Interesting Article about Carnival

[VolzCruiser]

I ran across this article this morning and think it is spot on and goes along with a lot of posters here think. Enjoy

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lin-humphrey/carnival-cruise-lines-a-p_b_3197835.html

[H82seaUgo]

wow does that article nail it!

 

expecting a repeat of blow by blow accounts of the splendor disaster, it was quite odd and interesting that ccl did a complete about face with triumph.

 

there was a complete pr shut down on the brand ambassadors page, the carnival page, with an eventual appearance of a ccl spokesperson (Terry) who twice was pushed away from the micophone when the questions got specific.

 

this apparent edict from someone has shot them in the foot.

 

betcha this has some brand communicators a bit more than worried.

[DirtyDawg]

Excellent article. Thanks for posting.

 

"At this point, "business-as-usual" isn't a strategy."

 

That may be the understatement of the year!

[shof515]

more proof that management don't know how to run an efficient company

[wrigley80]

Thanks for posting....that hits it right on the head ;)

[DirtyDawg]

Thanks for posting....that hits it right on the head ;)

 

LOL Brilliant pun!:D:D:D

[cruzegurl104]

Carnival has a lot of work to do. I think it's odd that they just kind of swept the problem with Triumph under the rug per say. I don't think as highly as I did of them a year ago, that's for sure. It just makes you wonder what took so long to make all of these safety changes. Why weren't they doing this BEFORE it all hit the fan? Safety isn't cheap by any means, but it would have saved them this major headache. I bet they wished they would have done more now:cool:

[Seago2]

Hmm, the comments are more exciting than the article! I liked the article but see no need to dump the Triumph. Only "we" remember the name. It's not like Concordia or something that instantly rings a bell.

[lgsshedden]

I ran across this article this morning and think it is spot on and goes along with a lot of posters here think.

 

It also runs counters on many issues to many other think.

 

I get a kick out of people who aren't in business who want to tell Carnival how to run a company that last I looked was still growing, responsible for over 50% of the global market and not sailing less than full on any ships.

 

This is not to deny the issues that have arisen. Neither have the company. Hence the fleet-wide retrofit and the ongoing improvements -- note the article does not mention nor allude to Carnival's actual responses. But then the Huffington Post always does publish articles that carefully frame any issue discussed to reflect its own ideology on life.

[jules1121]

Good article from someone with experience working with carnival. I liked it.

[vols_159]

I ran across this article this morning and think it is spot on and goes along with a lot of posters here think. Enjoy

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lin-humphrey/carnival-cruise-lines-a-p_b_3197835.html

 

Love the user name go vols!

[CorvetteLady]

I think the article had some good ideas. I disagree about the Triumph, I would sail on her and the Splendor seems to be doing well.

 

Sounds to me like Carnival needs to replace Cahill, he has made many changes that most on these boards seem to not like. For him to not know that the Triumph ordeal was a pr disaster is unbelievable.

[Rockee4055]

Good article. The only thing I see that could be a potential issue is reassuring the TA and getting their confidence back with CCL.

 

The TA is not going to put their reputation on the line for something that isn't fixed yet.

 

If I were a TA, I would be skeptical and sending anyone on a CCl cruise.

 

I am an avid fan of CCL and will not let this tarnish how I feel. However, I'm not a TA selling them either.

[firefly333]

Cahill is clearly a talented financial executive, but it's clear he is ill suited in the spotlight. He is either not following the advice of senior PR professionals or is uncomfortable with media interactions. Because of the severity of the situation, Carnival should select another executive spokesperson with crisis management experience.

 

wow I read threads on here saying cahill must go .. this author concurs or says put someone else in the limelight.

[Tithonus]

wow I read threads on here saying cahill must go .. this author concurs or says put someone else in the limelight.

 

This company is in dire need of a scapegoat, and he is the likely candidate to show they mean business.

 

They should have been doing everything possible to give the impression that their ships are good enough to even float ABOVE the water, but they still think they are SO strong that they can ride this out. MISTAKE!

 

And the author is right. Triumph will continue to be brought up EVERY time even poop deck is mentioned. It is WAY past the point for discussion on 2.0; it needs to either be SUNSHINED (although that is turning quickly into another PR disaster) or P&O'd.

 

CASE IN POINT:

Even the Concordia was brought up again with pictures with the cargo ship crash in Italy on the news today.

[joepeka]

Good article. The only thing I see that could be a potential issue is reassuring the TA and getting their confidence back with CCL.

 

The TA is not going to put their reputation on the line for something that isn't fixed yet.

 

If I were a TA, I would be skeptical and sending anyone on a CCl cruise.

 

I am an avid fan of CCL and will not let this tarnish how I feel. However, I'm not a TA selling them either.

