Leading and Managing in Crisis
13 June, 2008
Each day need to learn and apply new knowledge to ever-evolving contexts. Most of the time, this process is incremental, . we build upon our existing assumptions and apply the same thinking to solve problems that arise through business activity. We don’t really notice the moment-by-moment accretion of new experience and understanding; this change is within our comfort zone.
At times this steady rate of change is shattered by disruptive circumstances that create radical disequilibrium.
States of disequilibrium in a system are unsustainable in nature. Therefore something’s gotta give!
These moments occur when our current knowledge and understanding is unable to solve the emergent wicked problems associated with the new environment and we are forced to go outside of what is known to seek a solution.
These moments bring great discomfort to those involved.
These moments are when the greatest human triumphs or failures occur. We either rise to the occasion or we are sent to oblivion.
What strategy can we use to weigh the odds of success in our failure when we are faced with these disruptive circumstances? While every situation is different, I believe there are essential conditions we must create to maximise the likelihood of success:
1. Don’t panic!
Use self-knowledge and control to repress our instinctive urge to either fight or flee from the situation.
2. Slow down, be still, and refocus! Timing is imperative to success.
We often feel we have to respond right away at all levels of a problem. Taking control of our reflex to act without direction can often save us. I have also found that spending a moment to completely clear my mind leads to a more comfortable and less stressed state where I feel more empowered to do what is right.
3. Don’t blame or start finding excuses
Every moment you are shirking responsibility and finding reasons for failure puts you one more step towards your subconscious intent – failure. You must attend to the issue.
4. Keep the team focussed and motivated
Your one greatest asset is your team. You must ensure they stay together and keep focussed. All is lost when we start acting individually (all hands for themselves) rather than as a group.
5. Keep the core team together
Sometimes, the problem is so large that we need to re-engage it with more people, processes, and technology that are brought in from outside. When this situation occurs, ensure that the core-team remains intact, either by literally keeping them together or by giving each original member a leadership/coordination role in each of their areas of specialisation.
Entry Filed under: Change, Leadership. Tags: crisis, Leadership, Management.
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1. micktl | 13 June, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Hi Chris,
I think in any ‘crisis’ situation there is a lot of value in breaking a problem down to it’s finest details. Each point becomes easier to solve and a once insurmountable crisis becomes a series of manageable challenges.
cheers
m
2. Daniel | 17 June, 2008 at 4:02 pm
Your point re: keeping the team focussed and motivated is critical in my mind. From recent experience during what many would consider a moment of crisis, the team managed to pull itself tighter together and concentrate on the job at hand - allowing us to effectively block-out the negative aspect of the crisis and move forward with what we do best (and this in a large part was thanks to our KM man
3. Chris Manning | 18 June, 2008 at 4:39 pm
Hi Mick
OK - you might be thinking that my view of “keeping things simple” or “focus on the bigger picture” is in some way different to what you suggest as “breaking the problem down into manageable pieces.
Let’s consider these view points further:
1. A classical approach to problem solving is “decomposing” it to smaller more manageable parts - and I would strongly encourage this behaviour, otherwise the complexity of the situation can lead us to “analysis paralysis” - where the situation looses meaning and we can’t take action. I suppose my belief of “keeping things simple” is in some way associated with your suggestion - so I appreciate you putting it in a way that is more understandable.
2. Keeping a big picture view - my point here is to view the crisis as it compares with what really matters. We often get “stuck in a moment” with trivial things that seem to be a crisis, so it is important to work out what is important and what is not - otherwise we live a life where we swing from one crisis to the next!
C.
4. Chris Manning | 18 June, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Hi Dan
I totally agree with your sentiments - “keeping the team together” is absolutely essential to weathering a crisis.
If the team fragments, the crisis will compound and become fatal. If the team stays together and the members continue to care for one another and remain focus on the team’s goal, then the crisis will be conquered.
Moreover, good comes from crisis when the team remains intact and my next blog picks up on this point, through a crisis I have just been through.
C