Crisis management is the process by which the organization handles disruptive and unpredictable events that threaten to harm its organization or stakeholders. The study of crisis management stemmed from large-scale industrial and environmental disaster in the 1980s. This is considered the most important process in public relations.
Three elements are common to crises: (a) threats to the organization, (b) element of surprise, and (c) short decision time. Venette argues that "crisis is a process of transformation in which the old system can not be maintained anymore". Therefore, the fourth determining quality is the need for change. If a change is not required, the event could be more accurately described as a failure or an incident.
Unlike risk management, which involves assessing potential threats and finding the best way to avoid such threats, crisis management involves dealing with threats before, during, and after they occur. It is a discipline within a broader management context consisting of the skills and techniques necessary to identify, assess, understand and address serious situations, especially from when it first occurs at the point where recovery procedures begin.
Video Crisis management
Introduction
Crisis management is a situation-based management system that includes clear roles and responsibilities and processes related to organizational requirements across the enterprise. Responses should include actions in the following areas: Crisis prevention, crisis assessment, crisis handling and cessation of crises. The objectives of crisis management must be well prepared to cope with the crisis, ensure prompt and adequate responses to crises, maintain clear lines of reporting and communication in crisis and agree on rules for cessation of crises.
Crisis management techniques include a number of consequent steps from understanding the effects of the crisis on corporations to prevent, mitigate and cope with various types of crises. Crisis management consists of various aspects including:
- The method used to respond to the reality and perceptions of the crisis.
- Set metrics to determine what scenarios are crises and should trigger the required response mechanism.
- Communication occurring in response phase of emergency management scenario.
The method of crisis management of a business or organization is called a crisis management plan. A UK Standard BS11200: 2014 provides a useful foundation for understanding the terminology and framework related to the crisis, in this document the focus is on the exposure of firms to the particular risks to black goose events that pose significant strategic threats to the organization. There is currently ongoing work to develop international standards.
Crisis management is sometimes referred to as incident management, although some industry specialists such as Peter Power argue that the term "crisis management" is more accurate.
A crisis mindset needs the ability to think of the worst scenario while simultaneously suggesting many solutions. Trials and errors are accepted disciplines, because the first line of defense may not work. It is important to maintain a list of emergency plans and always be vigilant. Organizations and individuals should always be prepared with a rapid emergency response plan that requires analysis, training and practice.
The credibility and reputation of the organization is strongly influenced by the perception of their responses during crisis situations. The organizations and communications involved in responding to the crisis in a timely manner make it a challenge in business. There must be open and consistent communication across the hierarchy to contribute to successful communication crisis processes.
The terms relating to emergency management and business continuity management focus on each type of quick but concise "first aid" response (eg fire extinguish) and long-term recovery and recovery phases (eg Moving operations to other sites). The crisis is also part of risk management, although it may not be right to say that crisis management is a failure of risk management, since it would not be possible to totally reduce the likelihood of a disaster.
Maps Crisis management
Types of crisis
During the crisis management process, it is important to identify the types of crisis in different crises that require the use of different crisis management strategies. The potential crisis is huge, but the crisis can be grouped.
Lerbinger categorizes eight types of crisis
- Natural disaster
- Technology crisis
- Confrontation
- Hate
- Organizational Behavior
- Workplace Violence
- Rumor
- Terrorist attacks/man-made disaster
Natural Disasters
Natural disaster-related crises, usually natural disasters, are environmental phenomena such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tornadoes and hurricanes, floods, landslides, tsunamis, storms and droughts that threaten life, property, and the environment itself.
- Example: Indian Oceanquake 2004 (Tsunami)
Technology crisis
The technological crisis is caused by the application of science and human technology. Technological accidents must occur when technology becomes complex and combined and something is wrong in the system as a whole (technological malfunction). Some technological crises occur when human error causes disruption (human damage). People tend to blame technology disasters because technology is subject to human manipulation, whereas they are not responsible for natural disasters. When an accident creates significant environmental damage, the crisis is categorized as megadamage . Samples include software failures, industrial accidents, and oil spills.
