The former CEO blames the press for the image that the public has formed on the company in response to its handling of the situation.
The control that the company was supposed to reveal did not match the intensity of the crisis. BP did not show that it fully controlled the situation. The fact that the company tried to share the blame with the rig owner and the drilling company reveals the fact that the company was not in control of the situation. The numerous attempts and strategies that the company developed and implemented in order to stop or reduce the oil spill also prove the lack of control from BP.
The lack of control showed by BP can also be attributed to the fact that the company did not develop an accurate, detailed response plan to potential oil spills, as the regulations required it. If the company would have had a thorough plan to rely on, it is likely that its control might have been improved. In addition to this, the fact that BP had no suitable strategies for such situations led to the reduced control of BP.
The communication strategy established by BP in order to handle the oil spill situation was a defective one. With the proper communication strategy, BP would have been able to take advantage of the situation and reduce some of the image damages that this situation determined. Instead, the company was affected by not being able to handle the oil spill from a technical and communicational point-of-view.
Strategic Opportunities
BP had several opportunities it could have exploited with the suitable communication strategy. For example, the company should have taken charged of the situation from the beginning, instead of trying to minimize the effects of the explosion. BP should have focused on frequently informing the authorities and the public on the evolution of the situation, and not on trying to cover its severity.
In other words, the company should have organized frequent press conferences in order to present technical aspects on the size of the oil spill, its causes, potential effects, and strategies developed by BP in handling of the situation. Although this strategy would have not have been useful in actually stopping or reducing the damages, it could have significantly helped improve the company's image as a result of the scandal.
The continuous interest from the media is another opportunity that BP failed to exploit. Given the fact that the press was continuously addressing the company, all BP had to do was properly respond to the interest of the media. The press issued several accusations to BP that the company could have counteracted. Instead BP chose to not respond to them. By refusing to respond to these accusations, the public considered this as their recognition.
Marketing Communications Recommendations
It is obvious that BP failed at handling this situation. The severity of the situation and its effects make difficult for BP to restore its image and to gain the credibility of its investors, of the authorities, and of the public. It is also quite unlikely that the company will be able to improve its image on short-term. Instead, it is recommended that BP develops medium term and long-term strategies that could help convince its investors.
The most important marketing communications...
BP Deepwater Horizon In April, 2010, Gulf of Mexico oil rig Deepwater Horizon, managed by British Petroleum (BP) suffered an explosion, sank to the bottom of the sea and precipitated an oil leak that would take months to cap (Pagnamenta & Goddard, 2010). The disaster was costly for BP both financially and reputationally, and the company's responses have not engendered much faith among the general public with respect to BP's ethics
BP Oil Disaster Impact and Lessons Learned On April 20, 2010, the BP Deepwater Horizon spill dumped more than 4.1 million barrels of crude into the Gulf region over 87 days (Walsh et al., On the Edge). The oil and gas industry developed new technologies in pursuit of valuable energy supplies, venturing into deeper waters farther from the coastline (National Commission, 85). Regulators, however, failed to keep up with the industrial
Strategic Framework in BP-Deepwater horizon accident One of the most eminent names in the oil and gas industry is British Petroleum, considered as the largest provider of oil and gas to its customers for transportation, energy for heating and light and retail services for petrochemical products globally. The financial and operational picture of the company's performance is illustrated in table1 below. Performance at a glance for 2010 Facts and figures Sales and other operating
2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico The Deepwater Horizon oil spill -- cause, effects, and restoration efforts The 2010 Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico is the largest accidental marine pollution in the history of petroleum industry and is the result of an uncontrolled release of oil from an oil well that experienced malfunction in the pressure control system. Eleven crew members on the Macondo well died as
United Kingdom and Chinese newspaper coverage of BP Oil spill British Petroleum came under severe criticism from around the world when in April 2010 the company lost control of marine drilling operations and caused a major oil spill in Gulf of Mexico. The disaster claimed 11 lives and injured many others. Apart from human loss, the oil spill also resulted in massive loss of precious oil as 205.8 million gallons of
BP and how it can impact on the performanve of the firm In the recent times, a number of people have opposed the strategies that have been developed by BP. The major strategies that have been opposed by individuals is that of stoping the case regarding oil spill in the gulf of mexico.Operational strategy and effectiveness are vital for superior performance which is usually the main aim of all enterprises
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now