tlicir family members *Stemming fîotn (he event. Thi* could explain the company's nw-wmplctc silence in the weeks and months following the shooting.

At the other extreme, A/.an3 Salon and Spa is a single-location company based largely on maintaining relationshijM with a steady clientele. The spa's stated goal is to provide "pure luxury,* offering services such as a "relaxation room designed 10 awaken the senses while renewing (lie spirit," as Well as "ifissiage therapy rooms."designed to mdt your troubles away and leave you refreshed and rejuvenated,"

In the immediate aftermath of a shooting that left three women

More and more businesses and other organizations arc coming to realize that "risk management" is simply management-we an no longer afford to differentiate between the two concepts- In that pcrspccrivc. disaster planning and recovery ate not isolated functions, bur must instead be core features of strategic decision-making at the highest levels of a 3uu.cA.sful organization. In the post-disaster recovery stage, management must base its actions on an informed understanding of the unique nature of the disaster itself, as well as the unique position of the organization within that disaster convert.

WHEREAS THE ?Z??? SPA TRAGEDY BECAME A RALLYING CRY FOR A SUPPORTIVE LOCAL COMMUNITY AND A FIXTURE IN A NATIONAL MOVEMENT, THE OWNER OF THE AURORA THEATER ATTEMPTED TO TURN THE SHOOTING INTO SOMETHING TO FORGET.

DISASTER PUNNING ÄND RECOVERY ARE NOT ISOLATED FUNCTIONS, BUT MUST INSTEAD BE CORE FEATURES OF STRATEGIC DECISION MAKING AT THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF A SUCCESSFUL ORGANIZATION,

Will Kramer, CSE CPCU. ARM-E. ARM-P, is a coran hunt with In if grated Risk Solutions in Wisconsin, a firm spr· daUting in risk reduction.