Crisis Readiness & Communications
Your future depends on how you respond. We help you prepare before a crisis arrives — and navigate it with clarity, speed, and confidence when it does.
Whether you're facing a developing situation or an immediate one, the organizations that come through crises with their reputations intact are the ones that prepared. Marshall Communications has deep experience guiding organizations through both proactive planning and reactive response — including work with law enforcement, municipalities, healthcare institutions, and state agencies across Maine and New England.
We safeguard your brand reputation
through preparation, rapid response, and recovery.
Scenario development, message templates, and team protocols — the groundwork that lets you move fast and stay accurate when it counts.
Media training, spokesperson prep, and crisis simulation workshops that build confidence and readiness before a real situation arrives.
Real-time advisory, media monitoring, and stakeholder coordination — so your organization moves with clarity while a situation is unfolding.
Debriefs, sentiment repair, trust rebuilding, and transparency strategy that carry recovery well past the initial response.
We recently hired Nancy and Steve to teach a webinar on “Preparing for the Media during Crises” geared towards all types of municipal employees and officials. They both have a wealth of knowledge and experience with crisis communication and public relations, which translated perfectly to this virtual training. They provided great real-life examples and tangible takeaways for participants, including professional PowerPoint slides and a downloadable e-book outlining their 20 crisis communications tactics. Being communications experts, Nancy and Steve were awesome virtual presenters — they kept the audience engaged, shared the responsibilities for presenting their material and easily segued into questions from participants — it was all very fluid! They have an easy rapport with each other and their confidence and comfort with the material was evident.
Maine Municipal Association
Led by people who've been in the room when it matters most.
Nancy Marshall, founder of Marshall Communications® and The PR Maven®, has led crisis communications efforts for organizations across Maine and New England for over 35 years — working with municipalities, state agencies, healthcare institutions, and regional businesses navigating some of their most difficult public moments.
Steve McCausland served 32 years as spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety, where he handled communications on over 500 homicides, 500 fire deaths, and thousands of motor vehicle fatalities. He served as advisor to eight commissioners of public safety and eight chiefs of the State Police on media relations and public policy. He started his career as a radio news director and worked as a print journalist before joining state government.
Together, Nancy and Steve have trained municipal employees, government officials, healthcare organizations, and businesses throughout Maine on crisis preparedness and media response.
Nancy and Steve’s Crisis Communications session connected with the 2023 Communications Officers of State Departments of Agriculture Annual Meeting attendees. It was engaging and informative, and from the most experienced communications professionals in the room to those just getting started in their careers, everyone learned something new and appreciated your unique style, sense of humor, and relatable experiences.
Maine Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Conservation
Every crisis is different. Our process isn't.
We quickly assess the situation — what's known, what's not, and who needs to hear from you first — and provide immediate strategic counsel on your response posture.
We develop approved messaging, coordinate with legal and leadership, prepare spokespeople, and activate your communications across the channels and audiences that matter most.
We track media coverage, public sentiment, and stakeholder response — and adapt messaging in real time to keep the record accurate and your reputation protected.
Don't wait for a crisis to prepare for one.
Let's build your crisis communications plan before you need it.