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Using Technology in a Crisis

Using Technology in a Crisis:

What Katrina, COVID-19, and Ida Teach Us About Being Ready for What Comes Next

By: John Deveney, ABC, APR, Fellow PRSA, IABC Fellow

 

In our daily lives, digital communication feels effortless. We text without thinking, scroll through our feeds on instinct, and check account balances in seconds. But if you’ve led an organization through a crisis, you know how quickly that sense of ease can vanish.

The technology we depend on every day is powerful, but in a crisis, it’s fragile. And how you use it (or fail to use it) can determine whether your organization maintains trust or loses it.

At DEVENEY, we’ve seen this firsthand. From helping health systems communicate during mass-casualty events, to guiding universities through protests and existential financial crises, to supporting hotels during hurricanes and cyber incidents. We’ve learned that technology itself is never the strategy. People are.

Technology is not the strategy, but simply the conduit that empowers your actions.

Below are proactive steps that every leader should take before a crisis hits and during one, using real lessons from Hurricanes Katrina and Ida, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

The Technology Reality Check: Crises Break What You Take for Granted

When Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast in 2005, nearly everyone had a cell phone, but cell towers were down, text messaging was clunky, and for days, people had no reliable way to reach employees, patients, students, or guests.

Fast-forward to Hurricane Ida: networks were stronger, but not invincible. Even top-tier hospitals and major universities found their digital systems disrupted, cutting off access to patient portals, campus alerts, reservation systems, and critical internal updates.

The lesson:

Even in 2026, single-channel communication is a single point of failure.

The organizations that will perform best are those that already have:

  • Multiple communication platforms
  • Redundant systems
  • Clear roles
  • Pre-approved strategic messaging platform
  • Trained spokespeople
  • A “people-first” philosophy

 

1. Start With People: Your Employees Come First

For instance, during a crisis, ensuring the safety of your employees, providing them with necessary resources, and keeping them informed about the situation can be considered ‘people-first’ actions. Your employees are your first audience and your first line of communication to everyone else.

During COVID-19, hospitals that sent video updates from CEOs and chief medical officers saw significantly higher staff confidence and retention. In higher education, presidents who recorded short weekly videos stabilized enrollment melt during chaotic semesters. Hotels that updated employees through WhatsApp groups reopened more quickly, because their people knew what was happening and how to support guests.

Practical ways to stay connected with staff during a crisis:

  • Text alerts: Still the fastest, most reliable mobile communication even in low-bandwidth situations.
  • Short CEO videos: A 30-second phone video can calm fears faster than any email.
  • Intranet updates: Even a basic SharePoint page or Google Site works if it’s consistent.
  • Phone trees: An old-school but essential backup that works when everything digital fails.

Ask these questions immediately:

  1. Is everyone safe?
  2. What does each team need right now?
  3. What information will matter most in the next four hours?
  4. What is our cadence for updates: hourly, every four hours, twice daily?

Clarity reduces fear. Silence amplifies it.

 

2. Communicate with Customers, Patients, Students, and Guests Differently, but Consistently

Your internal and external audiences don’t need the same information, but they do need the same reassurance: We see the situation. We are taking action. We will keep you informed.

Examples:

  • Health care: Patients need to know if clinics are open, how to access telemedicine, and which emergency numbers to use.
  • Higher education: Students need clarity about shelter options, class schedules, deadlines, and campus services.
  • Hospitality: Guests need rapid updates on closures, safety protocols, refunds, and alternative accommodations.
  • Credit unions and banks: Members need to know which branches are open, how to access cash, and what financial protections are available.

Social media becomes essential: fast, wide-reaching, and flexible.

But it also requires discipline.

 

3. Conduct a Communications Audit Before You Need It

Every organization should perform a technology-focused crisis communication audit at least twice a year. This is one of the most high-value services DEVENEY provides because it prevents 90% of avoidable crisis-communication failures.

Audit these areas:

WHO: Identify Owners Before the Crisis

Determine who is responsible for updating:

  • Website
  • Social media
  • Email/SMS systems
  • Intranet
  • Google Business
  • Third-party sites (TripAdvisor, Yelp, RateMyProfessor, Healthgrades, etc.)

Tip: Don’t rely on one person. Create a trained bench team with shared passwords and role clarity.

WHERE: Know Where You Exist Online

You’d be surprised how many organizations don’t know where they appear.

Check:

  • Every social platform
  • Google Business for every location
  • Patient portals, student portals, guest portals
  • External review sites
  • Third-party platforms that scrape your info

Higher ed example: During Hurricane Ida, several universities forgot to update Google Business listings. Students showed up to dark buildings because Google said they were open.

WHAT: Prepare Your Message Types

Pre-draft templates for:

  • Safety messages
  • Operational status updates
  • Location closures
  • Service interruptions
  • FAQs
  • Messages requiring legal review

Health care example: Hospitals with templated outage messages reduced call volumes by 40% during power failures.

WHEN: Set a Cadence You Can Keep

A crisis update schedule is a promise. Miss it once, and trust erodes.

If you commit to updates at:

  • 8 a.m. / 12 p.m. / 5 p.m. —or—
  • Every 4 hours —or—
  • Daily at 10 a.m.

Make those deadlines, even if the only update is: “We have no new information, but here’s what we are monitoring and when we expect the next update.”

HOW: Ensure Access and Redundancy

This is where most organizations fail.

Your communications team needs:

  • Password access to every platform
  • Cloud-based document storage
  • Mobile hotspot devices
  • Offline access to crisis plans
  • A portable power bank
  • A VPN with multifactor authentication that works remotely
  • Trained subject matter experts as spokespeople

Hospitality example: A major hotel had perfect content ready during Ida, but its social media manager couldn’t log in because a 2FA device had been left behind. Don’t let this happen to you.

 

4. Build and Protect Trust

Your relationship with employees, customers, patients, students, or members is built on trust long before a crisis.

Technology delivers that trust at scale.

The organizations that communicate clearly, consistently, and compassionately across multiple digital platforms weather crises more effectively and recover faster.

A small amount of preparation now will pay enormous dividends later.

 

Final Takeaway

Technology will fail you at the worst possible time. Your people and your plan cannot.

If you invest early in multi-channel communication, pre-approved messaging, role clarity, and redundancy, you won’t just survive a crisis. You’ll lead through it and thrive.