- Example: Chernobyl disaster, Exxon Valdez oil spill, Heartbleed security bug
Confrontation crisis
The crisis of confrontation occurs when disgruntled individuals and/or groups are fighting businesses, governments, and various interest groups to win the acceptance of their demands and expectations. A common type of confrontation crisis is a boycott, and other types of precautions, sit-ins, ultimatums for those in power, blockades or occupied buildings, and against or disobeying police.
- Example: Rainbow/PUSH (People United to Serve Humanity) boycott Nike
The malice crisis
An organization faces a malevolent crisis when an opponent or an evil individual uses other criminal or tactical means for the purpose of expressing hostility or anger towards, or seeking profit from, the company, state, or economic system, possibly with the aim of destabilizing or destroying it. Examples of crises include product disruption, kidnapping, malicious rumors, terrorism, cybercrime and espionage.
- Example: 1982 Chicago Tylenol killing
Crisis organizational behavior
Crisis occurs when management takes actions that are known to be harmful or place stakeholders at risk of harm without adequate precautions. Lerbinger establishes three different types of organizational crisis of behavior: a crisis of tilted management values, a fraudulent crisis, and an indecent management crisis.
Crisis management values ​​are skewed
The management value crisis is skewed when managers prefer short-term economic benefits and ignore wider social values ​​and stakeholders other than investors. This tilted state of values ​​is rooted in a classic business credo that focuses on the interests of shareholders and tends to ignore the interests of other stakeholders such as customers, employees, and society.
- Example: Sears sacrifices customer trust
Has 3 stages -currency -chronic-precision and resolution -conflict
Crisis scams
A fraud crisis occurs when management hides or misrepresents information about itself and its products in dealing with consumers and others.
- Example: Dow Corning silicone-gel breast implants
Crisis management behavior
Some of the crises are caused not only by oblique values ​​and fraud but also deliberate immorality and illegality.
Violence at work
Crisis occurs when an employee or former employee violates another employee on an organization basis.
- Example: DuPont's Lycra
Rumor
Misinformation about an organization or its product creates a crisis that damages the reputation of the organization. An example is linking organizations with radical groups or stories that their products are contaminated.
- Example: Procter & amp; Gamble Logo Controversy
Crisis leadership
Alan Hilburg, a pioneer in crisis management, defines an organizational crisis that is categorized as an acute crisis or a chronic crisis. Hilburg also created the concept of Crisis Arc. Erika Hayes James, an organizational psychologist at the University of Virginia's Darden Graduate School of Business, identified two major types of organizational crisis. James defines an organizational crisis as "an emotionally charged situation that, once it becomes public, invites a negative stakeholder reaction and thus has the potential to threaten the financial well-being, reputation, or survival of the company or parts of it."
- Sudden crisis
- A burning crisis
Sudden crisis
A sudden crisis is a situation that occurs without warning and is beyond the control of the institution. As a result, the sudden crisis most often is a situation where the institution and its leadership are not to blame.
Smoldering crisis
The burning crisis differs from a sudden crisis as they begin as small internal problems which, due to managerial negligence, develop into crisis status. This is a situation where leaders are blamed for the crisis and its consequences on the institution in question.
James categorizes five phases of crisis that require certain crisis leadership competencies. Each phase contains the barriers a leader must face to improve the organization's structure and operations. James's case study of the crisis in the financial services sector, for example, explores why crisis events erode public confidence in leadership. James's research shows how leadership competencies of integrity, positive intent, ability, mutual respect, and transparency have an impact on the process of building trust.
- Signal detection
- Preparation and prevention
- Containment and damage control
- Business recovery
- Learn
Signal detection
Detection of signals is a stage in a crisis where leaders must, but not always, sense an early warning signal (red flag) that indicates a possible crisis. The crisis detection stage includes:
- Sense Making: represents an effort to make the order and make sense, retrospectively, of what happened.
- Perspective taking: the ability to consider the point of view of people or groups.
