About
James E. Lukaszewski (loo ka SHEV skee) advises, coaches, and counsels the men and women who run very large corporations and organizations through extraordinary problems and critical high-profile circumstances. The bulk of his practice is in the U.S., Canada, and South America although he has clients from many parts of the world.
He is an expert in managing and reducing contention, counteracting tough, touchy, sensitive corporate communications and institutional issues. He counsels leaders facing serious internal and external problems involving: activist counteraction; community conflict and grassroots campaigns; corporate relations failures; reputational threats; employee relationship building; ethics/integrity/ compliance; litigation visibility; Web-based attacks; and threats to corporate survival. His broad-based experience ranges from media-initiated investigations to product recalls and plant closings, from criminal litigation to takeovers. He is frequently retained by senior management to directly intervene and manage the resolution of corporate problems and bad news. The situations he helps resolve often involve conflict, controversy, community action, or activist opposition. Almost half of his practice involves civil and criminal litigation.
He is a teacher, thinker, coach, and trusted advisor with the unique ability to help executives look at problems from a variety of sensible, constructive, principled perspectives. He teaches clients how to take highly focused, ethically appropriate action. He has personally counseled, coached, and guided thousands of executives in organizations large and small from many cultures representing government; the military and defense industry; the agriculture, banking, computer, financial, food processing, health care, insurance, paper, real estate development, and telecommunications industries; cooperatives; trade and professional associations; and non-profit agencies. He is a coach to many CEOs.
Jim helps prepare spokespersons for crucial public appearances, local and network news interviews including 20-20, 60 Minutes, Dateline NBC, and Nightline, and for financial analyst meetings, and legislative and congressional testimony. He also provides personal coaching for executives in trouble, or facing career-defining problems and succession issues.
He is a prolific author (twelve books, hundreds of articles and monographs), lecturer (corporate, college and university), trainer, counselor, and public speaker. He is an editorial board member of most of Public Relation’s important Journals and serial Publications. His book, “Why Should the Boss Listen to You?” was published by Jossey-Bass in 2008.
His most recent book, “Lukaszewski on Crisis Communication, What Your CEO Needs to Know about Reputation Risk and Crisis Management,” was published March 11, 2013. It was named one of the 30 Best Business Books of 2013 by Soundview Executive Book Summaries. Both books are available on Amazon.com.
An accredited member of the (IABC) International Association of Business Communicators (ABC) and the (PRSA) Public Relations Society of America (APR), Mr. Lukaszewski is also a member of the PRSA’s College of Fellows (Fellow PRSA); Board of Ethics & Professional Standards (BEPS); and a member of ASIS International, where he serves on the Global Communication Certification Council (GCCC). He has lectured annually at the U.S. Marine Corp’s East Coast Commander’s Media Training Symposium from 1987 to 2009.
Lukaszewski received his BA in 1974 from Metropolitan State University in Minnesota. He is a former deputy commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Economic Development and assistant press secretary to former Minnesota Governor Wendell Anderson. He founded Minnesota-based Media Information Systems Corporation in 1978. Prior to founding The New York based Lukaszewski Group Inc. in 1989 he was senior vice president and director of Executive Communication Programs for Georgeson & Company and a partner with Chester Burger Company, both in New York City. In 2011 He joined St. Paul Minnesota based Risdall Public Relations as president of its Lukaszewski Group Division.
His biography is listed in 32 editions of various Marquis Who’s Who in America (including the 2016, 70th edition), The World (including 2015, 32nd edition), Finance and Government. The story of his career appears in, “Living Legends of American Public Relations,” (2008) Grand Valley State University. His name was listed in Corporate Legal Times as one of “28 Experts to Call When All Hell Breaks Loose,” and in PR Week as one of 22 “crunch-time counselors who should be on the speed dial in a crisis.” In 2013 and 2014, he was named one of the “Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior” by Trust Across America. In 2015, he was named the first Chairman Emeritus of the PRSA Board of Ethics and Professional Standards (BEPS) after 22 years of service. He continues to serve on BEPS ex-officio. Googling James E. Lukaszewski yields more than 51,000 entries.
James E. Lukaszewski, ABC, APR, Fellow PRSA
America’s Crisis Guru®
President
The Lukaszewski Group
7601 Lyndale Ave S, Apt. 32, Richfield, MN 55423
Cell: 203-948-7029 (24/7 with e-mail, voice mail and texting)
Email: jel@e911.com
Featured Work
Lukaszewski on Crisis Communication: What Your CEO Needs to Know About Reputation Risk and Crisis Management
According to Lukaszewski,"This book's advice is based on the best ethical and operational practices for leaders. It illustrates the stumbles, fumbles, mumbles, bumbles and tumbles that need to be avoided. Doing it right, doing it quickly, and doing it honorably are the fundamental goals for the book and the lessons it teaches."
Introducing the often overlooked concept of managing the victim dimension of crisis, Lukaszewski delivers one of the most important resources for executives, business leaders, and business educators to prepare for, survive, and perhaps even improve their reputation during the explosive visibility that come during a crisis.
With his common-sense approach, Lukaszewski explains what a crisis is, how and why to respond in likely scenarios, and how to build a crisis management plan and deploy it across various platforms.
Delivered in his straight-talking style backed with compelling case studies, "Lukaszewski on Crisis Communication" is your guide to preparing for a crisis and the inevitable visibility that results. In 10 chapters of field-tested how-to's, Lukaszewski teaches you to:
* Differentiate between a crisis and a disaster;
* Understand what makes a person or group a victim;
* Effectively manage people including your own employees with compassion, fairness, and honesty;
* Accelerate legal settlements and energize attorneys and other legal entities to cooperate;
* Implement powerful alternative approaches to dealing with and managing the media, activists, and antagonists.
Lukaszewski s advice will resonate with CEOs, Board members, and senior executives in HR, risk management, and emergency response management as he stresses what happens to those who fail to be ready for crisis. The book describes patterns of good business response and gives details on what went wrong and why.
Other Works
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Why Should the Boss Listen to You: The Seven Disciplines of the Trusted Strategic Advisor
2008
Awards and Recognition
- Member Emeritus of the Public Relations Society of America's Board of Ethics and Professional Standards, 2015
- Named one of Soundview Executive Summaries' "Best Business Books of 2013"
- Named on of Trust Across America's "Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior," 2013, 2014
- Who's Who in the World: 2003-, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
- Who's Who in America: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016
- Contributor of the Year Award, Minnesota Metro State University, 2012
- PRSA Presidential Citation Award, 1991, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
- Who's Who in the Media and Communications: 1998-1999
- Who's Who in the East: 1989-90, 1991-92, 1993-94, 1995-96, 1997-98, 1999-2000, 2001
- Who's Who in Finance and Business: 1992-1993, 2004-2005
Press and Media Mentions
- Jim Lukaszewski Named First Member Emeritus of Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Board of Ethics and Professional Standards (BEPS), Bulldog Reporter
- Jim Lukaszewski Named First Member Emeritus of Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Board of Ethics and Professional Standards (BEPS)
- Five Minutes with a Legend: James E. Lukaszewski, ABC, APR, Fellow PRSA, CCEP (Part I)
