Sunday Readings: A Crises Within A Crises

We’d felt a bit of weight lifted off our shoulders by June 2020 with restrictions and the pandemic alike somewhat easing up . Both the general number of Covid cases and what we’d thus far observed in showed us that July and August would go smoother. One Saturday night, my and my family ate out and enjoyed ourselves.

One needs to approach any major crisis with care and look long term. Any mistake you make during one can have critical consequences. You may need to take immediate action whilst being quick and prudent… or else! Going back to dinner, apparently that evening trouble was looming around the corner. I found myself facing one of the most challenging crises of career that wasn’t related to the pandemic at all.

At around 8 p.m., our security manager called me and told me that our security guards had had noticed smoke bellowing out of our Ankara office. Still, they’d called the fire department as well as contacted all the managers. It was not the kind of news anyone wants to receive in the middle of a nice supper. I panicked - just then, our operations director called me. By the grace of God, I how my team well, and how each person is likely to deal with such situations. Anyways, that director I just mentions is experienced, wise, and neither exaggerates nor simplifies matters. He’d apparently talked with building manager, then called me to say things could turn ugly. I decided to head to Ankara immediately at that point. By 8: 30 – smack in the middle of month 5 of the pandemic – we found ourselves in the middle of another crisis: our third biggest operations building was on fire.?

Safety First

I set off for Ankara with our Istanbul-Anatolia and Istanbul-Thrace regional managers as well as our Director of Operations. ?We also contacted our friends there as things unfolded to make sure they were safe and sound. Thank God this had happened Saturday – there were few people in the building to begin with. Nevertheless, even the smallest negligence could’ve led to a catastrophe. In the end, the fire brigade came to our rescue and put the flames out. Better still, no one was injured in the process. That said, our whole team had rushed on scene anyways just in case they were able help. Still, we’d thought of their first, and told them not to approach anything until we got there.

Always Brace For The Worst!?

Based on what everyone on the ground had told us, we assumed that the building was too far damaged to function properly ever again. Moreover, we hadn’t ourselves yet arrived. Likewise, our staff was busy trying to assess the damage. Eventually, we arrived at 12:30 in the morning. By then, everyone that put together various lists for us: How many packages there were in the the building, possible damaged packages, temporary equipment on standby for worst-case scenario, and vehicles destined for Ankara… among other things. Here at UPS, we live by the motto: “Expect the unexpected!” Our staff wouldn’t have been able to put all that together in just four were it not for that. It makes us more flexible, period.

?Spot The Target!?

By the time we’d arrived, the firemen were still at work putting the fire out. A number of our employees were also on scene and starching their heads as to what to do. The atmosphere was such that I ended up hugging people – something I’d not done since the pandemic broke out. Next, we briefly surveyed everything and concluded that the building was no longer usable.?I then had to give everyone one of the most difficult statements of my life (thus far): “We’ve just all lost our home – and for that I’m truly sorry. Still, thank you all for coming out and showing genuine concern. Let’s call it a night, though. We’ll be back at seven, tomorrow morning to begin rebuilding.”

Crisis Management: One Step At A Time!

By the time dawm came around, everyone convened in the outbuilding – the only unit left unscathed. Support teams from both Istanbul and Ankara were waiting for us there. We eventually to decide upon handing crisis over four stages: (1) Re-direct packages bound for Ankara and distribute them on Monday. Also, send out any undamaged ones that were still present in the building. (2) Come up with a temporary solution for our operations that’d get us through a month or so. Luckily, the weather was working in our favor. (3) Re-locate somewhere else so that we could continue operations again on a more permanent basis. (4) Contact customers about damaged goods and then follow things up. We’d put a couple of people in change of each stage, as well.

Group 1 did what was expected of them and had everything ready by Monday morning. Local agencies and business partners lent them a helping hand to so that distribution would go smoothly. Group 2 was tasked with setting temporary operation center in the parking lot between Monday and Tuesday. They managed to pull off the impossible, and with immense dedication to boot. Our business partners and engineers didn’t fall short in assisting them either.