Preparation and prevention
During this stage crisis handlers begin to prepare or prevent a crisis that has been symbolized in the phase of signal detection. Hilburg has pointed out that using the impact model/possibility allows the organization to accurately predict the crisis scenario. He acknowledged the biggest organizational challenge was 'speaking the truth to the authorities' to predict the worst real scenario. Organizations such as the main mission of the Red Cross are to prepare and prevent the escalation of crisis events. Walmart has been described as the standard carrier of emergency relief after witnessing a very quick and well-coordinated effort to get supplies to the Gulf Coast of the United States in anticipation of Hurricane Katrina.
Containment and damage control
Usually the most obvious stage, the purpose of crisis detention and damage control is to limit the threat of reputation, finance, safety, and other threats to the survival of the company. Crisis handlers work diligently during this stage to end the crisis as quickly as possible to limit negative publicity to the organization, and move into a business recovery phase.
Business recovery
When the crisis strikes, organizations must be able to continue their business amid the crisis while planning how they will recover from the damage caused by the crisis. Crisis handlers are not only involved in sustainable planning (determining the people, finances, and technological resources needed to keep the organization going), but will also actively pursue organizational resilience.
Learn
After the crisis, organizational decision makers adopt a learning orientation and use prior experience to develop new routines and behaviors that ultimately change the way organizations operate. The best leaders are aware of this and have goals and skills in finding the learning opportunities inherent in any crisis situation.
Communication crisis
Efforts by an organization to communicate with the public and stakeholders when unexpected events can have a negative impact on the organization's reputation. It may also refer to efforts to inform employees or communities of potential hazards that could have disastrous impacts. There are 3 important steps an organization can take to prepare and withstand a communication crisis: 1) Define your philosophy; 2) Assess your vulnerability; 3) Develop protocol.
Models and theories related to crisis management
Crisis Management Strategy
Crisis management strategy (CMS) is a corporate development strategy designed primarily to prevent crisis for continued corporate progress. Thus, CMS is a synthesis of strategic management. These include future projections based on ongoing monitoring of the internal and external environment of the business, as well as the selection and implementation of crisis prevention strategies and operations management. This includes current status controls based on ongoing monitoring of the internal and external environment, as well as the selection and implementation of crisis coping strategies.
Crisis Management Model
Successfully managing a crisis requires an understanding of how to handle a crisis - it starts before it happens. Alan Hilburg speaks of a crisis bow. The bow consists of crisis avoidance, crisis mitigation and crisis recovery. Gonzalez-Herrero and Pratt find different phases of Crisis Management.
There are 3 phases in Crisis Management as shown below
- Diagnosis of upcoming issues or alarms.
- Choosing the right Turnaround Strategy.
- Implementation of the change and control process
Crisis Management Planning
No company is looking forward to deal with situations that cause significant disruptions to their business, especially those that stimulate broad media coverage. Public oversight can have negative financial, political, legal and governmental impacts. Crisis management planning is concerned with providing the best response to the crisis.
Contingency planning
Setting up an earlier emergency plan, as part of a crisis management plan, is the first step to making sure an organization is prepared appropriately for a crisis. The crisis management team can train crisis plans by developing simulation scenarios to be used as an exercise. The plan should clearly establish that the only people who speak to the public about the crisis are designated persons, such as a company spokesman or a member of the crisis team. Ideally, there should be one spokesperson who can be contacted at any time. Working with the media is critical in a crisis situation, ensuring that all questions are answered on time and information about what is being done to resolve the situation is provided. The first hours after the break-up crisis is the most important, so working with speed and efficiency is important, and the plan should show how quickly every function should be done. When preparing to offer external or internal statements, information must be accurate and transparent. Giving wrong or manipulated information has a tendency to backfire and will greatly aggravate the situation. Contingency plans should contain information and guidelines that will assist decision-makers to consider not only short-term consequences, but also the long-term effects of each decision.
Business continuity planning
When a crisis will undoubtedly lead to significant disruption to the organization, a business continuity plan can help minimize disruption. First, one must identify the essential functions and processes necessary to keep the organization going. This part of the planning should be done at an early stage, and is part of a business impact analysis phase that will signal "How much does the organization lose?" (Osborne, A. (2007) Business Management Sustainability Practical Business Management: The ultimate and tangible Business Survival Tips for the world).
