Terrorism represents a multitude of definitions held by a diverse collection of people worldwide. But despite the different perceptions, there are indisputable characteristics attached to it–one, it is a form of political violence with a goal of obtaining a political end, and two, it is a form of hostility. Terrorism is clearly distinguished from other forms of violence. Its acts, by nature, are indiscriminate violent actions used to attack its targets. The brutal actions of terrorism are not irrational actions, but are the premeditated use of force to achieve certain objectives.
Terrorism is a psychological weapon and is directed to create a general climate of fear. Earnest Evans, a research associate at the Brookings Institute, lists five specific goals of terrorism–publicize the terroristís cause on a regional and international level; harassment and intimidation of authorities to force them to make concessions; polarization of society to bring down a regime; aggravate relations between nations; and free political prisoners and secure monetary ransoms to finance its cause.
The first band of terrorism effects will be evident on two business sectors–airlines and tourism. The form of attacks on the shocking and tragic events of September 11, 2001, utilizing commercial aircraft, had an immediate impact on the propensity for, and cost of, airline travel. This in turn, continue to adversely affect the tourism industry– airline layoffs hitting the roof, cut-back on services making the airline industry lose large investments, international planes getting grounded, resulting in the fall of airline stocks, and security costs and delays in travel time adversely affecting the productivity of short haul carriers.
The secondary band of impacts will be felt in the insurance, transport and security industry. Insurance risks and premiums are increasing significantly for a number of transport operations. The security industry stands to benefit from it though. It is projected to grow at a much higher rate over the next few years. Similarly, the substitution of video-conferencing and other communications technologies for air travel and face-to-face meetings will benefit businesses in these areas. The investment industry will continue to react to terrorism. Evidently, there is a conscious flight of capital towards relatively safer markets such as Europe.
Considerable changes in intelligence gathering are likely to result from the apparent failure of intelligence agencies to anticipate terrorist attacks. There is a need to reassess threats, put forward strong calls for greater communications surveillance, and implementation of regulations on phone taps, e-mail and other forms of message transmission. Where the threat of terror is perceived as global there will be strong incentives for cooperation in information gathering and sharing among nations.
The third band of effects will mean increased government spending in the form of direct assistance to distressed industries, underwriting of insurance and security costs, and the escalation of defense expenditure. Under this situation, governments will simply focus on surviving the turbulent market conditions and postpone needed reforms.
The attempt to starve terrorist groups of funds will hasten the move to tighten controls on significant flows, spearheaded by European countries such as Switzerland, home to one-third of the world’s offshore wealth. This will likely slow down the rapid expansion of capital stream and may bring greater transparency to financial markets. Migratory movements, particularly for economic reasons, will also likely be curtailed, and made more difficult. This will also include a tightening of student visas going to another country, particularly to the USA. Enderwick believes that migration will be increasingly determined by safety-related, and not simply pecuniary, considerations.
The fourth band identifies a number of more tenuous, longer-term issues. This will cover, as Enderwick shares, two vital issues. First, is the implementation of a global business strategy and branding. Terrorism clearly demonstrates that there are significant parts of the world that reject Western business strategy and the values that lie behind them Thus, we will likely see a growing interest in new ways of achieving local responsiveness and acceptance. Second is the continuation of globalization in its present form. It is clear that the massive inequalities that have accompanied the growing globalization of the world economy must be addressed. "It is important not to lose sight of the fact that continuing globalization may be the most effective way of raising the living conditions of the world’s most disadvantaged, but in the absence of some form of intervention, it is unlikely to do so," Enderwick emphasizes.
Terrorism highlights the dynamism and volatility of the business environment. It is apparent that patterns and processes will transform suddenly and radically. It will also have implications for a broad range of sectors and issues. The world has indeed changed, and in significant ways. We certainly need to better understand why this has occurred, and might continue to occur, and what it means for our businesses.
Today, "business as usual" is proving a hard place to get back to, but revving up the businessís marketing machine can possibly speed up the return. While the business of communications, for example, has changed, smart communications is now more important to the health and survival of enterprises, big or small.
As terrorism becomes more and more part of everyone’s business and social lives, it is expected that business communications products and solutions will play a legitimate part in current events. Of late, several international public relations agencies have notably launched communications-based offerings that can help clients respond to terrorism. At the forefront of this major effort is Ogilvy PR Worldwide which designed and dedicated "CounterThreat," a service that can help companies prepare for and cope with crisis scenarios, including the disruption caused by terrorist attack.
"CounterThreat" is a crisis prevention and response approach. It begins with a comprehensive threat assessment, followed by an analysis of vulnerabilities. The contingency planning process then works through the business consequences, and how the human and material resources needed for an effective response, can be organized and put to effective use.
"CounterThreat" views the crisis challenge from the perspective of top management, which needs to have a senior-level grasp of all the issues and well-tested systems for communications in order to take charge and manage the problem. It helps companies attain their business objectives by linking communications across functions such as public affairs, legal, security, employees’ safety, and business continuity. It designs systems for preventing and managing threats, train crisis managers, and counsel corporate leaders as events unfold.
For us to survive in the years ahead businesses will have to provide the general public with products and services needed to continue normal life despite the terror of attacks. One of these services is communications. Communications under an era of terror should be treated not only as some source of livelihood, but as a responsibility as well. Terror must not paralyze us. We must continue to work and even play as hard as we can to help ease out the fear in our midst.