Crisis management lessons from the volcanic ash cloud

The disruption caused by the recent volcanic ash cloud laid bare the crisis management plans not just of airlines and airports, but also every organisation whose people found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. Many organisations found this very hard to manage, and an article in the Economist highlights some of the risk management lessons to be learned from the incident.

As the article states, “volcanic ash billowing slowly across Europe probably did not feature in the risk management scenarios of many firms”. True enough, so what does this mean for crisis planning: should the conventional approach to risk assessment be torn up? No, but it does mean that the organisation needs to be ready for the completely unexpected crisis as well as the more predictable incident.

By this, I mean that conventional risk assessment – identifying the most likely events and their impact on the business – to guide scenario and contingency planning should endure. A food company that has no plan to deal with product contamination or an airline which lacks a protocol to manage a plane crash is foolhardy in the extreme.

So, planning for predictable, high impact risks is essential. But in addition, organisations need to plan for the unexpected crisis by focusing on the effect of a high impact crisis, not just its cause. During the recent incident, organisations that had already planned for a scenario of no flights in Europe for several days were ahead of those that failed to countenance this event. No one could have predicted that the cause of this might have been volcanic ash – it could have been a terrorist incident or a safety fear about all Boeing 737s for example – but that does not prevent planning for the effect of such an incident.

In tandem with this effect-led approach to crisis planning, organisations must also focus more strongly on the people element of crisis management. In a recent blog, I emphasised the importance of the human-factor in effective crisis management, and I make no apologies for raising the point again in this context. Well briefed, thoroughly trained, regularly rehearsed teams will make good decisions in a crisis, whatever the incident may be. The crisis manual may not cover volcanic ash, but the team will have the skills and insight to make the right decisions in any case.

I must also make mention again of the role of the organisational spokesperson. They are the face of the organisation at a time of heightened public anxiety and microscopic scrutiny and are crucial in risk communication and reputation protection. So, if we really value our organisation’s reputation, they must be carefully selected and undertake thorough and regular media training.

In this case, we saw multiple spokespeople from organisations including the airlines, the Met Office, National Air Traffic Services, travel companies and of course government: some were certainly more effective than others. Their success was based not just on the content of their argument, but crucially the ability of their spokespeople to communicate effectively. Any organisation that has not yet woken up to this fact needs to take action now, before the next crisis – volcanic ash or otherwise – emerges over the horizon.

How to avoid getting lost in the crisis wilderness

I recently stumbled upon an excellent blog posting by Peter Bregman, a management and leadership consultant, in the Harvard Business Review. It told of an expedition into the wilderness and how the party became lost by following a pre-defined trail rather than adapting their route based on their current situation and surroundings. Peter used the experience to illustrate how businesses can become fixated with their “plan”, ignoring opportunities which might have taken them to their destination much more quickly.

This analogy is especially true with regard to crisis management. Some organisations don’t bother planning for crises at all: they just cling tightly to their four-leaved clover and hope that bad things happen to the next man rather than them. Others take the time to develop a thorough crisis manual: hopefully it’s not too detailed or else it will never work in the heat of the incident (the most comprehensive and meticulous crisis manual that I have ever seen was awe-inspiring in its completeness, but ultimately ornamental rather than actionable in a crisis). And the most enlightened businesses also invest in regular crisis training and rehearsal.

Great processes and a well-trained team is the perfect combination: given the choice of one or the other, I’d go for the well-trained team every time. I know that skilled leadership and superb teamwork can bring an organisation through a crisis unscathed, even without a plan. A perfect plan without these qualities is never enough.

Peter’s blog reminded me of the criticality of crisis training – desktop exercises, media training, full simulations, briefings for front-line staff and so on – in order to protect the business from reputational harm. Because when you’re in the wilderness and a crisis strikes, a plan is very helpful, but it’s your people that will keep you safe.

Breaking the golden rule of crisis management

I used to believe the golden rule of crisis management: in a serious situation, the chief executive should always be the media spokesperson. Not any more.

Over the last year I’ve seen too many examples of chief executives making situations worse via their media appearance to be able to cling to this principle any longer. Of course, it can be an incredibly powerful way of communicating the right messages and showing leadership when the business needs it most. When the chief executive takes to the airwaves, high expectations are set: this most senior business person will surely come across as credible, confident and reassuring, the ultimate professional? And of course this is exactly why the corporation puts him (it usually is him) forward in the first place. Fielding the chief executive for a media interview underlines the seriousness with which you are taking the situation, your level of concern and your commitment to put it right. If your CEO has the ability to pull this off, then great. There’s nothing better than a business leader demonstrating responsibility at a time of crisis.

But what about if he fails to meet the mark? What about if he comes across as pompous or cold or nervous or defensive or uncaring? What about if he seems incapable of speaking in clear, simple down to earth language, free of jargon? What if his body language is so distracting that no one actually listens to the words he is saying? In any of these circumstances, one has to question whether the company is doing the right thing in offering up the CEO or MD for media interview.

And this conclusion is drawn not just from the perspective of the company, but also from that of anyone affected by the crisis. At a time of heightened concern, especially when safety or health may be a concern, it is vital that people receive clear, accurate information so that they can respond in the appropriate way. It’s not fair on them to put forward someone who cannot meet these critieria.

So, how do we address this? The first step is to identify the latent skill of the senior management team. This requires a media training session with senior managers to identify strengths and weaknesses, potential stars - and those that are simply not cut out for a media career. Thinking about the chief executive in particular, it is clear that he will be called upon to communicate on a regular basis, so whatever his basic skill level a programme to hone and enhance this is essential. Communication skills training plus one to one coaching are likely to provide the best solution.

This auditing of capability and constant improvement of skills enables you to put forward the right person in the right situation. If your CEO turns out to be a star, so much the better. If not, far better to put forward the sales director, head of HR or whomever else to represent the business in the event of a crisis. Doing so serves not only to protect your reputation but also to ensure that people get the information they need.