Answer from evidence
Tick only when you can point to the plan, the person or the evidence from a recent exercise.
How to use it
Ten minutes.
An honest starting point.
Work through the check alone or, better, with someone from outside the communication team. The aim is not a perfect score. It is a clear view of what you can demonstrate today.
Compare perspectives
Use it to start a practical conversation between communication, leadership and operational colleagues.
Act on the gaps
Use the score as a directional guide and focus first on the areas that would slow the first response.
What the check covers
Six areas that can hold a response back.
Each section begins with a familiar failure pattern and asks the questions that help expose it before the pressure is on.
Area A
Authority and sign-off
Approver named on paper. Unreachable for hours in practice.
Area B
Early warning and triage
The signal came days earlier. Nobody owned the response.
Area C
Audiences, not ‘the public’
One statement written for everyone reaches no one in particular.
Area D
Coordination beyond your walls
Three organisations, three versions of the facts, one hour.
Area E
People, speed and capacity
Trained spokesperson on leave. Deputy never faced a camera.
Area F
Practice and learning
Approved, filed, never tested. The real event was the test.
Count your ticks
A guide for the next conversation.
This is a directional self-assessment, not a benchmark. A lower score does not define the organisation. It tells you where a focused conversation should begin.
17–20
Solid base
Pressure-test your weakest areas.
11–16
Real gaps
Start with authority and early warning.
0–10
Exposed
Fix authority and early warning first.
Free download
Start with an honest readiness check.
Download the checklist, use it with the people who would need to act in the first hour, and keep the conversation focused on what needs attention now.