The Essence of Corporate Crisis Management

Managers and executives at all levels of the organization are paid to manage crises and do so on a daily basis. Their skills are tested to the utmost when they have to manage serious crises that have the potential to disrupt the organization's income sources, operating expenses, stock price, competitive position and ongoing business.

The most effective crisis management occurs when potential crises are detected and dealt with quickly--before they can impact the organization's business. In those instances they never come to the attention of the organization's key stakeholders or the general public via the news media. That is the fundamental objective of ICM in helping its corporate, non-profit and government clients.

In instances where the crisis already has erupted, or it is inevitable the crisis will impact the organization's key stakeholders, a crisis communication plan is needed to minimize the disruption and financial damage. Developing a crisis plan can seem like a daunting task, but in actuality it is a common-sense document. It involves identifying those functions and processes that are critical to the business, then designing the operational and communication plans to deal with potential issues and how to communicate with key stakeholders.

Organizations with crisis communication plans for responding to likely disruptions will be in a better position to minimize the business impact and financial damage. And, their executives will find the process of developing these plans has an indirect benefit. Their organizations are more sensitive to possible crisis situations that could disrupt the business and affect its operating expenses, profits and overall growth. As a result their managers respond more rapidly and effectively to head them off.