I too took special note of the author's action item for Carnival to reengage with TA's. We have always used a TA and she has always been supportive of our choice of Carnival until a couple of years ago. She didn't disparage CCL in any way, just become more vigorous in encouraging us to try other lines. After reading this article, I think I probably know why.

[Tithonus]

wow I read threads on here saying cahill must go .. this author concurs or says put someone else in the limelight.

 

This company is in dire need of a scapegoat, and he is the likely candidate to show they mean business.

 

They should have been doing everything possible to give the impression that their ships are good enough to even float ABOVE the water, but they still think they are SO strong that they can ride this out. MISTAKE!

 

And the author is right. Triumph will continue to be brought up EVERY time even poop deck is mentioned. It is WAY past the point for discussion on 2.0; it needs to either be SUNSHINED (although that is turning quickly into another PR disaster) or P&O'd.

 

CASE IN POINT:

Even the Concordia was brought up again with pictures with the cargo ship crash in Italy on the news today.

[Georgiagolfer]

Don't know about Cahill being a scapegoat, but CCL definitely needs to make changes, IMO. We have a PVP for CCL cruises, but use a TA (friend) for our RCI cruises. Our TA, says he will book a CCL cruise for us, but had rather not. He says he can not book in good conscious feeling we would enjoy any cruise on RCI and/or NCL more than CCL.

[joeyancho]

Looks like Cahill answers questions like a politician. Never give a direct answer, just deflect the question and give the propaganda you desire.

[cjknox]

I don't agree about scrapping or towing the Carnival Triumph it is still a great ship.

 

I like the fact that they brought in Tim Gallagher, someone who is a known veteran in the cruise industry and not some wannabe know it all type "expert".

 

Regarding whether or not Gerry Cahill should be removed, is a decision that Micky Arison has to make. I will say this, Gerry Cahill is not as talented as Bob Dickinson was in the "spotlight". Bob was a very good public speaker and that crucial ability and the public persona it created helped Carnival get through some difficult times. Gerry often seems nervous when speaking in public but I have heard that he is a great speaker and motivator off camera and in person.

 

 

I don't think getting rid of Gerry Cahill will solve the PR issues Carnival has faced, in large part because of the fact that the media is so hellbent on portraying Carnival in such a bad light. Also, the public loves to believe the worst stories. For example, after and during the Triumph incident the media only focused on the bad and largely untrue "stories" from passengers. They didn't want to hear from people who debunked the overblown rumors of some aboard.

[kruise runner]

I have read the article . I agree mostly with what has been said . but not all . Just maybe it is time to ship out the Triumph it has a history of it own right from the start. I do believe they do need to a ramp the on PR. In my world and experience, when key management start leaving somethings up.Start at the ground stage and workup. TA's are important to.On our last two cruises our TA has given us what we asked for. But has been leading us to other lines . She was sold on Carnival , when we first started cruising 8 cruises ago. Mr Cahill needs to not only look at the $$, but look to the future of Carnival . He has taken on the job and responsibility rests with him and his advisors Really don't need anymore mistakes now. Keep sailing the way Carnival use to,the Fun way.

 

kruise kat

[wmowan8485]

Well the first thing that I think of when I hear Carnival Triumph is the fire and limping into Mobile. I think doing a sunshine type makeover is an excellent idea.

Carnival has also cut commissions to TA's who were once so loyal to the brand. Some have reported that they cannot even offer OBC if it is not a part of a Carnival promotion. We'll just have to wait and see what happens next. ;)

[joepeka]

All of this made me wonder, "where is Mickey Arison in all this?" Although I don't pour over the news feeds looking for comments/direction from him about Carnival's problems in the last year, in just casually browsing the web it seems he's keep a really low profile. Maybe that's the kind of CEO he is (letting his major entity leaders handle things) or maybe he's just too wrapped up in the Miami Heat? :confused:

[Cruizinman]

Cahill was asked if the Carnival Triumph was a PR disaster; his response of "I can't answer that" bad sign, :eek: bad sign my arise :rolleyes: !

Ridiculous sign .

[The4Cruisers]

I disagree with "Sunshine"-ing the Triumph.

 

Dang, there are posts here will all kinds of negative comments about renaming an existing ship. Don't think the same media won't refer to the ship as the "SHIP NAME, formerly the excrement covered Triumph".

 

I think it's commendable that CCL is refurb'ing the Triumph and will bring her back to service accordingly. No need to hide history!

 

Speaking of Triumph, I disagree with the author when he discussed the treatment of the passengers. IMHO, I think they fared just fine and once again, the media hype turned a molehill into a mountain.

 

Other than that... Great article! :D