The business owners and the management of all the companies try to run their business in the best possible way and try to save it from any situation or circumstances not good for its financial health. They have to act proactively and keep in mind that if anything can go wrong it will. That’s the reason companies spend millions of dollars in making certain they don’t run into trouble. But as stated earlier, things do go wrong and that’s what blog is all about; offering you the insight as what can go wrong and how to deal with it through crisis management.
There are many ways any firm, company or business entity regardless of its size and nature can run into crisis. Even city / state governments or a whole country’s financial system melts down if it is unable to pay off its debt or for many other reasons. This has happened with many countries in the recent past like Greece and Ireland. The scale of the crisis also varies with the resources and capital having a say. Smart managers or top management can benefit greatly by incorporating some project management methodologies according to their needs. In this blog now, I will try to list 5 ways that you can assume in which a crisis can unfold. Don’t take these assumptions as a proven formula for the success but rather will guide in a direction that you will feel comfortable to the point where you will definitely feel you are out of the crisis. 1. Assume the Problem is Worse than it Appears There is a common mistake by most managers or even the top management not identifying or admitting that a problem really exists until it is turned into a mammoth. This can be extremely dangerous for any business as by the time you have realized something is wrong it will be out of hand. Like a raging fire through a forest, the situation can be out of control or prove fatal. So before it goes out of hand, take action as mentioned in the following paragraph. Managers and owners of any business entity need to skip the denial phase and get into a mindset that whatever has happened can ruin your operations or even the whole business in a matter of few days or weeks. Right from the start take the matter very seriously and go for the remedy. Don’t wait for the matter to get messier and nastier and instead focus on ways through which you can turn the tables and go for the kill right at the onset. 2. Assume that Everything you are Trying to Hide will Eventually be Revealed A very serious issue and most of the times the reason behind the eventual downfall of any venture is that the management initially try to hide the problem as a big national secret and doesn’t let anyone know about it. They guard the problem with no leaks whatsoever and within a short span of time the problem is eventually known to all and becomes an embarrassment for the management. Thus the problem should be known to all right from the start. The containment of the information in the start can be termed as a cardinal sin for many reasons. The most important one is to reveal the scope and magnitude of the problem to everyone until it is done by someone else which again is embarrassing to any manager or owner. So don’t ever try to clamp down on the information and reveal everything to the concerned personnel. 3. Assume your Handling of the Problem will be Heavily Criticized There is a common saying that you can’t make everyone happy. This can’t be more applied to this situation that I am about to discuss now. From the workers to the clients and then the media, you should be ready to face criticism from all corners. The reason is simple; no one will understand your viewpoint until you clearly give them the reasons. Even then, there will be one or two people not fully satisfied. You have to leave them and move on with your job. There can be tough opposition of your assessment of the problem and most of the times the managers or upper management have to face the music from inside the company. The employees need to be addressed about the problem but that shouldn’t derail you from the way you are handling the problem. Be positive in your approach and make sure you handle it with grace and complete it in the time duration as decided in the meetings. 4. Assume there will be Changes in Processes and People There will be bad blood between the employees when you are dealing with crisis management as tough and unpopular decisions are taken in this regard. A real problem will not fade away in a matter of few hours or days. You have to dig deep in order to make sure you are in command of the situation and that too with several processes changed overnight and the people also changing sides whom you can count on blindly just a few days ago. The true management of the crisis require solutions that change or overhaul current processes or introduce totally new ones. Can be tough on the lower staff and workers not ready to accept the change or not able to adapt to it in the required time. It can be even career threatening for some but it is a ruthless world and that’s how businesses work these days. Use of a task tool or software with regard to a particular issue can also be handy in certain scenarios. 5. Assume your Organization will Survive for Sure Every crisis in your career will make you smarter and more skilled in dealing with them. This assumption is all about thinking positively and always be optimistic about the impending chaos on the work. Keep this aspect in mind that you will come out stronger from the crisis and will manage it better or won’t let it happen ever again. The entire period during a crisis of any sort make you pray for the period to end soon. The entire episode leaves you exhausted by the time it ends but gives you valuable experience that you can use in the same scenario in future. So always keep faith in your abilities and the crisis will past with somewhat ease otherwise you’ll experience when hell of a time. Conclusion In the end, all I want to say is that you have to keep calm during a turbulent time in your company and stay focused on the ways to address the problem. You will be amazed by the results of your positive attitude in this regard and the next crisis will pass like a breeze.
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April 2017
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