Crisis Management

Introduction

Corporate crisis management represents how a corporation prepares for and responds to an unexpected negative occurrence, and how the corporation prevents it from causing further bigger problem. Crisis management includes executing a series of actions to control the damage of the corporation, and to protect or restore public confidence about the corporation when it faces the crisis. Recently the crisis management has become one of the essential components of managing a corporation successfully. In the current economic situation no corporations are immune to sudden crisis. A corporation could be caught off guard by various shapes of crisis, such as natural disaster, terrorist attack, product recall or industrial accidents. Therefore the leader of a corporation should always be prepared to face this great challenge. Crisis management will test a leader's character, expertise and skill. When faced with a crisis, a qualified leader of the corporation should be someone who provide perspective, who prepared the corporation for a crisis, who understood the emergency, who imprinted the corporation's values and culture on them, and who led from the front and communicated openly and honestly because communications is an essential competency of being a successful leader (Baldoni, 2003) and in dealing with the crisis (Augustine, 1995; Lerbinger, 1997).

A leader should perceive the crisis's early signs and remind the employees of the signs and negative results of the crisis. He or she should predict the negative consequences of the crisis and develop precautionary plans to deal with the emergency situation. The better prepared a company is the more likely it is to survive a crisis, or even possibly prosper from it (Barton, Newell & Wilson, 2002; Herman & Oliver, 2002). Crisis management cannot be learned during the routine tasks or in the midst of the crisis storm. The leader of the organization should develop and practice precautionary measures before the crisis.

During the crisis, a leader who has the right values and beliefs which define the culture of the corporation will effectively help the corporation survive. He or she understands the well-articulated mission of the corporation. They know what they stand for therefore they can reassure the people of the corporation, and most importantly, the public because “public relations is essential in times of crisis” (Grunig, Grunig, & Dozier, 2002, p. 179) by communicating with clear and openly messages which consistent with the corporation's values and mission.

In addition, the leader should lead from the front and take charge of the situation. He or she should provide clear direction and taking over of the crisis (Boin & Hart, 2003; Burnett, 1998). The people of the corporation will tend to anxious, panicky, and confused during the crisis. It is the duty of the leader to