I have been thinking about effective crisis management a lot recently and am working on a more in-depth piece on managing a crisis which I hope to publish soon. However, crises don’t wait until we are properly prepared before they strike so I put together this quick set of suggestions as a stop-gap. Normally, I wouldn’t make a top-10 list but sometimes it’s the easiest way to share ideas. So here goes and I hope you find these suggestions useful. ...

KISS – keep it simple stupid – was drilled into us in the military and it’s hard to unlearn some things. I still make my bed each morning – even in hotels – and always tuck in my shirt. However, KISS is more than a tired old army saying. The more I look around and think about it, the more keeping things simple seems to be the key to success. Importantly, the more complex and consequential something is, the more important it is to keep things simple. ...

The WDYMB…Crisis? article explained what a crisis is and how these can arise. One of the most important points stressed is that crises are often avoidable and in many cases, survivable. Ultimately, this might come down to good luck and obviously the skills and abilities of the team responding play a big part. However, the chances of surviving a major event are significantly increased if the organization has prepared in advance. As far as a crisis is concerned, one of the key elements of this preparation is a crisis management plan (CMP). This article will explain what a CMP is, what it should contain and how you can develop one for your organization. ...

I have known Andy Cuerelfor a number of years and have always appreciated his in-depth yet practical approach to business continuity management. So when it was time to have someone provide a high-level overview of BCM for Riskademy, Andy was an obvious choice. I hope our conversation helps clarify the relationship, and differences, between crisis management and business continuity management and gives you a good overview of BCM. (If you missed the last few posts, you can read more about crisis management here.) ...

The WDYMB…Crisis? articleprompted a few questions concerning the interactions and relationship between crisis management, business continuity management and general response. These relationships are complicated both in how these are managed and also because different disciples will view the relationships differently. Below, there is a quick video I made to help explain the relationships as I described these in the article. Spoiler – the graphic is a little busy so it is worth pausing the video to take a look at this before you listen to the whole thing. ...

After 15 years, it feels very good to finally be able to write that. Take a look. The video might be scrappy but the app isn’t. [Video: https://video.wordpress.com/embed/zX4Nf4zz?hd=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=1&loop=0&preloadContent=metadata&muted=0&playsinline=0&controls=1&cover=1] DCDR is live AND it has users. It’s been a busy week. Schedule your demo

When things go wrong Despite the best efforts of the risk manager and senior leadership, it’s still possible that things can go wrong for your organization. Processes aren’t followed or are applied incorrectly, mitigation measures turn out to be inadequate, something unforeseen happens or, as is so often the case, someone does something they shouldn’t. At one end of the spectrum are relatively common slips, trips or falls, minor fires, or the accidental deletion of data. More significant are the payment of bribes, cutting corners on regulations or a crass, offensive comment from an executive. At the extreme end of the spectrum are crisis events, situations that can strike a fatal blow to the organization: a chemical spill causing mass casualties, widespread fraud or a toxic culture of racism, sexism or other discrimination. ...

I’ve just uploaded a short video showing one of the functional assessment apps in use. Although the methodology is different from the full DCDR tool, the approach and functionality is very similar: Fast? Check! Simple? Check! Easy to use? Check! So here’s a taster of what the DCDR app is going to look like. Enjoy! [Video: https://video.wordpress.com/embed/xThbiOro?hd=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=1&loop=0&preloadContent=auto&muted=0&playsinline=0&controls=1&cover=1]

Opportunity overload continues to be the biggest threat to DCDR right now: I keep finding myself being seduced by thoughts of what the app could do, rather than what the core feature set should be. Luckily, I am getting good advice from Matt and from the several thousands of hours of podcasts and interviews I have consumed. As usual, the problem isn’t getting the right advice. Following the advice, however, is always more difficult. I am finding Paul Graham’s advice particularly useful and his ‘Startups in 13 Sentences‘ essay has become my roadmap. ...

I confess to having a love / hate relationship with standards. On the plus side, having an agreed way of doing things is incredibly attractive. There is no need to spend long periods trying to design a system; shared terms, concepts and processes; easy collaboration between different groups. So when they work well, standards are great and definitely have a lot going for them. Yay! However, there are also drawbacks. ...