Your team is facing a crisis situation. How can you inspire and guide them through the chaos?

Leadership in Crisis: Staying Calm In times of crisis, effective leadership hinges on composure. The Meta-Leadership model by Drs. Leonard Marcus and Barry Dorn highlights the concept of “going to the basement.” During an amygdala hijack, fear can cloud our judgment. Recognizing this moment is crucial. Using checklists can help us regain control and navigate chaos, reducing the time spent “in the basement.” As leaders, we must model calmness and resilience, not just for our teams but for everyone around us. Let’s commit to these techniques, ensuring we lead with clarity and intention, even under pressure. #Leadership #NPLI #CrisisManagement #MetaLeadership #EmotionalIntelligence #Resilience

Um exemplo que vivencio diariamente, tanto com meus líderes quanto com meus liderados, é a importância da tomada de decisões em conjunto. Quando todos participam ativamente do processo decisório, a liderança se fortalece, e a equipe se torna mais coesa e eficaz. A colaboração nas decisões não apenas enriquece o trabalho, mas também recompensa a liderança, promovendo um ambiente onde todos se sentem valorizados e engajados. Essa sinergia é fundamental para que a equipe funcione como uma verdadeira engrenagem, girando de maneira harmoniosa e produtiva. Ao fomentar essa cultura de participação, conseguimos transformar desafios em oportunidades, resultando em uma equipe mais unida e vitoriosa.

There are some great commentary in this subject area, and all of them remind me of a mantra I adopted a few decades ago - Make an IMPACT. In a leadership roll, those letters stand for what you should do to keep your people moving, and willing to follow. You should "Influence and Move People with Awareness. Act and Achieve with Commitment, Compassion, Communication and Truth." Each one of those word has deep meaning and are worthy of discussion, as I would explain them to my team and peers. I would tell new supervisors or managers, if you follow those general points, you can make an IMPACT - and if you don't, prepare for IMPACT. And I always end my conversations with these words: Onward and forward.

Being routinely involved in clinical codes, this point is very notable.. when the team leader panics, the whole team will panic and chaos begins. But, when the leader is calm and composed, it reflects confidence and team members will be inclined to follow. Taking a deep breath before starting the action certainly helps. And lots of drills and practice make the leader familiar with such situations and thus will be less likely to panic

Clear vision enables decisive action which is what is needed “in the moment”. However in order to develop that vision one must listen to those around them. Vision is a combination of experience and collaboration.

In addition to the many fine comments already in this thread, I'd like to add a point about crises that hit without warning. In those situations, your team and your organization might be shaken and off balance for a moment. It's important to set the vision of how you are going to respond quickly, even if you don't have all the answers yet. Establishing a path forward can help people break out of that moment of being stunned and get to work, actively responding to the crisis at hand.

Absolument, expliquer l’idée de manœuvre et tout mettre en place pour que cette idée de manœuvre reste le fil rouge de l’opération.

All-Hazards Incident Management means having foundational plans in place, with contingencies for specific threats, long before an incident occurs. When disaster eventually strikes, work the plan you already have, and flex or scale as conditions (or forecasted conditions) dictate. Refrain from 'reinventing the wheel', unless absolutely necessary, to avoid throwing chaos on top of chaos. Finally, after the incident is over, actually do an AAR and follow through on updating your plans with the lessons learned. The AAR is meant to be a continuous improvement tool, so use it!

We understand that this communication issue will always become a finding in an exercise. Based on a real experience, it is very helpful to standardize the way emergency/crisis team communicate not only about what, why, when and how but also the do's and the don'ts by establishing a clear guidelines. When we start practicing the guidelines in our day to day activities, it will also enhance the maturity level of emergency/crisis team in responding to emergency/crisis event.

In my experience, you must find the calm or be the calm in the storm. Seek out the cause and develop a plan to neutralize the threat. Be swift, Be silent, and Most of all, be deadly. Seek out, close with, and destroy the enemy at all costs, whether it be communicating motivation to your team, encouraging them to be professional, and most of all, thinkers and action takers after the actions are accomplished create an action forum with your team to discuss advantages and flaws.

Communication is an integral part of leadership and management. It's important to remember that this is displayed in two forms, verbal and nonverbal. For verbal communication, you must be clear and concise in all that you do. Remembering three keys to use in successful communication are stating the issue, have a discussion, seek and provide recommendations. With respect to nonverbal communication, your body language can play a significant role in the morale and motivation within your organization. Have any disagreements amongst management behind closed doors and then step out on one accord to show cohesion within your organization.

