Page 128 of Dancing in the Rain

“They’ve never had a fatal accident before,” Peyton said.

“Nope.”

North Star Airlines had been steadily growing to become one of the largest and most successful airlines in America. They’d built their reputation as a “fun” airline with personable staff who excelled at customer service, humorous advertising campaigns, and a casual corporate culture. They’d also won awards for quality, with their on-time record, baggage handling, and low numbers of customer complaints.

“Their CEO has already addressed the media this morning,” Gord continued. “Of course they contacted us right away to help with further developments and communications.”

“Of course.” She’d read the news reports online and watched a video of the press conference. “That’s what I’m here for.”

At the office Michael Chan, CEO of North Star, was already there with several other executives from North Star and representatives from their communications department. She met Gord outside the boardroom.

“Uh…” His gaze fell on Chloe. “Who’s this?”

“My niece, Chloe.” Peyton set a hand on top of Chloe’s head. “She’s going to hang out in my office while we work.”

Gord frowned. “You can’t bring a kid to work.”

“Don’t be a dick, Gord,” she said. “I brought her.”

At first she wasn’t sure if he’d actually heard her. His eyes widened and his mouth opened then snapped shut.

“I’ll be there in just a few minutes.” She led Chloe to her office and got her set up on the computer. She also had her book and her Nintendo and the homework Peyton had insisted she bring along. “You come get me if you need anything, okay?”

“I won’t. I’ll be fine. I won’t interrupt your meeting. Your boss isn’t very happy.”

“I know. He hasn’t been happy with me for a while.” She grinned. “So it’s good that I’m quitting.”

Chloe smiled back at her and twirled around in the office chair. “I like your office. I want to work in an office like this.”

“Well, maybe you will one day, when you’re a big civil rights lawyer.” She bent and kissed Chloe’s forehead and returned to the boardroom.

They quickly brought her up to speed.

“Okay,” Peyton said. “I applaud you for what you’ve done to help everyone immediately affected by the crash.”

“Our staff is working overtime to handle the customer service line we set up and to contact people affected.”

She nodded. “I absolutely recommend continued transparency. It will be important for you to be the face of the company, Michael. We don’t want anyone to wonder who’s in charge. You’ll need to be the leader here. Not only will you have to communicate with the public and with the families of the people impacted, but also with your staff, to maintain their morale. You’ll need to keep them just as informed about everything.” She looked at her notes. “I also recommend being very careful not to assign blame to anyone right now. Obviously the investigation will turn up more info, but definitely we don’t want to blame the crew, nor do we want to blame the airport at this time.”

Michael nodded, and the others at the boardroom table also made quick notes.

“We’ll need to use various communication channels to keep staff informed,” she said. “Make sure to express your appreciation for the long hours and their dedication to dealing with your customers. Also make sure you assure the public that North Star will fully cooperate with regulators, and with the airport.”

“Of course,” Michael said. “I do want to make sure that we get to the cause of this.”

“If you can go above and beyond the government investigation, you should do that,” she advised. “I know your safety record is important to you. That will go a long way to reassuring key constituents—customers and investors, regulators, staff. Employees, suppliers, and other stakeholders pay as much attention to a crisis as customers.” She paused. “Obviously our goal is to keep the public response to this as positive as possible, under the circumstances. On top of that…” She looked at Michael. “We can look at this as an opportunity for North Star…a test of your core values and your promises to customers. Does North Star walk the walk? This is a chance for you to show the world that you do. If we handle this right, you can come out of this stronger.”

“We need to rethink our upcoming ad campaigns in light of this,” their VP of communications said.

“Absolutely. While your image as the fun airline is gold, that won’t be appropriate right away.”

They discussed more strategy, Peyton laying out a plan for Michael’s communications to the public over the short term. “I’ll meet with my team as soon as possible to work up a long-term plan, as well.”

They’d be thrilled about being dragged into the office on a holiday weekend.

After the folks from North Star had left, Peyton was also walking out of the boardroom when Gord called to her.

She turned to him.

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