Each important function and/or process must have its own contingency plan if one of the functions/processes stops or fails, the business/organization is tougher, which in itself provides a mechanism to reduce the possibility of having to ask for a recovery plan (Osborne, 2007). Testing this contingency plan by training the action required in the simulation will allow those involved to become more aware of the possibility of a crisis. As a result, and in the event of a real crisis, team members will act more quickly and effectively.
Careful notes when planning training scenarios, too often simulations may lack ingenuity, appropriate levels of realism and consequently potentially lose the value of their training. This section can be enhanced by using external exercise designers who are not part of the organizational culture and able to test the organization's response to the crisis, to bring a crisis of confidence to those who manage vital systems (Borodzicz, Edward P. (2005) Risk, Crisis & Security Management.
After the simulation exercise, a thorough and systematic debriefing must be done as a key component of any crisis simulation. The goal is to create links and draw lessons from the reality of simulated representation and real-world reality. (Borodzicz, 2005).
All processes related to business continuity planning should be reviewed periodically to identify any number of changes that could undo the current plan. (Osborne, 2007).
The system theory of structural functions
Providing information to organizations in times of crisis is essential for effective crisis management. The theory of structural functional systems discusses the intricacies of information networks and the level of command that shapes organizational communication. Structural-functional theory identifies the flow of information within an organization as a "network" of members. "Information in organizations flows in a pattern called a network.
Diffusion of innovation theory
Another theory that can be applied to information sharing is the Diffusion of Innovation Theory. Developed by Everett Rogers, this theory explains how innovations are disseminated and communicated over a particular channel over a period of time. The diffusion of innovation in communication occurs when an individual communicates a new idea to one or more others. In its most basic form, the process involves: (1) an innovation, (2) an individual or other adoption unit with knowledge or experience using innovation, (3) another individual or another unit who has no knowledge of innovation, and (4) ) a communication channel connecting two units. A communication channel is a means by which to send messages from one person to another.
Role of apology in crisis management
There is a debate about the role of apology in crisis management, and some argue that apology opens the organization for possible legal consequences. "But some evidence suggests that compensation and sympathy, two cheaper strategies, are just as effective as apology in shaping people's perceptions of the organization responsible for the crisis as this strategy focuses on the needs of the victims.The sympathy response expresses concern to the victims while compensation offers the victim something to offset the suffering. "
Crisis leadership
James identifies five leadership competencies that facilitate organizational restructuring during and after the crisis.
- Build a trust environment
- Reforming the mindset of the organization
- Identify clear and unclear vulnerabilities of an organization
- Make wise and quick decisions and take bold action
- Learn from crisis to bring about change.
Crisis leadership research concludes that leadership actions in crisis reflect organizational competence, because the crisis exam shows how well the institution's leadership structure serves the organization's goals and withstand the crisis. Developing effective human resources is crucial when building organizational capabilities through the executive leadership of crisis management.
Unequal human capital theory
James postulated that an organizational crisis can result from discriminatory lawsuits. James's theory of unequal human capital and social position stems from the economic theory of human and social capital which concludes that minority employees receive less organizational rewards than those with access to executive management. In a recent study of managers at Fortune 500 companies, the race was found to be a predictor of promotional opportunities or lack thereof. Thus, discriminatory lawsuits can invite negative stakeholder reactions, undermine corporate reputation, and threaten the survival of the company.
Social media and crisis management
Social media has accelerated the speed of information about the crisis can spread. The viral effects of social networks like Twitter mean that stakeholders can break news faster than traditional media - making managing the crisis even harder. This can be reduced by having proper training and policies and appropriate social media monitoring tools to detect signs of crisis. Social media also gives crisis management teams access to real-time information about how crises impact on stakeholder sentiments and issues that matter most to them.
Crisis management mantle Lanny Davis, former counselor for Bill Clinton is "Tell Early, Tell All, Tell Alone". A strategy used in the Clinton White House 1996-1998, for each offense
Organizations must have a planned approach to release information to the media in the event of a crisis. Media reaction plans should include representatives of corporate media as part of the Crisis Management Team (CMT). Because there is always a degree of uncertainty during a crisis, it is best that all CMT members understand how to handle the media and prepare to do so, if they are pushed into such situations.