Group 3 found a new location just 48 hours after the whole ordeal and then prepared to set up shop. They’d spent the better part of Sunday scouting out a warehouse to rent (in Ankara). ??Lastly, group 4 did as it was told to do, too – i.e. contacting customers and so on.

?We worked like busy bees out of a temp center in our old building’s parking lot for some 16 days. By day 17, we had a new building waiting for us. How we pulled it all off is still beyond us, but it just goes to show what swift leadership can do. It’s like knowing you’ve got strong muscles, but never realizing just how strong they are until you put them to action. Likewise, this crisis had shown us what our UPS team was really capable of.?

?I’d pointed out in my previous articles that there’s no such thing as too much communication. On the Monday after the fire, I’d made a video for our employees to dispel any misinformation (meanwhile our couriers were zipping around the city). By August 28, we were celebrating Founders Day in Ankara with the whole team, as we do every year. This crisis within a crisis made us resilient.

In my opinion, the best way to overcome crises by getting “together,” “stronger,” and “wiser.” If you can grasp that, then you can find great opportunity within.?

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?(TR)

“Kriz” ??inde Acil Bir Kriz!?

?Pandeminin üzerimizdeki etkilerinin ve tedbirlerin azalmas? ile birlikte Haziran 2020'den sonra biraz rahatlamaya ba?lam??t?k, gerek genel vaka say?lar?n?n seyri gerekse ?irketteki g?zlemimiz temmuz ve a?ustos ay?n?n biraz daha rahat gitti?i y?nündeydi. Biz de e?im ve o?lum ile birlikte, bir cumartesi günü keyifli bir restoranda ak?am yeme?i i?in oturmu?, keyifli vakit ge?iriyorduk.

Baz? krizler -Covid gibi- ?nem vermeniz, uzun vadeli yakla?man?z gereken ve yap?lan hatalar?n ?nemli sonu?lar do?urabilece?i krizlerdir. Baz?lar?nda acil aksiyon alman?z gerekir, h?zl? ve sa?duyulu olmak zorundas?n?zd?r, aksi durumda sonu?lar? ?ok a??r olabilir.

?Ak?am yeme?inin sonuna do?ru gelirken genel olarak ?nemli bir kriz d?nemi olan pandeminin tam ortas?nda profesyonel hayat?m?n en zorlu krizi ile kar??la?aca??m? tahmin etmiyordum.?Saat 20:00 sular?nda ?nce Güvenlik Müdürümüz arad?, Ankara'daki binam?zda güvenli?in bir duman tespit etti?ini, itfaiyeye haber verildi?ini, bina y?neticileri ile irtibata ge?ildi?ini s?yledi. Güzel bir ak?am yeme?inde almak istemeyece?iniz bir haberdi, tam modum dü?mü? konuyu zihnimde tartarken Operasyon Direkt?rümüz arad?. Ekibinizdeki herkesin tonunu, hangi duruma nas?l bir a??rl?k verece?ini bilirsiniz, bir tart?n?z olu?ur zamanla. Operasyon Direkt?rümüz tecrübeli, temkinli, konuyu ne gereksiz büyüten, ne basite alan birisidir. Yang?n?n ciddi bir boyut alabilece?ini, binaya varan y?netmenimizle yapt??? telefon konu?mas? sonra beni arayarak aktar?yordu. O k?sa konu?ma ile birlikte hemen Ankara'ya hareket etmeye karar verdik. Cumartesi ak?am? 20:15’te, Covid krizinin 5’inci ay?nda, Ankara'da -Türkiye'deki 3’üncü büyük operasyon binam?z- ciddi yang?n oldu?u haberi ile yepyeni bir krizin i?inde bulduk kendimizi.?

