Crisis Management

Related Terms: Business Insurance; Disaster Planning; Public Relations

Crisis management is the task for creating and implementing a business plan that can be implemented quickly in the face of a crisis. Events that would qualify as crises include a wide range of potential threats; natural disasters like hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes and floods; terrorist attacks; power blackouts; workplace violence; cyber crimes; product tampering; bomb threats, and the unexpected death or illness of key leaders to name but a few. The speed with which a company recovers after a crisis tomorrow depends upon the plans established today. "Though each situation is unique, any organization can be better prepared if it plans carefully, puts emergency procedures in place, and practices for emergencies of all kinds." This is how the U.S. Department of Homeland Security emphasizes the importance of crisis management planning in its Web site entitled "Preparing Makes Business Sense."

The first 5 years of the 21st century have provided a number of unsettling examples of crisis that have befallen large numbers of people, communities, and businesses. The terrorist attacks of 9/11, the anthrax scare of 2001, the Northeast blackout of 2003, and the devastating hurricanes that hit the Gulf Coast in the summer of 2005 each had wide impact. These events have focused the attention of leaders at all levels on the need to have a crisis management plan.

One commentator, writing for PR News in 2005, shortly after Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast, discussed the way in which this catastrophic incident caused public relations professionals to reassess their crisis management responsibilities. "For PR pros, dealing with the day-to-day challenge of trying to rehabilitate a company after a fit of corporate chicanery in the C-suite or of assuaging consumer concerns after launching what turns out to be a faulty product simply can't compare with dealing with the aftermath of what looks to be the worst natural disaster in U.S. history." The events of this decade so far have refocused the national attention on the need for robust crisis management in organizations of all sizes.

CREATING AND IMPLEMENTING A CRISIS MANAGEMENT PLAN

An effective crisis management plan incorporates emergency response, disaster recovery, contingency communications, business continuity, and a clear delineation of key personnel and their spheres of responsibility.

Assess the Threats

Risk assessment is a sophisticated area of expertise that can range from self-assessment to an extensive engineering study. The specific industry, size, and scope of a particular business will determine the organization's risk assessment needs. The first step is determining what kinds of emergencies might affect a particular company both internally and externally. Find out which natural disasters are most common in the region or regions of operations. Ideally a list of threats is produced so that they may be categorized. Overall emergency plans will likely be useful in a number of different sorts of scenarios with only slight modification.

It is important to find out what community-level emergency procedures are in place for different sorts of incidents. Knowing the existing public safety protocols is key in coordinating rescue activities and evacuation plans. Local authorities are also a useful source of information about what actions to take and not take in the case of a biological, chemical, explosive, nuclear or radiological attack. Tenants in a commercial building or office/industrial complex may also wish to coordinate with the owners and/or managers of the facility so that company procedures work in tandem with the procedures in place for the larger entity.

Emergency Procedures

In any crisis that has the potential to take life, the physical well being and safety of all personnel is, of course, the first priority. One of the first questions in a crisis is whether to shelter in place or to evacuate. Guidelines should be established in advance to help make this decision quickly. For example, a fire is one situation in which there is no decision needed about whether to shelter in place or evacuate. Fires are the most common of all business disasters. A fire plan should be in place and practices with evacuation drills should be held periodically.

On the other hand, a tornado siren signals an emergency plan of another kind, in this case, again, no decision about whether to shelter in place or evacuate is necessary. Clearly, sheltering in place is the right decision when under threat of a tornado and provisions for a safe place in which to seek protection from such a storm should be in place and known to all employees.

Instructions for assisting disabled personnel, visitors, customers, and vendors in any emergency procedure should be a part of the crisis management plan. With the exception of disabled co-workers, for whom plans should be in place, these visitors will not know company procedures. Arrangements should be spelled out for assisting outsiders in the case of emergency.

Emergency Supplies

When preparing for emergency situations, it is usually best to think first about the basics of survival: fresh water, food, clean air, and warmth. For small businesses it is a good idea to talk with everyone about what emergency supplies the company can feasibly provide, if any, and which ones individuals should consider keeping on hand. Encouraging everyone to have a basic emergency kit is wise. Such a kit need not contain more than bottled water and anything else the individual may need, like essential medications. A can of tuna fish and a candy bar would not be out of place in such a kit either.

At the company level, the following list of suggested items is provided by the U.S. Homeland Security Department Web site mentioned above:

• Water, amounts for portable kits will vary. Individuals should determine what amount they are able to both store comfortably and to transport to other locations
• Food, at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food
• Battery-powered radio and extra batteries
• Flashlight and extra batteries
• First Aid kit
• Whistle to signal for help
• Dust or filter masks, readily available in hardware stores, which are rated based on how small a particle they filter
• Moist towelettes for sanitation
• Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
• Can opener for food (if kit contains canned food)
• Plastic sheeting and duct tape to "seal the room"
• Garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation

Back-ups of Essential Information

A company's essential documents and information should be backed up as a part of the normal business practice. Crisis management plans should include periodic inspection of these back-up procedures and verification that all essential information is being included in the normal back-up routine. Electronic data back-ups are a norm in today's business environment but any and all important paper documents too should be safeguarded in such a way that they could be recreated if necessary. The back-ups themselves need to be stored off-site.

 1 | 2 | 3  NEXT