In 2010 Procter & amp; Gamble Co cited reports that the new Pampers with Dry Max causes rashes and other skin irritations to be "completely wrong" as it is aimed at stifling PR threats against its biggest diaper innovation in 25 years. A Facebook group called "Pampers brings back OLD SUBSTITUTES/SWADDLERS" rose to over 4,500 members. Pampers denied the allegations and stated that only two complaints have been received for every one million diapers sold. Pampers quickly reach people expressing their concerns through social media, Pampers even held meetings with four influential "bloggers mom", to help dispel the rumors. Pampers acted swiftly and decisively against the emerging crisis, before competitors and critics alike could trigger further fires.
A successful example of crisis management
Tylenol (Johnson and Johnson)
In the fall of 1982, a killer added 65 milligrams of cyanide to several Tylenol capsules on store shelves, killing seven people, including three in a family. Johnson & amp; Johnson recalled and destroyed 31 million capsules at a cost of $ 100 million. The friendly CEO, James Burke, appears in television commercials and at news conferences that tell consumers about the company's actions. The tamper-resistant packaging was quickly introduced, and sales of Tylenol quickly rose again to pre-crisis levels.
When another contaminated Tylenol bottle is found in the store, it only takes a few minutes for the manufacturer to issue a national warning that people should not use the drug in the form of a capsule.
Odwalla Foods
When the Odwalla apple juice is considered the cause of an outbreak of E. coli infection, the company loses a third of its market value. In October 1996, an outbreak of E. coli bacteria in the states of Washington, California, Colorado and British Columbia was traced to unpasteurized apple juice produced by natural juice maker Odwalla Inc. Forty-nine cases were reported, including the death of a small child. Within 24 hours, Odwalla conferred with the FDA and Washington state health officials; set daily daily press schedule; send out a press release announcing the recall; expresses remorse, apprehension and apology, and takes responsibility for anyone harmed by their product; detailed symptoms of E.coli poisoning; and explains what consumers should do with the product affected. Odwalla is then developed - through the assistance of consultants - an effective thermal process that will not spoil the taste of the product when it is reproduced. All of these steps are communicated through close links with the media and through full-page newspaper advertisements.
Mattel
Mattel Inc., a toy maker, has been hit by more than 28 product recalls and in the summer of 2007, between problems with exports from China, facing two product withdrawals in two weeks. The company "did everything it could to get its message, get high marks from consumers and retailers.Although Mattel, right after the 7 am announcement by federal officials, the public relations staff 16 was set to call journalists at 40 the largest media outlet They are asking everyone to check their e-mails for news releases that outline the withdrawals, invite them to teleconference calls with executives and scheduled TV appearances or phone conversations with Chief executive Mattel, Mattel CEO Robert Eckert conducted 14 TV interviews on the day Tuesday in August and about 20 calls with individual reporters.On the end of the week, Mattel responded to more than 300 media questions in the US alone. "
Pepsi
Pepsi Corporation faced a crisis in 1993 that began with a syringe claim found in a can of Pepsi diet. Pepsi urged the store not to pull the product off the shelf while it had cans and the situation under investigation. This led to the arrest, which was Pepsi public and then followed by their first video news release, showing the production process to show that such disruptions were not possible in their factories. The second video news release shows the man who was arrested. The third video shows the supervision of the supermarket where a woman was caught entering a syringe into a can. The company simultaneously worked with the FDA during the crisis. This makes public communication effective throughout the crisis. After the crisis is over, the corporation runs a series of special campaigns designed to thank the public for standing next to the corporation, along with a coupon for further compensation. This case serves as a design for how to handle other crisis situations.