??nce Güvenlik

Ben ?stanbul Anadolu Yakas? B?lge Müdürümüz ile, Operasyon Direkt?rümüz de Avrupa Yakas? B?lge Müdürümüz ile birlikte yola ??kt?k. Sahadaki arkada?lar?m?z ile anbean irtibat kurarak binada bulunabilecek tüm arkada?lar?m?z?n güvenliklerinden emin olduk. Cumartesi ak?am? olmas? büyük ?anst? ancak g?zden ka?an kü?ücük bir ihmal büyük bir felakete sebep olabilirdi. ?tfaiye ekiplerinin gü?lü ?abas? ile yang?n kimse zarar g?rmeden atlat?ld?. Binam?zda ?al??an tüm ekibimiz ülke insan?m?z has bir gayret ile binaya ko?mu?, ellerinden bir ?ey gelir mi diye binaya gelmi?lerdi. ?nceli?imiz ekibimizin?sa?l??? idi ve kesinlikle binaya kimsenin yakla?mamas? konusunda yol boyunca ekiple irtibatta idik.?

?En K?tüye Haz?r Ol!?

Sahadan ald???m?z bildirimler binan?n operasyon yapmaya imkan olmayacak ?ekilde hasar alm?? olabilece?ini dü?ündürmeye ba?lad?. Bir yandan ?stanbul'dan Ankara'ya gidiyor, bir yandan tüm fonksiyon liderlerimiz kendi alan?na ili?kin durumu belirlemeye ?al???yordu. Biz 00:30'da Ankara binam?za vard???m?zda binada bulunan tüm paketlerin listesi, muhtemelen hasarlanan paket adetleri & listeleri, en k?tü ?artlara haz?rl?kl? olabilmek ad?nage?ici operasyon i?in ihtiya? duyabilece?imiz tüm ekipman listeleri ve nereden tedarik edebilece?imiz, Ankara'ya do?ru hareket edecek ara?larla ilgili planlama durumumuz haz?rd?. UPS olarak i? güvenli?i e?itimlerinde s?kl?kla kulland???m?z bir mottomuz var: "Beklenmeyeni bekle" (Expect the unexpected). Ekibimizin 4 saat gibi bir sürede b?ylesine bir haz?rl?k yapabilmesi her ekibin harc? de?ildir. Ger?ekten UPS kültürünün bizlere katt??? bu yetkinlik bizi ?ok daha ?evik liderler haline getiriyor.?

?Hedefi Belirle!?

00:30'da Ankara'ya vard???m?zda itfaiye ekipleri so?utma ?al??malar?na devam ediyordu. ?? yerleri ile ilgili olumsuz haberi alan onlarca ?al??an?m?z cumartesi ev hali ile binan?n ?nüne gelmi?, ellerinden ne gelebilir onu dü?ünüyorlard?. Covid ba?lad???ndan beri ailem d???nda hi? kimseye sar?lmam??ken, o kadar duyusal bir an ya?ad?k ki, bir?ok arkada?la sar?ld?k, bu zor durumda birbirimize omuz verdik. K?sa bir saha incelemesi sonras?nda binan?n kullan?lamayacak halde oldu?unu g?zlerimizle de g?rmü? olduk. Binaya gelen ekibi toplad?k, hayat?mdaki en zor konu?malardan birisi idi: "Bugün yuvam?z dedi?iniz ekmek kap?n?z? kaybettiniz, ge?mi? olsun. ?lginize, sahiplenmenize ?ok te?ekkür ederiz. ?imdi herkes evine gitsin, yar?n sabah saat 7:00'da Ankara UPS operasyonunu yeniden in?a etmek i?in burada olaca??z, ?imdi ?nceli?imiz UPS Ankara'y? yeniden diriltmek"?

?Kriz Y?netimi; Her Seferinde, Tek Ad?m!

