To succeed in times of crisis, as a leader in a company, you need to take charge and support your team to minimise the impact of the crisis no matter how hard it is. Plus, a well-managed crisis can become a learning tool for similar future situations.
7 tips for success in times of crisis.
- Face reality and take control
- Set common goals
- Boost internal communication
- Define an action plan and implement it
- Delegate and trust
- Don't be afraid to fail
- Have a long term vision
Face reality and take control of the situation.
Any risk situation can damage the reputation and trust of your company both in the short and long term. This is an unexpected thing, so your ability to react must be very fast . You must take control and tackle it in the best possible way.
Communicate with transparency: your teams must know what is happening in the company, in this way they will be able to contribute better. Leadership in difficult times is about guiding, moving forward, and not allowing fear to take over.
In these moments it is essential to take care of the work environment. Encouraging your workers to feel good, calm and safe in a pleasant work environment will stimulate their performance and productivity.
Set common goals between the company and the workers.
In this situation, teamwork is more necessary than ever. Empathy and understanding has to emerge between all the members of the group.
It is a good idea to meet with each team or employee to listen to their ideas and frustrations, and try to set common goals. This relationship with workers helps them to feel more in control and more autonomous, whilst being more aware of their tasks, which will increase their quality of work.
Boost internal communication.
Communication is an essential part of dealing with crises. Communicating clearly, empathetically, and assertively is a key skill of a good leader. You will have to set an example for the rest of your company and be the first to share, comment and answer the questions that are put to you to encourage your employees to do the same.
It is a good idea to open new communication channels. It is good that employees are informed of the situation and that, in this way, they know first hand if something happens that could affect them. You can put into operation a suggestion box where they can comment and present the concerns, opinions and ideas that may affect everyone.
Newsletters, circulars and newsletters can be very useful on paper or via email or corporate WhatsApp, or whatever internal communications platform you already use. Also encourage meetings and regular meetings to stay up to date with everything that happens in the company.
A leader who spends time listening and getting to know employees will be able to carry out more fluid and clear communication with them. Paying attention to the people who are part of your company is of great importance at this time, their proposals and complaints can make the whole team learn and improve.
Define an action plan and implement it.
In this situation, it is best to be ready to face any problem quickly in the best possible way.
- Define some objectives and propose a strategy. Carefully analyse the situation, the general economic environment and the impact and scope it can cause in your company.ct.
- Appoint managers. The people who lead each team should be aware of the action plan, so it is a good idea to be present during its preparation.
- Determine the actions to be followed. These should be realistic and achievable in the shortest possible time. You have to outline all the steps to follow and that they are as detailed as possible, so their execution will be more efficient and faster.
- Set deadlines. Planning is the basis for everything to run smoothly and smoothly. You have to be able to react in time, not doing so could have unpleasant consequences. Focus on short-term goals, once achieved, you can rethink long-term results.
- Positive attitude. It takes a lot of patience and perseverance to get a well-planned action plan. But the most difficult thing is achieving this, the performance of the company as a whole can determine success. Adopting a positive attitude and transmitting it to the rest of the workers will help a lot to make everything go as smoothly as possible.
Delegate decision-making and trust those responsible.
You cannot carry the full weight of the company alone! You must trust your teams and delegate responsibilities to the people in charge of managing them.
You can delegate decision-making to the people closest to the different production processes of your company, so they will have greater autonomy, optimise performance and, therefore, time management. It is essential that discipline and commitment are present on both sides. If you see your team prepared, distribute the functions and support the decisions of your subordinates.
Don't be afraid to fail.
If you see your mistakes from an optimistic point of view, you can act in such a way that, if similar situations occur in the future, you will not make them again and you can learn from them.
It is important to stay positive. You need your team to move forward, so having a good attitude and controlling emotions can influence and motivate staff perception. You must encourage them at all times and project confidence and optimism.
It is recommended that you explain what will be done to solve any error that may have occurred. This will smooth the situation out quite a bit. Learning from mistakes is very important and more in a company. After this, creating a contingency plan will strengthen the strategy for the future. Adopting an attitude of transparency and admitting mistakes, apologising openly and sincerely, is key in this process.
Have a long-term vision and always act ethically and with clear and marked values.
Even if you have to establish a short-term action plan, you should always keep in mind how you want to see your company in the future. This is a temporary situation that you will get out of soon.
The values show the culture of your company, they must always be related to your actions. Establishing the principles, limits and ethical and moral criteria that will govern the day to day of your company should be the basis of all your strategy.
All companies experience a crisis during their life cycle, it is natural. Sometimes these can be unexpected and of an excessive magnitude, such as the health emergency caused by COVID-19. The coordination of teams and managers is essential during these times. Some companies have had to take measures such as remote working and restructuring. The key is for the leader to take charge and become the best support for the team. The objective is to minimise the impact and the duration it may have - in this way you can return to normality as soon as possible. Learning from a situation like this will allow you to be prepared for any critical situation in the future.
