CorpComms Magazine

Usually if a chap tells you he has something of interest in his pocket, it is best to make a quick getaway. But when the gentleman in question is Jim Boyd, director of corporate affairs at transport operator Go-Ahead, you can relax.

Boyd, 42, carries the company's crisis management booklet in his pocket at all times. The booklet is a detailed list of potential crises, ranging from minor derailments to major crashes or terrorist attacks, and the appropriate responses from the parent group and its operating companies. There are five different levels, of which red is the most serious, and each response is incredibly detailed. 'It is our way of identifying risk,' explains Boyd. 'There is a series of scenarios and details of how senior management should respond.'

Many crises can be handled by the individual operating companies, which include Oxford Bus Company, the Go West bus service, Southern and Southeastern rail services, Meteor Parking and Aviance UK, which employs almost 5,000 ground staff at 17 airports. 'The booklet explains at what point they should get in touch with our group,' says Boyd. 'We have people working in completely different sectors but there is a uniform response. We have worked through all the possible scenarios and provided a cohesive and high-quality response to each situation.'

The road to risk management

Thankfully for Boyd and Go-Ahead, the group has not experienced a red alert since the booklet was produced. But a bus owned by the company was blown up by an IRA terrorist on Aldwych, close to Waterloo Bridge, in February 1996. And Boyd is mindful of the recent National Express coach disaster in which two people died and many others were injured. He concedes there is a 'complex interaction' between the company and the 800 mn passenger journeys undertaken every year.

'Since I joined two years ago, there have been some medium crises - events that can have a reputational impact - but there has not been a major incident with multiple fatalities, for which I am extremely grateful,' Boyd says. 'Even so, we are always conscious that vehicles are much more powerful than the individuals who drive them and there are always issues outside our control, such as weather conditions.'

Chief executive Keith Ludeman instigated the crisis management booklet shortly after he joined Go-Ahead. 'It is a focused and structured approach to crisis management,' Boyd explains. It was compiled with the aid of Mike Seymour, international director for crisis and issues management at Edelman, who audited all potential risks Go-Ahead faced. 'We assigned weights to current concerns, and mapped out the risks associated with them,' Boyd continues. 'We found different sectors within the group had different perceptions of risk. We looked at low risk and high-risk scenarios and discussed which qualified as crises.'

In short, if the 37 bus, a 24-hour service between Peckham and Putney, is running 40 minutes late, it might be a disaster for granny waiting in the pouring rain at the bus stop, but it is not a crisis for the company. There is certainly a reputational risk, however. 'If a bus is running five minutes late, the only way to deal with it is by explaining why to the passenger,' says Boyd. 'All we can do is apologise hugely.'

While Go-Ahead employs 25,000 people, the head office at Croydon in Surrey has a staff of just three. 'The group's philosophy is that local transport is best delivered locally,' says Boyd. 'They are local brands and should communicate directly with passengers. We are here to give support, in both a strategic and consultancy capacity, and our role is to make sure we transfer best practice across the group.'

For example, the managing directors of the operating companies are frequently 'on the platform or the train or at the bus stop' to meet passengers. 'They have to think like a passenger,' explains Boyd. 'We put in a huge amount of work engaging with members of staff about the brand and what it seeks to do.' The group also spends time with local MPs, councillors and community groups discussing transport requirements and developments. Stakeholder boards, composed of representatives from staff, passengers and community groups, have been set up by both Oxford Bus Company and Southern to monitor the companies' activities and make suggestions about how to improve services.

The boards meet every two months and have contributed to numerous areas, including complaint-handling procedures and anti-social behaviour policies. Boyd is delighted with the initiative. 'You can't run transport in a vacuum,' he says. 'It affects the workplace, environment and community.'

Caring in the community

Boyd is mindful of these impacts and is a huge advocate of a carefully constructed corporate and social responsibility (CSR) policy. 'It is key to what we do,' he says. 'Corporate reputation is a sum of all parts and people who work with the public must be approachable and proactive at all times.'

Go-Ahead has recently developed a pioneering study aid for use in schools in the communities it serves. The numeracy aid was designed in accordance with the National Curriculum and will provide help to a range of different age groups. Inevitably, it includes questions that revolve around transport, but there is no 'in-your-face branding', as Boyd likes to describe it. 'It gives us a marvellous vehicle to liaise with young people,' he says, oblivious to the obvious pun. 'My boss is a terrific fan of communicating directly with local communities, and this encourages that. It is a tremendous platform.'

As for Boyd, the former tax and trust lawyer has turned into a bit of a trainspotter. 'I commute in from Kent every day on the Southeastern rail franchise, and it's terribly hard not to be interested in what is going on around me,' he says. 'I know the management time that has been spent on improving service. I'm probably the perfect passenger because the service has been fantastic. Honestly, it has been.'

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