Corporate apologies are piling up. Mattel CEO Robert Eckert apologized before a Senate subcommittee for lead paint found in millions of the company's toys. TD Ameritrade CEO Joe Moglia apologized for a database breach that compromised customer addresses, phone numbers and email addresses. Apple CEO Steve Jobs apologized for cutting the price of the high-end iPhone to $399 just weeks after die-hard customers waited in long lines to pay $599. And the list goes on. Crisis management is nothing new, but new tools and strategies are emerging according to Knowledge @ Wharton, the business school's online journal.

The most important aspect of current crisis management is that you have hours instead of days to respond to a crisis. In today's 24-hour media world, a delayed response is tantamount to stonewalling - one tactic that no longer works for anyone.

An example of this is Jobs' open letter, which came with a $100 credit at Apple's retail or online stories for those who bought the iPhone on its June 29 launch. It was posted on Apple's site the day after the company announced the iPhone price cut. "We want to do the right thing for our valued iPhone customers," the letter said. "We apologize for disappointing some of you, and we are doing our best to live up to your high expectations of Apple."

To remain nimble enough to react to a never-ending stream of online chatter, Thomas Donaldson, Wharton professor of legal studies and business ethics, recommends that companies create a team devoted only to crisis communication. The team can then tailor a company's response quickly and is able to avoid corporate bureaucracy. When a crisis strikes, a CEO can't ask his corporate counsel for advice because it only slows up the communications process, says Donaldson. "Companies must take the hit, get all the dirt out and move on. That means letting corporate lawyers into the office, but saying 'no' to them even though a corporate response may raise liability issues."

According to Wharton marketing professor Lisa Bolton, three key components ensure that an apology will work: The CEO must deliver the message, a solution to the problem must be outlined, and some remuneration should be put in place. "The initial response is the most important," she says. "The general advice is to admit mistakes and try not to be defensive. Get out in front of the story. Get your admission and mitigation out there as well, and consider financial compensation. Also, customize your response in relation to the magnitude of the failure."

Also, it makes sense for companies to "build up a reservoir of goodwill," says Thomas Dunfee, a legal studies and business ethics professor at Wharton. Dunfee studies corporate social responsibility (CSR) and whether it has an impact on business results. "There's an argument that companies should make the extra investment in doing good and [engaging in] philanthropy," says Dunfee. "The idea is that a company can build up social credits if something goes awry."

The bottom line: every business should consider a crisis management strategy ahead of time and be ready to respond to events immediately. In addition, companies should be proactive and build media relationships and goodwill well ahead of the time that they may be needed.