Are you ready for a catastrophic event?
Recently, one of my clients experienced what I can only term a “catastrophic event”. A catastrophic event is one that brings a sudden end to an existing situation and usually strikes on a large scale. It is unforeseen and unplanned for and rocks the foundation of your business. For my client: this catastrophic event did not show up in their Risk Assessment, and in hindsight, probably would not have. It has threatened not just to derail their strategy, but their very existence. There’s a real feeling of sadness and hopelessness.
But giving up is not an option.
How does one react to a catastrophic event? Here are 3 things that I believe are of paramount importance:
- Communicate communicate communicate. Now is the time to level with your team, seek their input, engage other stakeholders, listen and value their contribution. Remember that people will be feeling lost, uncertain what to do and perhaps with little hope. They may seem paralysed, unable to function “normally”. This is to be expected as the entire system has been shaken. Your job as a leader is to give them some assurance that there is a future, albeit different to what pertained before.
- Think the unthinkable. This could be an opportunity to clean house, to take a totally different strategic direction, to restructure, to forge new alliances. Take a clean slate approach as if you were starting with nothing.
- Be decisive. Remember that not making a decision is a decision by default. Whilst you have to listen to others, you MUST make decisions quickly and forcefully. But you should also be open to making new decisions if you find you are on the wrong track. This is not the time to be right, for the right answer is only revealed as you move along, groping in the darkness of your shattered organisation. The worst has already happened (you hope). Find the opportunity in the catastrophe and take action.
TAKE ONE ACTION
Review your organizational risk. In particular, brainstorm as many catastrophes as you can. Put no limits on your imagination. Decide on the worst catastrophe, and then think about what you might do if it were to transpire.
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Good article as always Marguerite.
But as the old adages states
“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!”
? Benjamin Franklin
We all need some sort of emergency plan.
Personal and family, business and community. With out it we can be knocked down so hard that getting back up is near impossible. Plus as business owners we have staff and clients depending on us. We need to take the time.
Who is on your emergency planning team?
Business continuity takes time due to planning.
Insurance, quality of building, state of repair,
employee’s ability to work off site, equipment and materials need to work, potential temporary site if current site no longer available and many other factors.
Michael
One tool that could be used is referred to a pre-mortems. In other words work through the possible situations before they arise and think through the possible outcomes.
This should help one to foresee what could happen and how possibly bad outcomes could be managed or prevented.
Nigel 100% with you on this.