Some of my readers requested that I write something about crisis and it’s effective management. Well, the subject is indeed fascinating and close to my heart, but every crisis requires a different approach to manage and it would be next to impossible to create a ‘one size fit all’ manual or one article on crisis management.

“Well, Tushar some basics will always remain same. Why don’t you write about them at least?” quipped one of you and here I am. Trying to scribble something on my scribbling pad.

My best friend always admired my ability to find the right picture for all my posts. Actually, the pictures inspires me the most and as a habit, I choose picture even before I start to write the post. So I searched for two hours before I wrote this post to find the right picture and finally I found this rotating lady on TED blogs somewhere. I found this to be a perfect fit for this post. How? Well, look at her! In which direction she is moving? For some of you, she will rotate clockwise and for some of us, she will rotate anti clockwise. Crisis is like this lovely lady – for some people it’s an end and for some it’s a beginning. It moves in any direction for anybody and can’t predict, what will be her next move.

Nowadays, I am reading a book called Bounce by Keith McFarland and it is a story about how to bounce back after a nosedive. Well, it may or may not inspire me but you should surely pick up a copy to get the simplest possible crisis management module written to make it a most captivating read.

Crisis is a time when your true colors will shine. It will test all your abilities – management, strategic, leadership, marketing, communication, human, super human and so on…

UNDERSTANDING CRISIS

I am vulnerable, so do you and the guy sitting next to you.  Just like humans, organizations breathe too. They are made of people like you and me and that makes them vulnerable. And when you hit a crisis, what do you do? Some people destroy it all and some people manage it. It is applicable to the brands as well. Some brands manage it well, come out stronger and some go down the drain. There would be many definitions about crisis given by experts, but for me the most simple definition is – Crisis is a situation where you feel that while driving your car, you are suddenly losing control over accelerator, gears & brakes or on any of of them.

CRISIS MANAGEMENT

Crisis Management must begin in a good weather. Crisis has a tendency to tease you. It shows the signs much ahead of it’s scheduled arrival. The first step is to analyze what kind of business you are in – whether you are lonely (well some people may argue otherwise!) Tiger in the Woods or Lehman Brothers in arms. Based on your industry, map out the teasers and analyze at what level, these teasers will become full blown disasters.

Lesson: Identify potential risks in your business. Whatever it could be, man made or acts of nature

TOUCH THE TOUCHABLE

The most important lesson in Crisis Management is to fix up the things you can fix immediately. Don’t allow them to tease you. If  your zipper is giving you a trouble and if it’s your favorite trouser, get the zipper replaced or buy a new trouser with the same pattern and same color. As the great Chanakya once said, “Enemies and wounds should be cured at the beginning itself”

Lesson: Don’t wait for things to come to you. You go to things and fix it – anticipate, appreciate and take appropriate action

THE ESSENTIALS

Finally, crisis has hit you and you are not prepared. What would you do? You would react and fight hard to lose. Now imagine, what if you have learnt the most difficult martial art move to defend yourself well in advance. (PS: I wrote a very interesting story about this, you may read it here.) Please prepare yourself well in advance. Identify each type of crisis and prepare your response accordingly. You will need right tools, right people and right leader. You will also need to get the tools right, people right and leader right. Get them organized much before the crisis hit you. Let them practice. World’s greatest armies follow this simple rule – the more you sweat during peace, the less you will bleed in war. You can follow it too.

Lesson: Practice. Note. Modify. Practice. Note. Modify. Practice… (Continue until you reach orgasm!)

THE TAILPIECE

You want to be ready for the crisis? Want to understand everything? You better listen to me and my team of experts and go through our Crisis Management Essential Module, where we produce rangers out of civilians. We offer this boot camp free of charge to all the academic institutes and for corporate houses, nothing come free, except diagnosis.

Lesson: Have right people train you and don’t ever feel that you know it all.

You can reach us via this page or this page.

Take care.