First the scenario …

Imagine …

being a part of an organization wherein everything has been sailing along in the finest way.  Goals are being achieved or exceeded.  Income, often a combination of base salary and bonus, has been as good or greater than you even dared to imagine.  Finally, you’ve been able to move up the company ladder at breakneck speed as recognition of your successful endeavors. 

And then ‘it’ happens. 

Something changes in your industry or your company’s product has run its’ course long before it was anticipated and what appeared to be a solid foundation begins to crack. 

And … although you’re hard at work trying to preserve what you have had and enjoyed, reality begins to take hold.  At work, the voice of concern and fright becomes louder and louder. 

What just recently appeared to be a ‘sure’ thing bringing a strong sense of security and indestructibility now is questionable. 

The life you had created for you and your family – a life created through your financial success of the recent past – is not only in question but in doubt.  Your partner at home is asking what will happen and what are ‘we’ going to do about it.  Will you have a job and if you’re not doing this, where can you work and what can you do?

In short … to say it’s unsettling is an understatement.  That it can be frightening to you and your family goes without saying.  A key to helping you get through this as a thriving and whole person is the leadership that you either provide and/or you experience in your organization.  Below, we touch upon the key areas where an effective ‘crisis’ leader can play a major role in the well-being of the organization as well as your personal well-being.

Leading Thoughts

The goal of any effective leader during crisis is to build and sustain an organization’s trust and credibility among employees, communities, customers, partners, suppliers, investors and others that rely on the individual and his/her organization through two-way communication.

Leadership skills during a crisis are important since there must be a connection, emotional and/or intellectually, with the people involved. The use of a variety of traits by a crisis leader will assist in creating a shared vision between the organization and stakeholders. Establishing this connection early on fosters trust between groups.

According to Frances Hesselbein, “Leadership is a matter of how to be, not how to do. In the end, quality and character of the leader determine the results. Within the leader you must have the values and principles that the leader embodies in their performance.”

Leaders must take the time to determine who they are leading, the objectives they need to accomplish and how every action they take will impact the current situation and create new consequences.

Crisis leaders must have an ability to rapidly and intuitively make critical
decisions with intelligence, influence and vision.

During times of crisis is when a person's true character is revealed. An effective crisis leader must be aware and able to function from a place of authenticity not only during the crisis, but at all times. A focus on understanding and building one’s character is critical to being effective during a crisis.

The success of a crisis leader is measured in terms of his or her ability to influence or motivate key audiences toward a specific behavior
or belief.

Trust, between internal and external audiences, is the key.  In order to gain trust, leaders need to learn to use their value set and develop a level of authenticity.

Authentic actions are a leadership imperative in a time of crisis in order to convince others what the organization stands for and what the leader believes and delivers on the messages communicated. In any crisis, whatever the extent of the damage, a truly authentic leader is able to communicate the realities and possibilities in a context of complete, unwavering honesty.

Trust is earned and cannot occur without Authenticity and Influence from a Crisis Leader.