Birdflu (May, 2006)

Management > Crisis Management > Lectures > Independent Research > Staples > Scott et al. > Nohria > Nohria con'd

Nohria - Continued

Having a few basic crisis response principles is better than having a complex and elaborate plan, although CM does need to be planned carefully. Companies need to ask themselves questions about how they view CM in their businesses (Mitroff, 1996, suggests external interviewers and Hurd and Nyberg, 2004, pose creating a culture of questions).

Companies cannot rely solely on a specialised risk management team. Everyone needs to be involved, especially top management. "Marines are so nimble because they practice. Companies should do likewise".

The author suggests that firms established a globally dispersed group with shifting membership, which devotes half a day every other month to do crisis simulations. These simulations should not have specific rules, which should encourage action in an unpredictable and fast-changing environment (Brief note on simulations in Mitroff, 1996 and alternate crisis awareness activities in Mitroff, 2005).

The author believes that firms should also collaborate with competitors, as one firm might lose some assets in a crisis, while the other might lose other assets, meaning they can support each other.

Finally, managers need to take charge of the crisis management situation, as too many do not believe it is their job. CM "must be driven from the top-down". (See Boin and Lagadec, 2000 for more information)

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