Examples of failed crisis management
Bhopal
The Bhopal disaster where poor communication before, during, and after the crisis cost thousands of lives, illustrates the importance of combining cross-cultural communication in crisis management plans. According to the American University of America Environment Database Case Study (1997), local residents are not sure how to react to the potential threat warnings from Union Carbide plants. Operating manuals printed only in English are extreme examples of mismanagement but are indicative of systemic barriers to information diffusion. According to the Union Carbide trial chronology itself (2006), a day after the crisis the top management of Union Carbide arrived in India but was unable to assist in relief efforts as they were placed under house arrest by the Indian government. Symbolic interventions can be counterproductive; Crisis management strategies can help top level managers make more informed decisions in how they should respond to disaster scenarios. The Bhopal incident illustrates the difficulty in consistently applying management standards for multi-national operations and the shift in errors that often result from the lack of a clear management plan.
Ford and Firestone Tire and Rubber Company
The Ford-Firestone Tire and Rubber Company dispute occurred in August 2000. In response to claims that their 15-inch Wilderness ATX, ATX and ATX II radial tire treads were separated from the core of the tires - which caused crashes - Bridgestone/Firestone recalled 6.5 million tires. This tire is mostly used in Ford Explorer, SUV (SUV) bestseller in the world.
The two companies made three major mistakes early on, crisis experts say. First, they blame the consumers for not inflating their tires properly. Then they blame each other for the wrong tires and the wrong vehicle design. Then they say very little about what they are doing to solve the problems that have caused more than 100 deaths - until they are summoned to Washington to testify before Congress.
Exxon
On March 24, 1989, a tanker owned by Exxon Corporation foundered at Prince William Sound in Alaska. Exxon Valdez spills millions of gallons of crude oil into Valdez waters, killing thousands of fish, poultry, and sea otters. Hundreds of miles from shorelines are polluted and salmon laying eggs disrupted; many fishermen, especially Native Americans, lost their livelihoods. Exxon, on the other hand, does not react quickly in terms of dealing with the media and the public; The CEO, Lawrence Rawl, does not become an active part of public relations efforts and completely avoids public involvement; the company has neither a communications plan nor a communications team in place to handle the event - in fact, the company did not appoint a PR manager to its management team until 1993, 4 years after the incident; Exxon set up his media center in Valdez, a location too small and too far away to handle the media's attention; and the company acts defensively in its public response, sometimes even to blame, to other groups such as Coast Guard. This response also occurs within a few days after the event.
Lessons learned in crisis management
One of the leading studies conducted on the disastrous impact on the value of an organization's stock was completed by Dr Rory Knight and Dr Deborah Pretty (1996, Templeton College, University of Oxford - commissioned by Sedgewick Group). This study undertook a detailed analysis of the stock price (post-impact) of the organization that had experienced the disaster. This study identifies organizations that recover and even exceed pre-disaster stock prices, ( Recovery ), and which do not recover at share prices, ( Non-recovery ). The average cumulative impact on shareholder value for recovery is 5% plus on the value of their original stock. So the net effect on shareholder value at this stage is actually positive. Non-recovery remained approximately unchanged between days 5 and 50 after the disaster, but suffered a negative negative negative cumulative impact of nearly 15% on their share price up to a year later.
One of the main conclusions of the study is that "Effective management of disastrous consequences would appear to be a more significant factor than whether disaster insurance cuts the economic impact of disasters".
Although there are technical elements for this report, it is highly recommended for those wishing to involve their senior management in the value of crisis management.
Crisis as Opportunity
Hilburg states that every crisis is an opportunity to showcase the character of the institution, its commitment to brand promise and its institutional values. To address the impact of such shareholders, management must move from the mindset that manages the crisis to a crisis that leads to crisis leadership. Research shows that organizational contributing factors influence the executive's tendency to adopt an effective "crisis as an opportunity" mindset. Because pressure is the precipitator and consequence of the crisis, well-run leaders under pressure can effectively guide the organization through the crisis.
James argues that most executives focus on communication and public relations as a reactive strategy. While the company's reputation with shareholders, financial well-being, and survival are all at stake, the potential damage to reputation can result from the actual management of the crisis. In addition, companies may be stagnant as their risk management group identifies whether a crisis is "statistically significant". The leadership crisis, on the other hand, immediately addresses both the deterioration and implications for the present and future conditions of the company, as well as opportunities for improvement.