Establishing a good communication is important BEFORE a crisis happens. Make sure your team knows how to get information and who to talk to if something goes wrong. Share your plans with them and ask for their thoughts. This helps build trust and makes sure everyone is ready to act quickly when a crisis happens. Being prepared with clear communication can stop problems from getting worse and keep everyone working together smoothly.

Non seulement la communication interne est indispensable mais la communication « de crise » est un élément indispensable à mette en place. Cette communication de crise doit être effectuée par un spécialiste, formé et habitué à communiquer dans une situation stressante. Les bons mots aux bonnes personnes au bon moment!

La sectorisation est indispensable, non seulement pour responsabiliser ses collaborateurs mais premièrement parce que c’est indispensable! Un chef, un secteur, une mission, des moyens!! Il est illusoire de penser ou de tenter de gérer une situation dégradée tout seul, c’est voué à l’échec! Déterminer les secteurs indispensables qui doivent être pris en compte en fonction de la situation, cependant des fondamentaux doivent être attribués: anticipation, communication, moyens, etc.

Your people should know their job...you should trust them. Give them the authority to do their job. Don't micromanage. That said, personnel sometimes need to be shifted to other positions to better respond to the tasks at hand.

Empower your team by delegating authority and encouraging initiative. Trust their abilities, allowing them to make decisions within their expertise. This approach speeds up response times, boosts morale, and makes team members feel valued. Offer guidance and support but avoid micromanaging, as it can hinder efficiency and innovation during a crisis.

Par principe, faire confiance à son équipe pour lui donner une liberté d'action. Ne pas dramatiser les erreurs et les manquements mais plutôt s'en servir pour faire mieux et progresser. Une équipe à qui on donne confiance ira bien au-delà du résultat escompté.

You need to ensure that every member of the team must contribute in the actions taken. You need to inspire and motivate all the members of the team to participate in decision making as well as implementation of the decisions.

S'appuyer sur les vertus du collectif pour grandir ensemble et traverser ensemble les moments difficiles. Nous pouvons ensuite prendre plaisir à relever les défis. Chaque crise a quelque chose à nous apprendre sur nous-même, comme disait Winston CHURCHILL "il ne faut pas gâcher une bonne crise".

To build resilience in your team during a crisis, encourage a mindset that sees challenges as growth opportunities. Celebrate small victories to boost morale and support those struggling. Resilience is about adapting and emerging stronger, not just enduring. Fostering this quality will help your team navigate through chaos effectively.

Every organisation must plan for emergencies and a crisis. Part of that resilience would include business continuity - having alternative premises and infrastructure to survive the crisis. There has to be cross-training in various roles - Managers and supervisors being able to take on roles and have necessary experience or qualifications to manage the crisis.

When I was section manager for a disaster recovery program in Louisiana, our team canvassed door to door in the impacted communities, offering direct support to those in need. We had to adjust quickly, often working with limited resources and facing emotional challenges. Building resilience was essential—not just in the community but within our team. By focusing on the progress, like securing vital resources or simply making someone feel heard, we kept morale up and pumping. Supporting one another and maintaining an adaptable mindset helped us navigate through the toughest parts of the recovery process.

Resilience starts with calmness; it is a visceral metric to identify who is resilient vice who is suffering. In turn resilience helps teams adapt and stay calm during tough times. When someone’s struggling, they need support, while those staying steady should be empowered. Resilience often shows up in hindsight—when we realize the lessons we’ve learned. After a crisis, focus on what worked and cut out what didn’t, like outdated practices or unrealistic goals. Recognize individual efforts, build on the skills that made a difference, and give credit where it’s due. This approach strengthens the team and prepares us for the next challenge.

- Demonstrate Critical Leadership: Engage the team in a collaborative manner. This will help reduce panic by engaging the team in critical thinking and decision making. - Communicate Frequently: Keep your team informed on the situation and what actions are being taken. Transparency is essential to build trust. - Be Adaptable: Crises often require quick thinking and flexibility. Be nimble in your approach to course adjustments as the situation progresses. - Show Empathy and Support: Understand that team members may be experiencing stress and anxiety. Offer support and be understanding of their concerns.

You should learn something every day...so should your personnel. Share your knowledge...best practices and lessons learned. Avoid "lessons unlearned" or "lessons repeated" whenever possible.

Pre planning, forecasting and training. Constant training in expected issues and crisis should be mandatory. No crisis particularly should be unexpected - all organisations should be training for the unexpected. If not, why not? Strategic responses are the responsibility of the CEO and/or Board.

Show your confidence in your team, set the objectives (ideally with them) and be available to guide them if they need it. They all have positive things to contribute and will all be better off by being collaborative, respectful and disciplined to suit the situation.