Crisis Management: A Case of the Costa Concordia

Just over 7 days the Carnival owned cruise ship the Costa Concordia ran aground off the coast of Tuscany, Italy. Whilst rescue workers are working around the clock to find the missing the repercussions of the disaster begins as operators begin to piece together the frantic jigsaw of what actually went on. The disaster being billed as the biggest maritime disaster since the Titanic was carrying over 4,000 passengers on board many of them couples and families looking forward to their week long cruise experience. No one expected it to go so badly wrong.  

Speculation is rife about what actually went on, with the captain the main subject of the investigation, being hang out to dry by the company and being placed under house arrest. The captain will have crucial evidence  to what truly went on, but what about other individuals on board. How can a captain of this magnitude of ship be entirely to be blame for the disaster. Whilst the speculation has mainly focused on the captain it would be interesting to know what other senior officials were doing on board. 

Speculation: As passengers begin to reflect on the disaster, investigators begin to piece together what actually went on. 

Source: eandt.theiet.org

Several television clips of the disaster have showed videos filmed by cruise members on board, not only giving first true hand footage of what actually went on, but removes any hearsay so common in disasters of this magnitude. The footage also provides excellent evidence against crew members and the crisis management techniques deployed by Costa Cruises.  

The ability to identify the truth in this type of disaster is crucial, with the truth often difficult to identify, newspapers and the media are commonly left to interpretation, creating more speculation and often misleading articles. This not only hampers investigation efforts but harms potential victims who may or may not have been found yet. 

Finally the scale of Costa Cruises parent company, Carnival, owners of the likes of Cunard and P&O cruises, means that smaller errors of judgement are normally widened to the public eye and blown out of proportion in circumstances such as this. In hindsight however the pressure of working for such a high profile organisation comes with the job and there is little the captain could do to hide away from this fact. 

The New Year Diet

The period of Christmas has been and gone and the majority of us are ready to kick start that new years habit that we have been trying to do for years but for some reason we get to mid January and we can't help but open up a box of chocolates and you say to yourself I will only have one, just one, one turns to two, two turns to four and before you know it the whole box has gone and the kick  start to the new year has suddenly gone all pear shaped. 

We are so impressed with the marketing and the powerful message that Gym's encourage us to sign up. Common sayings amongst friends and relatives begin with 'I am going to get fit'. Type Fit into Google not only will you get some wonderful and weird sites, but hundreds of websites promoting that chic lifestyle. In truth when we suddenly think of getting fit, we think of diets, straining ourselves from common food stuffs, that we have had too much to graze on over the previous months. Whether we are out their to impress our latest crowd or to get to that dress size you have always wanted, diets have been around for a while. 

Source:  helpfulhealthtips.com
Diets doesn't have to mean celery sticks, and carrots.

The superstores are offering reduced prices on gym equipment we would never think of buying, but because its January, the idea of looking trim for the summer promotes in that urgency that I should do something about it. Whats more bookshops are full of text books written promoting the best way to loose weight but how do we know which one is really the right one, a recommendations, sometimes, maybe a coupon. In my honest opinion, we don't, we do it because the person who wrote it has the willpower to suck you into their world of thinking, 'Buy my book and get that body you have always wanted'. 'slim down for summer' 'the bikini body'. How does the writer know what you look like, ever more what you want, he doesn't he just wants you to get into his world of thinking. Whats more they are full priced before Christmas because know one will buy them and after Christmas you can get them for the same price as a loaf of bread, some sort of practical joke. 

Gyms are at it to, promoting that chic lifestyle that you have always dreamed of having, just a few moments a way. You think to yourself this year I will join a gym? Before you know it you have stopped attending yoga classes because you had too much on at work you couldn't find the time to make it to them. Whats more your in one year contract that you can't get out of, but you never knew you were in it in the first place when you signed up because the salesman offered you a reduced booking fee and you forgot to read the small print. 

In truth, everyone is different, everyone needs different foods to energize the body. If we all stuck to a less of more philosophy then we wouldn't be in this situation. Every beginning of the year we lead ourselves into this false imaginary world that this year will be the year that makes all the difference. Before you know it the summer has been and gone and winter is upon us again.