Planning for Crisis and Emergency Management Success

QUARTERLY BRIEFING

December, 2024

?“Next week there can’t be any crisis. My schedule is already full.” - Henry Kissinger

Kissinger’s remark highlights a key truth: in the world of business, crises are inevitable. In the VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) environment we operate in, unpredictability reigns.

At Mettle Global, we are recognised experts in crisis, incident, and emergency management. Through decades of experience, we know that the best way to handle these unknown and unknowable situations is with a clear, structured approach, anchored by leadership, to turn chaos into controlled and focused action.

At its heart, crisis management is simply teamwork under pressure. Therefore, there must be a clear focus on leadership, applying a "leader-of-leaders" mindset to make decisions that enable your organisation to move faster than stakeholder speed.?

Fast, clear, and consistent communication is essential to prevent further escalation. Like dancing with a tiger, crisis management requires careful, skilled coordination - one misstep could make things worse. ? The Crisis Management Mindset: Leadership + Teamwork + Resilience Effective crisis management isn’t about a single decision-maker.

It’s about creating a leader of leader’s structure where teams are empowered to make decisions swiftly. Leadership in a crisis is about trust, decentralised decision-making, and ensuring everyone is aligned on priorities. ?

Teamwork is essential. A team of team’s model, where emergency, incident, and crisis management teams collaborate closely, ensures that responses are efficient and effective, no matter how complex the situation.

“I was most effective when I supervised processes – from intelligence operations to the prioritization of resources – ensuring that we avoided the silos or bureaucracy that doomed agility, rather than making individual operational decisions.”?General Stanley McChrystal ?

Lastly, individual and collective resilience is vital. Stress, anxiety and pressure will always be part of the equation, but with the right preparation and resilience-building techniques, teams can stay focused and effective under pressure. It is important to remember that unaddressed stress in yourself (and in others in the team), will certainly prevent you from performing effectively. If you do not address the stress, it will shift attention away from the moment or situation, you will find it more difficult to concentrate and you will start to second guess your decisions. ?

Planning, Practice and Rehearsals

Plans and procedures are necessary, but they must be lean, practical, and regularly rehearsed. At Mettle Global, we make sure that crisis, emergency and incident management plans are not just "shelfware", but actively practiced and refined to ensure teams can act swiftly when the need arises. They must be ordered to ensure the team of teams structure delivers effective results without any loss of efficiency. We understand that crisis management is just teamwork under pressure.

With a clear structure, empowered teams, and a focus on resilience, businesses can navigate any crisis and emerge stronger. In the jungle of business, crises are inevitable, but with the right approach, they can be turned into opportunities for growth and success. ?

Stay tuned for the upcoming revised edition of our book The Art of Crisis Leadership, where we’ll offer you a deep dive into the proven strategies and best practices essential for mastering effective crisis management. You can also reach out to our team for a free, confidential discussion on your organisation’s crisis and emergency management needs: [email protected].?

Regards,

Tim Curtis

Director, Mettle Global