10 Things Great Leaders Do In A Crisis

We live in challenging, if not unprecedented times. It’s hard to not be reflective about both the past and future. I’ve had the privilege of leading teams and organizations in my professional life. I’ve experienced both success and failure. I’d like to think more of the former than the latter. 

Reflecting on that experience in the context of the worldwide crisis we are now experiencing really made me reflect on not only the value of leadership, but also the traits that define great leaders. A crisis creates an environment that quickly separates the leaders from the pretenders, the wheat from the chaff, as the saying goes.

Volumes have been written about leadership and it will always be subject of great interest across many fields of endeavor. So, respecting that truth, I offer the following simply as a personal perspective based on both my own experiences and observations. 

Here are 10 things I believe great leaders do in a crisis:

1.     Practice and Promote Truth and Transparency

This is where the rubber meets the road. The reality is that truth always wins out and dishonesty quickly becomes obvious, demotivating, and destructive. And people need accurate information to process and function in an organization. Transparency is a necessary tool of empowerment.

2.     Value Communication as Much as Action

Winston Churchill was renowned for his ability to communicate. He famously spent countless hours preparing and editing his speeches. Great ideas are like trees falling in the remote woods if not communicated to those concerned effectively. That means finding the right words, tone, and voice. Words are essential tools of leadership.

3.     Surround Themselves with Great Team Members

Leaders succeed by possessing the self-awareness to know what they don’t know. They then use this to recruit people who fill those gaps or simply have knowledge and expertise that is valuable in their decision-making. Ideally, leaders are open to bringing in contrarian voices that are so essential to the constructive dialogue that leads to optimal decisions.

4.     Delegate Appropriately

This obviously connects with the above note on team members. Leaders lead so others can do. However, the challenge is when and to whom to delegate. It’s about finding that sweet spot that defines effective delegation versus abdication. Even in the smallest of organizations, crisis initiatives must scale into both the workforce and customers/constituents. This can only happen through delegation – and appropriate delegation is synonymous with the empowerment that drives successful organizations. 

5.     See Beyond the Fog of Crisis

Fortunately, crises ultimately have an endpoint, be it short or long, good or bad. There are usually opportunities on the other side for those that can see through the fog of crisis and frame decisions in a longer-term context. This is particularly critical in economic crises when decisions have to made regarding managing costs and investments. It’s about vision, a quality that often separates leaders from simply managers.

6.     Understand that Business is Ultimately About People

This is pretty self-explanatory, but often forgotten. Whether it be valued employees, partners, or customers/constituents, successful leaders don’t get lost in the numbers and data and forget the real foundation and drivers of any organization or business.

7.     Identify and Exploit All Relevant Sources of Information

Sound decisions can only come from sound information. Great leaders seek and know the appropriate sources of relevant information. They then know how to blend this information with the right mix of intuition. Yes, intuition, those gut instincts are critical. If it was all about just processing data, we wouldn’t need leaders.

8.     Look for Ways to Go Beyond the Status Quo

Think Apollo 13. Whether it be bureaucracy that has gotten bloated, traditions that need to be re-evaluated, or outmoded processes, crises provide an opportunity for leaders to look for new ways to do things to accelerate problem-solving and executing initiatives. This often requires a bit of courage, but the benefits can have long-lasting impact.

9.     Make Decisions

Think JFK and the Cuban missile crisis as just one famous example.  After information is gathered, options are debated and explored, decisions have to be made. And decisions have a half-life – when a decision is made inevitably has an impact on its ultimate impact and effectiveness. No decision is a decision, generally just not the best one.

10.   Understand Accountability and Take Responsibility for their Decisions

Think about that boss you’ve had in your career who always had excuses or someone to blame for anything that went wrong. That type of behavior sucks the air out of the vessel of respect. You can’t lead without being respected. And in the end, even fear or intimidation aren’t viable substitutes. Famously, before the D-Day invasion in 1944 was launched amidst enormous uncertainty and bad weather, General Dwight Eisenhower drafted the following note:

Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that Bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone.

It’s no coincidence that leaders who accept responsibility so often succeed in times of crisis.