Leadership during a crisis

Dealing with a crisis is the ultimate test of your leadership skills

Leadership during a crisis is sadly a very topical issue at the moment. The economic emergency has already brought down a president, and there is still some way to go before we can say we have resolved the issues. It will be for historians to decide if there were any decisions that could have averted these events, but they are a reminder for leaders everywhere to consider how they would respond to a crisis.

It is fair to say that no leader is ever truly ready for an emergency, but that there is a set of skills and a mindset they can learn that will help them deal with it in the most effective way possible. That means all of us in leadership positions would do well to consider these skills now, before we have to put them into practice.

Every crisis you’ll face as a leader is unique and will require its own unique remedies. That said, here are some basic principles you can apply to set one on the right path.

Establish the facts

First of all, one must establish the facts. That is easy to say, but in the early stages of a real crisis it is extremely challenging. You may find yourself being given conflicting or incomplete information. You will almost certainly have to rely on your own judgement and experience to make sense of it all and to fill in the gaps. Nonetheless, you will need an analysis of what is happening, why it is happening and what the probable consequences are before you can begin to formulate your response. You will need to form this analysis relatively quickly or the situation will rapidly slip away from you.

Use your analytical skills

It is paramount that you use your leadership position to its full extent to develop this analysis. The people who report to you will know their own areas. It is your responsibility to join the dots and see how everything is connected. Finance professionals such as myself spend a great deal of time on systems thinking, and this is where it can really pay off. If a leader does not step forward and bring everything together at the analytical stage, there is little prospect of developing a successful crisis response.

Who you surround yourself with matters

Make sure you have gathered the right people around you, and that you are hearing all the relevant views. Once you have a strong core response team your job is to decide on the best course of action available under the circumstances. 

This can be painful. Quick decisions may need to be taken, which may not be popular decisions and not everyone will like the outcomes. If sacrifices need to be made it must be clear that they are in the service of a greater purpose. And that leads to perhaps the most important part of crisis leadership, namely clear, honest and consistent communication.

Communication is critical

If there is a rule of thumb for communicating in a crisis it is simply this; the most senior person in an organisation should tell the whole truth at the earliest possible opportunity. Your team, the people affected by the crisis and all the other stakeholders do not expect miracles. 

They know that things are exceedingly difficult. What they need is a clear understanding that you have gripped the situation and that you are implementing an effective plan to fix it. 

If you demonstrate this through every means you have available, and you can carry most people with you, even in difficult circumstances. 

Should there be any hint of evasion, doubt or untruth it is very likely that you will lose them permanently. Hopefully you will be able to grip and ease the crisis. My final piece of advice is not to assume that means your work on it is done. Make sure you develop a plan for rebuilding in the longer-term, so people can be reassured that whatever happened will not happen again, there are some robust systems and processes in place and that there is a good team working on this.

Dealing with a crisis is the ultimate test of your leadership skills. It is the time to step up and exercise responsibility. Have a clear mind and a good sequence of actions. 

Perform well and as you look back, it could even be a part of your career that you consider an accomplishment to be proud of.

(The writer is President - CIMA and Co-Chair of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, representing AICPA and CIMA)