A Simplified Crisis Management Plan for HR Professionals
HR departments must often spring into action when an organization’s life cycle is disrupted. While many HR professionals handle daily crises, most are inexperienced in devising a crisis management plan. Crisis management is not simple, to say the least, note the juxtaposition and irony of the title of this article with the daunting real task of managing a business crisis, it is not simple. This article is intended for human resource professionals who are tasked with developing a crisis management plan for the first time or who have relatively little experience in drawing one. Starting with a simplified plan to put the wheels in motion on what to do will help any HR professional reduce the overwhelming feeling of whether they are laying out a plan the right way or not.
As an HR practitioner, it is important to be a strategic partner in the organization with a strict focus on company mission and value statements always at the root of HR work. Disruption of a business life cycle The company will involve company staff, but the scope has far-reaching effects that almost always reach the public. A crisis management plan is a deliberately planned course of action that will necessarily have to be taken in the event that an unforeseen and extremely troublesome matter arises. Typically, three big things happen: 1) there is a business interruption that puts the company in a seriously precarious position; 2) time is of the essence to handle the matter and; 3) An action plan must be instituted to abate or minimize damage to the company and its brand. Always, thereafter, there is an analysis and a report of how the events unfolded and the actions taken to evaluate the success of the crisis management plan.
As in any risk management situation, preparation is key. A crisis management plan is a risk management plan. Here’s a basic template that will make getting started easier. Developing the details will take some time, but the template will help design the skeletal plan.
Advance Considerations: Think of any situation that has the potential to emerge and disrupt the company, its culture, and brand. This requires a bit of doomsday vision, which while it sounds crooked, is actually a prized skill in risk management and advocacy. Planning for worst-case scenarios is vital to managing them. As an HR professional in charge, for example, what would be the next steps if the president of the company suddenly suffered a heart attack and there was no succession plan in place? What would you do if you started a union organizing campaign in the company parking lot? What would you do if a senior manager had sexually harassed a subordinate and the victim went public?
Crisis management team: Assemble a team of essential personnel and experts, both inside and outside the company, who have the ability to solve the problems chosen from the crisis management plan (NTA, 2003). The composition of the team will vary depending on the crisis. The team develops the plan to follow and the members are in charge of executing the plan. Only people with a critical role in relation to the event should be on this team.
Company Position – Maintain a sharp focus on the company’s mission and values statements and all underlying policies and procedures. Consider the laws that could be involved. What is the firm’s unwavering stance on this?
Map It: specify the action steps from start to finish. Here, the details count for everything. A business continuity strategy must be clear and well articulated (Smith, 2003). Create a checklist. Make sure there are no gaps or overlapping steps or duties. Rehearse the scenario frequently and continually update the plan due to any major changes or modifications.
Execution: If the crisis occurs, execute the plan and monitor each step of the map as it unfolds. Stay on course unless a major detour requires a change of action. Otherwise, follow the plan.
Post-event analysis: When the crisis has been mitigated, diverted, neutralized or minimized, review what happened. Report as needed and required, especially to all interested parties. Prepare appropriate reports for your review and follow-up, including investigation of the circumstances and people involved, all with a view to closing the problem (s). Evaluate and measure the result. Use focus groups to shed light on where things could have gone better or where there is potentially exposure to litigation.
Dealing with the media and the public: have confidence in the position and actions of the company, be as transparent as possible. Avoiding late-response media, twisted stories, or “no comment” only invites speculation and in-depth scrutiny (NTA, 2003). Policy statements should be prepared in advance as part of the crisis management plan, although they could be subject to change as things develop. Maintain the “one person, one message” rule for a credible person to speak on behalf of the company (NTA, 2003).
Crisis preparedness is smart. The idea should be to save the reputation of the company, while minimizing the disruption of business continuity (Smith, 2003). Being a proactive strategic partner makes the role of an HR professional even more valuable and important during a business crisis. The simplified crisis management plan is a tool to help organize the HR professional’s critical thinking process to put one together.
References
NTA. (2003, January). A guide to developing crisis management plans. NTA Market Development Council.
Smith, D. (2003, January). Business continuity and crisis management. Quarterly Management.