A leader’s skills, acumen and character are often put to the test during times of crisis. Some leaders may falter under the pressure of a sudden financial downturn, a reputational issue or an unforeseen operational setback. However, a resilient and adaptable leader can keep their business going during challenging times and steer the organization toward recovery and growth.
Below, 12 members of Forbes Coaches Council reflect on the most effective approaches to crisis management they have seen. Read on to explore key lessons leaders have learned during tough times and the wisdom that can be gleaned from such pivotal experiences.
1. Embrace Change To Find Growth
An example of navigating a crisis comes from a client who had built a seven-figure business and found herself at a plateau. She reached out for help, and with coaching, she redefined her leadership role, mission and values. External results followed, with her business hitting eight figures 18 months later. We didn’t just treat symptoms or put a Band-Aid on operations; we reassessed the company’s leadership foundation. – Lisa Marie Platske, Upside Thinking, Inc.
2. Be Transparent With Your Team
I know a CEO and founder whose business was in-person-only leadership training. When Covid-19 hit, their business came to a standstill. After the first few sessions were canceled, he knew things were going to get worse. Rather than panicking, he explained the truth. He told the team they would lose everything, but that this was a chance to build a new product. We need to be transparent with people. – Alex Draper, DX Learning Solutions
3. Put Culture And People First
People are the backbone of your company. Your culture determines your success. Navigating through a crisis with a perspective and mindset of confidence and determination will guide you to the shore in any rough seas. – Kathleen Polscer, Coach In the Pearl, Center for Executive Coaching
4. Acknowledge The Wins And Losses
One client had a massive failure after a huge investment of energy and resources. Rather than ignoring the feelings around failure, she learned to acknowledge the disappointment and frustration. Her new approach: Communicate. State facts first, then state observations that while the team didn’t succeed in this, they succeeded in coming together and doing their best. State what’s next and thank your people! – Kathleen Shanley, Statice
5. Take A Leap And Stay Positive
During the Covid lockdown, the owner of a seminar company had to shift all live events to online. He did not wait for things to be perfect. He started the first event within three days, and the technical setup was very poor. He continuously appreciated everyone’s effort and input, never apologized for a “bad technical setup” and kept sharing how grateful he was that everyone gave their best to help the company move on. – David Kubes, Access Consciousness Leadership
6. Accept Feedback; Step Out Of Your Comfort Zone
A newly promoted president of a hospital and regional leader for multiple healthcare organizations had to navigate the challenge of the pandemic while transitioning to larger responsibilities. They struggled with being more strategic, agile and adaptable in learning to work for the board of directors. They had to learn how to be open to feedback, identify growth and step out of their comfort zone. – Alba Contreras Rodriguez, FONS LLC
7. Provide Unhappy Employees With Appealing Alternatives
One of my managers gave his resignation. He felt he was not utilizing his IT skills and wanted to risk exploring a role elsewhere during a recession. I gave him an alternative to collaborate with corporate IT on a programming project. He did an amazing job, received accolades and moved to IT. Leaders need to provide opportunities and help employees avoid career mistakes that could jeopardize families. – Dr. Adil Dalal, Pinnacle Process Solutions, Intl., LLC
8. Take A Radically Human And Pragmatic Approach
I coached multiple leaders through the early days of Covid. The leaders who were most effective during this time were radically human and pragmatic. These leaders shared how the crisis was impacting them on the human level and were in tune with how it was impacting others. They were pragmatic about business outcomes without being too hopeful or discouraging. These are long-lasting lessons. – Jill Helmer, Jill Helmer Consulting
9. Have A Crisis Management Plan
For most incident types, a disaster recovery or crisis management process, including communication plans, should be in place. I’ve run many drills and practice scenarios to ensure that stakeholders were informed, decision-makers and those accountable were prepared, and teams didn’t experience undue stress. With leaders’ support, we were in lock-step in the rollout and handled the crisis appropriately. – Kinga Vajda, Execute Your Intentions, LLC
10. Accept Uncertainty And Encourage Agility
I once coached a CEO who faced a crisis of confidence in decision-making and frustrated his team. Identifying info-gap paralysis as the root cause, he embraced the reality of imperfect knowledge. Then, by better explaining his reasoning and acknowledging gaps, he turned the corner. The lesson: Accept uncertainty, encourage agility and build confidence to act decisively in the face of ambiguity. – Thomas Lim, Centre for Systems Leadership (SIM Academy)
11. Build Your Internal And External Networks
I was coaching a managing director of a software company. The company had to go through a round of layoffs, and morale was low. Due to the market situation, my client could not motivate the team with an inspiring purpose and felt down on himself. What helped him was to build a supportive network, both within the organization and with other leaders in tech. – Daria Rudnik, Daria Rudnik Coaching & Consulting
12. Prioritize Building And Maintaining Trust With Staff
I witnessed a CEO bring her entire staff together at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. She was honest about what she thought the impact on the business might be and committed to keeping them informed every step of the way. She set up weekly all-hands meetings and gave consistent updates. They made tough decisions, but she proved trust doesn’t leave people second-guessing. – Justin Patton, The Trust Architect Group
