Dog Days in Huntingdon: Lessons from a corporate crisis

Dog Days in Huntingdon: Lessons from a corporate crisis

This publication chronicles how, for the first time in Europe, an organised international assault by lobbyists on a multinational company almost succeeded in the company's destruction in 1998.

Dog Days in Huntingdon: Lessons from a corporate crisis has been written to provide readers with invaluable management education material. In an easy-to-follow style, the manuscript provides senior management from all disciplines with a number of important lessons that can be drawn from key events surrounding the 1997-1998 crisis and financial collapse of Europe's largest contract research organisation - Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS).

The information included in this report will illustrate how to and, more importantly, how not to manage in a crisis - subjects addressed include:

The preparation for and management of a major corporate crisis
The importance of employees' support and keeping them informed
The influence of activists and lobbyists on politicians
The management of press, media, public and government relations
The exercise of the highest standards of corporate governance
The design and implementation of corporate strategy
The importance of customer orientation versus excessive concentration on costs and technical services
Company responsibility for employees over and above those normally addressed in contracts
The power of e-mail and the internet to rapidly propagate controversial news

PUBLISHED: March 2000
PAGES: 145
PRICE: £250/$495/¥60,000
REF: BS1064
ISBN: 0 946864 20 9

CONTENTS

Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
Success induces feelings of infallibility; Origins of a crisis

Chapter 2
METAMORPHOSIS AND DEVELOPMENT
Evolution and development of the Company; risks for a small to
medium-size company playing in a bigger arena; importance of customer
needs and market trends

Chapter 3
COURTIERS EJECT BOARDROOM DESPOT
Corporate governance failings and composition of the Board;
absence of rigorous planning leads to vulnerability

Chapter 4
PUBLIC SENTIMENT AROUSED
Secrecy is an unproven defensive strategy;
complacency when core competencies are challenged leads to disaster

Chapter 5
COMPANY COMES UNDER SCRUTINY
Consolidation of resources for rapid response imperative
Internet, particularly e-mail, undermines traditional communication strategies;
normal business processes and relationships vanish overnight

Chapter 6
INSTITUTIONAL COVER-UP
Political masters interfere with the Company-government relationship;
traditional friends and allies become estranged; competitors seek to exploit situation

Chapter 7
AN ESCALATING CONTROVERSY
Media presumes Company is guilty; crisis becomes global;
determination, resourcefulness and professionalism of lobbyists;
adoption of activists' agenda by politicians

Chapter 8
GOVERNMENT CONDEMNATION
Government uses parliamentary privilege to attack Company;
cultural differences and 'short-termism' splits bank syndicate;
stock exchanges act to protect investors

Chapter 9
COMPANY SURVIVAL IN DOUBT
Financial advisers' preoccupation with their own interests;
creative exploitation of legislation and the legal process;
activists focus resources against customers and investors;
the crisis increasingly impacts on employees

Chapter 10
KING CASH BECOMES SCARCE
Uncertainty within bank syndicate jeopardises cash availability;
directors' dilemma - whether to continue trading or close;
customers increasingly withhold orders; reporting accountants' investigation distracts management

Chapter 11
UNERRING SPOTLIGHT
Investigating authorities dictate pace; collapse in employee morale
economic sabotage has a major success; media
highlights animal welfare issues and controversy

Chapter 12
LAST THROW OF THE DICE
Manage and set the agenda for your financial advisers;
can the sale of a company be managed with dignity?

Chapter 13
ARMAGEDDON OR AGINCOURT?
Importance of analysing your share register;
utilise power of institutional shareholders' votes;
detailed preparation and 'practice runs' leads to successful meetings

Chapter 14
THE HUMAN COST
Impact of public scrutiny and trial of employees; safety in
community becomes a Company matter; physical and verbal
abuse causes considerable anguish; employees are valuable and willing ambassadors

Chapter 15
POST-MORTEM
Company reputation proves to be fragile; direct action activists backed by highly-professional lobbyists; electronic news dissemination undermines conventional crisis responses; resources required to respond far greater than estimates; importance of intelligence on both enemies and friends; don't underestimate the impact on employees

EPILOGUE
Update of story to February 2000

APPENDIX I - KEY DATES AT HUNTINGDON LIFE SCIENCES
APPENDIX II - HLS SHARE PRICE MOVEMENT
APPENDIX III - KEY DOCUMENTATION