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The use of social media in crisis communication is growing and spreading in an instantaneous speed. The social media technology enables immediate information sharing reaching millions of users on various social media platforms. This paper has gathered lessons learnt from the experiences of the Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service in the UK, the Oslo Police Operation Center in Norway, and from an extensive literature review on social media and crisis communication. This empirical and theoretical information was the basis of the 18 guidelines or “do’s” and “don’ts” on how to use social media in crisis communication. The purpose of this paper was to gather best practices that can help crisis managers when attempting to use social media as a crisis communication tool.

The paper had two cases with semi-structured interviews with representatives from two crisis management organizations (Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service in the UK dealing with safety and Oslo Police Operation Center in Norwa dealing with security). The empirical data were complemented by documentary analysis of the most up-to-date articles on social media in crisis communication.

The paper provides empirical insights about how to use social media as a crisis communication tool. The two case studies provide different ways to use social media (one-way communication tool and as a two-way information share). This empirical and theoretical information was the basis of the 18 guidelines or “do’s” and “don’ts” on how to use social media in crisis communication. The “do’s” and “don’ts” are best practices that can help crisis managers when attempting to use social media as a crisis communication tool. Some of the main “do’s” include building a relationship with the public prior to a crisis; being courteous, honest and transparent; being factual, accurate and credible; being timely in your messages during a crisis, etc. Some of the main “don’ts” include do not speculate; do not post personal opinions; do not post anything that could bring the organization into disrepute etc.

Because of the chosen research approach with two case studies complemented by a literature review, the research results may lack generalizability. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the guidelines provided and to further find other case studies.

The guidelines including 18 “do’s” and “don’ts” are best practices that can help crisis managers when attempting to use social media as a crisis communication tool.

This paper fulfills an identified need to study how social media technology can play a major role in the response efforts of the crisis management community during a crisis. It also reveals the potential of using social media as an “information harvesting” tool and a tool for “rumor management”.

Discusses an ongoing programme, the overall purpose of which is to develop an integrated set of stochastic simulation models of firms in the textile, apparel and retail industries. The models are to be used primarily for research, education and industrial problem solving in the areas of plant and company operations with emphasis on Quick Response (QR) methodologies driven by Point‐of‐Sale (POS) data. A second objective is that of developing interactive management information systems using high‐level decision‐surface models (simulation metamodels) of expected system performance as a function of key input parameters.

IT is always something of an embarrassment for a West German librarian to address his British colleagues on the problems of public libraries. What is there of interest in a system which in almost every respect is years behind the development of the English libraries? When I begin to think along these lines of the considerable and, indeed, natural role which the library plays in British society (almost a traumatic experience for a German librarian), then the inequalities of the situation become particularly clear. Even though there are many historical and political causes for this state of affairs, it is still impossible for any correspondent to free himself of a certain psychological handicap.