Bu zorlu gece sonras? sabah binan?n hasar almam?? ek binas?nda saat 7:00'da tüm ekip bir araya geldik. Hem Ankara'daki ekip hem de ?stanbul'dan gelen destek ekipleri haz?rd?. Krizi d?rde b?lerek y?netmemiz gerekti?ine karar verdik: (1) Ankara'ya hedeflenen ve pazartesi da??t?lmas? gereken paketler, binada zarar g?rmemi? paketlerin teslimat?n?n planlanmas?. (2) En az 2 maksimum 4 hafta -hava ?artlar? avantaj?m?zd?- idare edecek ?ge?ici bir ??züm. (3) Kal?c? olarak da i?imizi sürdürebilece?imiz alternatif bir yerin bulunmas?. (4) Yang?nda zayi olan paketlerle ilgili mü?teri koordinasyonu ve gerekli resmi i?lemlerin takibi. Bu d?rt ana hedef i?in birer lider belirledik ve hepsinin ?nceliklerini olu?turduk.?

?Birinci grubun hedefi pazartesi da??t?labilecek Ankara'ya hedefli tüm paketlerin pazartesi sabah?na kadar haz?r edilmesiydi. B?lgedeki acentalar?m?zdan, i? ortaklar?m?zdan destek alarak tüm haz?rl?klar? tamamlad?lar ve Ankara ekibimiz ara?lar? ile da??t?ma, pazartesi her zamanki saatlerinde ??kabildiler.? ?kinci grup i?in hedef pazartesiyi sal?ya ba?layan gece saatine kadar otoparkta ge?ici bir operasyon yap?s? kurmakt?. ?nan?lmaz bir ?zveri ile ?al??an i? ortaklar?m?z ve mühendislik ekibimiz inan?lmaz? ger?ekle?tirmeyi ba?ard?lar.?

?ü?üncü grubun hedefi kal?c? bir alternatif bulmakt?. Diyebilirim ki, o pazar günü Ankara'da kiralanabilir tüm depolar? gezdik, de?erlendirdik. Yang?ndan 48 saat sonra hangi binay? tutaca??m?z? belirlemi? ve ne yap?lmas? gerekti?ini proje ekibimiz projelendirmi?ti.?

D?rdüncü grup da yang?n ile ilgili konular?, paketleri hasarlanan & yanan mü?terilerimiz ile irtibatlar? koordine edecek ekibimizdi.?

?nan?lmaz bir sahiplenme ve ?zveri ile 16 gün boyunca, eski binam?z?n otopark?nda ?yer alan ge?ici alanda operasyonumuzu devam ettirdikten sonra sadece 17 günde tamamlanan binam?zda operasyona ba?lad?k. ?imdi halen nas?l ba?arabildi?imiz birbirimize dahi anlatam?yoruz ancak gü?lendirilmi? ?evik liderli?in (Empowered Agile Leadership) neleri ba?arabilece?ine san?r?m bu olaydan daha mükemmel bir ?rnek olamaz. Hangi kas?n?z?n gü?lü oldu?unu bilirsiniz ama kullanmadan gücünüzün fark?nda de?ilsinizdir. Bu kriz, bana UPS ekibinin ne denli ?evik oldu?unu g?steren inan?lmaz bir ?rnek oldu.?

Ge?en yaz?mda belirtti?im üzere fazlas? zararl? olmayan tek ?ey ileti?im, yang?ndan sonraki pazartesi sabah? kuryelerimiz da??t?ma ??karlarken ben de k?sa bir video ile kulaktan dolma bilgilerle k?tümser dü?üncelere kap?labilecek ?al??anlar?m?za ne durumda oldu?umuzu izah ediyordum. Her y?l 28 A?ustos'ta kutlad???m?z kurucular günümüzü de (Founders Day) tüm ekip Ankara binam?zda kutlad?k, bu "Kriz i?inde kriz" bizi daha da gü?lendirdi.?

?Krizler ile ilgili benim ?l?ütüm, krizlerden daha "birlikte", "gü?lü" ve "bilge" ??kabiliyorsan?z krizi heba etmemi?siniz demektir.?

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