Crisis Communication Management Certification Course
Be Ready Before Your Next Crisis Happens
When a crisis strikes, every minute matters.
Whether you’re responding to a cyberattack, executive misconduct, workplace violence, product recall, regulatory investigation, or social media firestorm, your organization needs leaders who know exactly what to do and what not to do.
For more than 35 years, the Crisis Communication Management Certification course has prepared communications professionals, executives, emergency managers, public information officers, and crisis leaders to confidently manage high-pressure situations before they become organizational disasters. Learn from the best.
Leave with:
✓ A proven crisis communication framework
✓ Practical tools you can immediately implement
✓ A completed crisis response strategy
The “original” crisis masterclass, now in its 35th year! This intensive course focuses on managing sudden crises and techniques for preventing smoldering internal business issues from going “public” or minimizing the damage to the organization’s ongoing business when public disclosure cannot be avoided. Enrollment is limited to provide ample opportunity for group discussion and individual participation in presentations, discussions and hands-on exercises.
If you attend this instructor-led course, you’ll have ample opportunity for group discussion and individual participation in presentations, discussions and hands-on exercises.
Reserve Your Seat Today
2026 Course Schedule
Limited Time Promotions
Train one person and save $300.
Enter Promotion Code: PREPARENOW
Training more than one person? You can save even more.
Get a $400 savings per person.
Enter Promotion Code: GOTEAM
$1,695.00 USD per person
Contact us about non-profit, veteran, education, government and group enrollment discounts
and custom in-house programs for your organization.
Live-Online Course Schedule
Mondays and Wednesdays
Underway – Summer: July 13-29, 2026
Remainder of this year
Fall: October 12-28, 2026
Location
Online – Zoom | Noon – 2 p.m. ET
$1,695.00 USD per person
Contact us about non-profit, veteran, education, government and group enrollment discounts
and custom in-house programs for your organization.
Content-Rich Session Topics
Session 1
Introduction to Crisis Management
Identifying Organizational Risks & Vulnerabilities
Session 2
Sudden Crises
Identifying and Assessing Stakeholders
Sudden Crisis Group Exercise
Session 3
Smoldering Crises
Media Relations
The Apology: How to Do it, When to do it
Smoldering Crisis Group Exercise
Session 4
Best Practices for the Crisis Communication Plan
Smoldering Crisis Case Study
Communicating with Employees During a Crisis
Measuring Crisis Response
Session 5
Online Communications and Social Media
Using Artifical Intelligence (AI) for Crisis Communications
Session 6
Capstone Tabletop Crisis Exercise
Post Crisis Debriefings and Lessons Learned
Course Objectives
Participants learn to:
- Identify business crises and prepare for them
- Evaluate organization’s vulnerabilities and crisis potential
- Anticipate issues that may escalate into a crisis
- Gain critical support from senior management
- Quantify financial impact of a potential crisis
- Develop and implement realistic crisis communications plans
- Define stakeholders and prioritize actions for those most likely to get involved
- Utilize online and traditional communication tools effectively
- Understand and use social media in a crisis
- Develop talking points for media and other stakeholders
- Leverage AI
- Minimize negative reactions from various audiences
- Debrief and learn from the crisis
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Who Should Take the Course
- Crisis team members
- Company spokespersons
- Heads of government agencies
- Consultants
- Public relations, marketing and communications practitioners
- Media relations managers
- HR professionals
- Attorneys and paralegals
- Risk Management professionals
- Plant/operations managers
- Anyone who wants to learn how to prevent and mitigate crisis in their organization
- Built on the exclusive ICM Crisis Database with insights from real-world crisis events
- Learn the latest crisis trends shaping today’s business and media landscape
- Practice with real case studies based on actual organizational crises
- Hands-on exercises and tabletop simulations to build confidence under pressure
- Realistic problem-solving you can immediately apply in your organization
- Proven strategies to prevent, manage, and recover from crises
Testimonials for Deborah Hileman and the Institute for Crisis Management®
Deborah Hileman, SCMP
ICM President and CEO
CEO Expertise for Every Client
Deborah Hileman, SCMP, FCSCE, CCMC, President and CEO. A globally-certified corporate crisis management and strategic communication management professional, business leader, coach and consultant with more than 35 years’ experience in public and private companies and non-profit organizations, Ms. Hileman has led high-performing teams in health care, manufacturing, insurance and financial services, nonprofits and higher education. Her most significant areas of expertise include strategic communications planning and reputation/crisis management, change management, employee engagement and communication training.