Public sector crisis management
American companies are not the only communities vulnerable to the dangers of crisis. Whether it is a school shoot, a public health crisis or a terrorist attack that makes the public seek comfort in a quiet and stable leadership of elected officials, no sectors of society are immune to crises. In response to that reality, crisis management policies, strategies and practices have been developed and adapted in various disciplines.
School and crisis management
In the wake of the Columbine School Massacre, the 11 September 2001 attacks, and shootings on campuses including the Virginia Tech massacre, educational institutions at all levels now focus on crisis management.
A national study conducted by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) and Arkansas Children's Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI) has shown that many public school districts have significant deficiencies in their emergency and disaster plans (The School Violence Resource Center, 2003). In response, the Resource Center has set up a comprehensive set of resources to assist schools is the development of crisis management plans.
The crisis management plan covers a wide range of incidents including bomb threats, child abuse, natural disasters, suicide, drug abuse and gang activities - just for a list of some. In the same way, the plan aims to address all audiences who need information including parents, media and law enforcement officers.
Government and crisis management
Historically, governments at all levels - local, state, and national - have played a major role in crisis management. Indeed, many political philosophers regard this as one of the leading roles of government. Emergency services, such as firefighting and police at the local level, and the US National Guard at the federal level, often play an integral role in crisis situations.
To help coordinate communications during the crisis response phase, the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) within the Department of Homeland Security regulates the National Response Plan (NRP). The plan is intended to integrate public and private response by providing a common language and outlining the chain of command when many parties are mobilized. This is based on the premise that incidents should be handled at the lowest organizational level. The NRP recognizes the private sector as a key partner in domestic incident management, particularly in the areas of critical infrastructure protection and restoration.
NRP is a companion for the National Incident Management System, which acts as a more general template for incident management regardless of cause, size, or complexity.
FEMA offers free web-based training on the National Response Plan through the Institute of Emergency Management.
Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) is a relatively new mechanism that facilitates crisis communications across different media and systems. CAP helps create a consistent emergency alert format to reach different geographic and language audiences through audio and visual media.
People and crisis management
A group of international psychoanalyst startets in 1994 with a project to contribute to crisis management in the sense of managing conflict between national groups. They call themselves Partners in the face of collective atrocities. They started their work with the so-called Nazaret Conference - based on the Leicesterconference model developed by the Tavistock Institute.
Selected officials and crisis management
Historically, politics and crisis go hand in hand. In describing the crisis, President Abraham Lincoln said, "We live in the middle of an alarm, anxiety becomes the future; we expect some new disaster with every newspaper we read."
Crisis management has become a hallmark of contemporary governance. In times of crisis, communities and organizational members expect their public leaders to minimize the impact of the crisis at hand, while critics and bureaucratic competitors try to seize the moment to blame their ruling rulers and their policies. In these extreme environments policymakers must develop a sense of normality, and foster collective learning from crisis experiences.
In the face of crisis, leaders must face the strategic challenges they face, the risks and political opportunities they face, the mistakes they make, the traps they must avoid, and the way away from the crises they might pursue. The need for management is even more significant with the emergence of the 24-hour news cycle and the ever-increasing internet viewers with ever-changing technology at the tips of their fingers.
The public leader has a special responsibility to help protect the public from the adverse consequences of the crisis. Experts in crisis management note that leaders who take this responsibility seriously have to concern themselves with all phases of the crisis: the incubation stage, the onset, and thereafter. The crisis leadership then involves five important tasks: sense-making, decision-making, meaning-making, cessation, and learning.
A brief description of the five facets of crisis leadership includes:
- The making of meaning can be regarded as a classic situation assessment step in decision making.
- Decision-making is the act of making decisions as the implementation of the decision.
- The meaning of making refers to crisis management as political communication.
- Stopping a crisis is only possible if public leaders handle accountability questions correctly.
- Learning, refers to the actual learning of a limited crisis. The authors note, the crisis often opens the window of opportunity for reform to be better or worse.
Professional organizations
There are a number of professional industry associations that provide advice, literature, and contacts for professionals and academics who turn professions. Some of them:
1. International Association of Emergency Managers (International)
2. Turnaround Management Society (International/Focused in Europe)
3. Institute for Turnaround (Inggris)
4. Turnaround Management Association (Internasional)
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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