Crisis management: What do we have to learn from Pulp Fiction’s Wolfe in these uncertain times?

The title of this post may sound weird but I saw this anthological scene from Pulp Fiction, when “the Wolf” arrives after Vincent unfortunately pulled the trigger at the back of a car, for the umpteenth time the other day… And it had a very particular resonance in the context of the crisis that our operational teams are going through in the field at the moment. I can imagine that some of you already wonder if the pressure in my job was not too high lately and if finally I didn’t pass on the “dark side”. What can be the link between a black-suited cleaner called to make a body disappearing and logistics operation to sustain inbound flows for automotive industry in adverse conditions like COVID crisis? Actually from my point of view a lot!

 A quick reminder about the case

 To cut is short Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield are two fixers sent to Brett’s apartment – one of Marsellus Wallace’s business partners who tried to double-cross him – to retrieve a briefcase that was stolen from him. After a shoot-out in the apartment Vincent and Jules miraculously come out unharmed and brought Marvin, their assumed informant, with them. During the ride, while discussing if their survival after one of Brett’s men fired at them multiple times and failed was divine intervention or mere luck, Vincent turns back to Marvin and accidently pulls the trigger of his gun killing Marvin… and smearing the car with blood.

In panic mode, our two unfortunate guys decide to stop to one of their acquaintances In the neighborhood to get the situation fixed as driving with a body and a spotted back seat is not an option. When they arrive at Jimmy’s place, they are a bit coldly welcomed as he’s waiting for his wife back in less than one hour. Somewhat overwhelmed by the situation they call the boss to get some help, who is mandating “the Wolf” to get it fixed.

 The Wolf on stage, a collection of crisis management “must have”

 1. Being available and trustworthy, whatever the time and situation

When picking-up the phone, Wolfe is participating in kind of casual party in a luxury house. Whilst it is the morning, we can assume he was there for the full night. However when rang by the boss, somehow his customer, he is 100% focus. Of course for the need of the movie, he is on the line live. But nobody doubts that if someone leave a message on his answering machine, it will not remain unattended for long. Actually the idea that he couldn’t own the job didn’t even cross Jules’ mind when Marsellus told him he will send the Wolf.  

The reliability, also strongly pointed out with humor in the movie, is indeed a key skill. The fixer is located at a 30-minute drive from Jimmy’s house but he is stating that he will arrive within 10 minutes… And actually 9 minutes 37 seconds later we can see a car rushing at the corner of the street and then braking heavily in front of the entrance path. One needs to feel safe with the commitment taken by the crisis manager, his assertion is not an assumption, it is something that he will make happen. 

 2. Collecting relevant information

Sitting in the bedroom of the villa, Wolfe receives a short brief of the issue. Listening to his interlocutor he is taking notes on a tiny notepad the way Columbo would have done it in the seventies eponymous drama. It may looks quite old fashion but there are however two takeaways in this scene. First, Wolfe is unquestionably an experienced tough professional with an above the normal intelligence and ability to handle pressure but he doesn’t take the risk to forgot a useful information enabling to win time in the field. We can for example see that he is taking notes of the skin color of the people to identify them first hand and of the fact that the body may have no head. Second having this notepad in hands is also a way to make people comfortable when arriving on-site: the guy is here with a clear overview of the situation and a professional approach.

It makes sense to mention here that the quality of the information provided by the one calling for help is also a matter of importance. Anyone who had run the hotline at 911 or welcomed people at ER knows it for sure: in such situation people are often confused. In our logistics business, we have a huge advantage here as we can define before hand the process and checklist we want the caller to fulfill when submitting us a problem. This preliminary step is too often neglected. 

3. Being quiet and assess a situation from a material and human perspective

A problem is even more easy to solve that it is well defined. When Wolfe arrives at Jimmy’s place he starts by quietly wrapping-up his understanding of the situation asking Jimmy for confirmation that his wife will be back in the next 40 minutes. As he feels the car – and especially its cleansing – will be a sensitive topic and as Vincent and Jules look reluctant to talk about it, he takes on him to put the point on the table. He does it a smooth but firm way. This is also a “must have” in a crisis situation: being able to detect pitfalls or pain points and ensure they don’t stay hidden. Purpose is to solve the situation not to blame anyone.

Even If the emergency requires swift decisions, Wolfe also shows here its consideration for Jimmy’s concern: having the mess clean before his wife eventually comes back. There is two ways to construe his behavior, both probably being true. First, he doesn’t want to see a new issue – here an additional witness – surging. Second, he perfectly knows that solving a problem is not just a mechanical clinic process, it is also a question of people. And showing empathy often results in people being more engaged as they feel understood. 

 4. Defining priority, taking decision and giving directions

Since the situation is drawn and the pain points identified, mainly in very this scene to camouflage the blood, brain and skull chunks on the back seat , it is now time to act. Here again Wolfe’s brief is a model of efficiency. Short sentences and directions, nothing fancy and no eccentricity. Resources are limited and the solution cannot be perfect. He is not a magician, he solves problems. He has 3 people on top of himself so he allocates rationally the actions so that everybody as a role to play in a clear sequence of tasks. When challenged by Vincent, ones would say an irrelevant way, he keeps is nerves and just refocus everybody on the target. It is not time for arguing but for delivering.

It is good to note here that the fixer is not here to do everything, he is here to ensure that everything is properly organized to hit the target and the team keep focused.

 5. Knowing the right person for the right task, and growing network

A big strength for a crisis manager is definitely to know a bunch of people being able to support in a wide range of situation… In logistics, it might be knowing the right person at a warehouse who can get it opened at night for a transshipment, the right person at the customs to issue a T1 at night, the stationmaster who can open a railway to access a wagon from a dock or even a volunteer to fly 20 hours on a moment’s notice to organize an On-Board Carriage (I confirm all these examples are taken from real life). Actually conceptualizing a solution is often the easy part of the job, implementing it is the most difficult as problems have the bad habit of emerging at night or during the weekend, and as much as possible in a remote location. To illustrate it In Pulp Fiction, Wolfe know the perfect location to scrap the car – and its “passenger” on the minute and with no questions.

As people are key, growing a network is a must. Once again Wolfe is inspiring here. From the M. Wolfe of his introduction to Vincent and Jules, he became once issue fixed, Winston. And no doubt that as it was a pleasure to watch his job, to paraphrase Jules, both of them would be a support to him in the future if asked for.

 A word of conclusion

 Of course GEFCO 4PL is not dealing with this kind of business, but fixing tricky issues on the rush is our daily job… And preventing stopping a plant is for sure a stressful matter of emergency. So let’s keep the lessons from Winston Wolfe – drinking coffee aside – to face sudden borders closure, capacity issues for freight from Asia or strengthened customs controls after the Brexit. Our control towers crews are maybe not movies heroes, but they share and can activate the same kind of skills… A key difference however, they don’t have a stack of cash, “Courtesy of Uncle [GEFCO]”, to put on the table to ease things!