NEW YORK, Oct. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AT&T has been named the winner of the prestigious 2006 Page Principles Award by the Arthur W. Page Society for its massive communications response in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The annual award recognizes and honors an outstanding demonstration of effective corporate communications and the application of the Page Principles, which are the seven communications management concepts upheld by the Page Society. The award will be formally presented to AT&T during the Arthur W. Page Society's 23rd Annual Conference in October.
Anticipating the Needs - Delivering the Services
AT&T's initiative during Hurricane Katrina illustrates the importance that telecommunications and the Internet play in our daily lives, especially during a disaster. As the hurricane ravaged much of the Gulf Coast and left thousands homeless, the corporate communications professionals from SBC Communications, which was in the process of acquiring AT&T Corp. to become AT&T Inc., closely tracked the plans of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to move people to Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and other cities in AT&T's 13-state local service territory.
Anticipating the communications needs, San Antonio-based AT&T quickly organized and provided free-of-charge key technology services to evacuees and relief agencies. These services included additional phone lines, telephones, wireless phones, voice mail services, computers and high speed Internet service. The company also deployed 50 on-site personnel to assist at the shelters, coordinated daily media activities at the shelters and developed a donations program that raised $10 million for relief agencies.
Enabling Families to Communicate and Reunite
The Corporate Communications team was instrumental in driving and coordinating the company's response to the relief effort on the ground and generating awareness and support from around the globe. The following statistics illustrate the critical role that the company played in the reunification of thousands of lost children and family members at other shelters and helping thousands more connect with loved ones in safe areas:
-- 25,400 evacuees relied upon AT&T's telecommunications technology to
make 364,000 long distance calls from the AT&T telephone banks at the
three main Texas shelters to find family members or alert them as to
their shelter locations.
-- More than 2,000 evacuees searched online and found their spouses, their
children, and other family members as a result of AT&T's broadband and
Internet technologies.
-- 22,560 evacuees logged on to AT&T's high speed Internet from inside the
makeshift computer centers at the main shelters to register their
location and/or to search the Internet for loved ones.
Roger Bolton, president of the Arthur W. Page Society, said that the competition's panel of judges was most impressed by the AT&T entry. "I salute AT&T and everyone who was involved in the unprecedented relief effort to reunite families after Hurricane Katrina. The company demonstrated that their operating principles, which are very much aligned with the Page Principles, are more than just words. The company acted on its values and delivered on its promise to do the right thing for the communities it services. The Page Society congratulates AT&T for the technology, leadership and compassion demonstrated in the wake of the storm."
"AT&T's mission is to keep people connected in good times and bad. Given the unprecedented scale of the disaster, helping the victims of Hurricane Katrina was especially gratifying and humbling work. We are guided by the Page Principles, and this recognition from the Page Society means a great deal to AT&T," said Selim Bingol, senior vice president of Corporate Communications, AT&T.
About the Arthur W. Page Society
The Arthur W. Page Society is a professional association composed primarily of the chief communications officers of corporations with at least $2 billion in annual revenues and the chief executive officers of the world's largest public relations agencies. The organization's members also include academics from the nation's leading business and communications schools.
The Page Society is dedicated to strengthening the management policy role of chief public relations officers. The Page Society is upheld by management concepts, known as the Page Principles, which have been tested for more than half a century and have earned the support and respect of chief executive officers throughout the country. They are:
-- Tell the truth. Let the public know what's happening, and provide an
accurate picture of the company's character, ideals and practices.
-- Prove it with action. Public perception of an organization is
determined 90 percent by what it does and 10 percent by what it says.
-- Listen to the customer. To serve the company well, understand what the
public wants and needs. Keep top decision-makers and other employees
informed about public reaction to company products, policies and
practices.
-- Manage for tomorrow. Anticipate public reaction, and eliminate
practices that create difficulties. Generate good will.
-- Realize that a company's true character is expressed by its people. The
strongest opinions - good or bad - about a company are shaped by the
words and deeds of its employees. As a result, every employee - active
or retired - is involved with public relations. It is the
responsibility of corporate communications to support each employee's
capability and desire to be an honest and knowledgeable ambassador to
customers, friends, shareowners and public officials.
-- Conduct public relations as if the whole company depends on it.
Corporate relations is a management function. No corporate strategy
should be implemented without considering its impact on the public. The
public relations professional is a policymaker capable of handling a
wide range of corporate communications activities.
-- Remain calm, patient and good-humored. Lay the groundwork for public
relations miracles with consistent, calm, and reasoned attention to
information and contacts. When a crisis arises, remember that cool
heads communicate best.
Additional information about the Arthur W. Page Society is available at http://www.awpagesociety.com/ .
About AT&T
AT&T Inc. is one of the world's largest telecommunications holding companies and is the largest in the United States. Operating globally under the AT&T brand, AT&T companies are recognized as the leading worldwide providers of IP-based communications services to business and as leading U.S. providers of high speed DSL Internet, local and long distance voice, and directory publishing and advertising services. AT&T Inc. holds a 60 percent ownership interest in Cingular Wireless, which is the leading U.S. wireless services provider with 57.3 million wireless customers. Additional information about AT&T Inc. and AT&T products and services is available at http://www.att.com/ .
