Crisis Leadership? Start Here.
By: Mike Mckenna
Tags: Crisis, Leadership, Leadership Coaching, Crisis Management, Leadership Development

Crisis Leadership Starts Here

Over the last 30+ years I’m fortunate to have gained a broad base of experience in several different industries in both private and public sectors.

For better or worse, I also noted that each industry presented its own strategy for crisis response leadership.

Within the tremendous diversity of these experiences and the highs and lows that came with them, a common theme also developed: the struggle to develop strong leaders — particularly when times were tough — existed everywhere.

The hunger for competent, balanced and capable leaders is everywhere and crosses every segment of a professional organization.

Several years ago, I started collecting and organizing data on leadership, particularly crisis response leadership.

Not just quotes, platitudes, and bumper stickers, but actual, make-a-difference-when-it-mattered type leadership data.

What I discovered was that no single industry had it figured out. Everyone seemed to be grappling with how to build and transform competent leaders. So …

I merged what I had learned and understood so far about leadership in the different segments within both the public and private sectors …

I unified the applicable leadership concepts I’d collected …

I simplified those concepts and strategies so that they were readily acceptable to the very people and organizations that needed them, wherever they may be.

The extensive results are presented throughout my in-person and online programs, resources, and content libraries.

If you have the responsibility to go TOWARD a crisis when everyone else goes AWAY from them, you’ll benefit from these solutions.

If you want to be more confident, knowledgeable, and skilled in your job, you’ll benefit from these solutions.

Leadership Problems Requiring Solutions

The solutions offered directly tackle the common problems that my research revealed that continues to persist across many organizations.

Furthermore, the solutions address the current, insufficient approach to leadership that many people endure, including actual criticisms such as:

“Poor communication”

“Lack of accountability and ambiguous supervision”

“Absence of an effective, proven planning and management process”

“Poor teamwork and low levels of engagement”

“Disparate “silos” of different groups, facilities, equipment, and communications”

“Top-heavy command and control, not enough coordination with the people doing the work”

“Planned events that turn into unplanned emergencies”

“Systems (like ICS) that are too complicated, too many acronyms”

“Concepts and differences that are misfits for typical business activity”

“Not enough volunteer support”

“Too much attention-seeking from the top”

“Difficult to achieve a common operating picture”

“Consultants and trainers who want to make managing an incident look hard”

“Lack of performers who are experienced, not just trained”

“Lack of leadership during complex incidents”

“Lack of inclusion of all stakeholders, including non-governmental organizations (NGOs)”

“More response coordination and less power management”

“Too much awareness training, not enough proficiency training”

“Too much method, not enough management”

“Lack of Leadership, trust, ownership, and communications”

Crisis Response Leadership for any and all hazards?

“All-Hazards” is a fancy way of saying that it doesn’t just provide what you need to successfully respond to and lead a cyber intrusion or a bake sale but … it will help you successfully respond to and lead a cyber intrusion AND a bake sale.

Before I published this definitive and extensive program material, I drew from the most applicable parts of the following sources as well as first-hand experiences:

National Incident Management System (NIMS) Compliance: Incident Command System (ICS) 100, 200, 300, 400, 700, 800, ICS for School, ICS for Hospitals and other ‘ICS principles’

All-Hazard Incident Management Team (AHIMT) Training and Preparedness (including National Planning Scenarios)

Enhanced Incident Management & Unified Command

Business Continuity Management (BCM), including Cyber Response

Project Management Best Practices

Extensive surveying of clients and other experienced Response Leaders

Leadership development best practices

Crisis and Event management best practices

Plus … 30+ years of Crisis Response Leadership experience

ICS Principles?

Part of this crisis response leadership model is adapted from the battle-tested Incident Command System (ICS) used by emergency responders since the early 1970’s and from the US Military since WWII.

The principles of ICS are successfully used by many of my clients and “translating ICS” and its beneficial concepts into customized solutions is one of my most in-demand services.

ICS is currently the US national standard for managing an incident under the National Incident Management System (NIMS), which is the doctrine mandated since 2005 to help create a secure and resilient nation.

The principles of ICS are widely applicable which is why they’re integrated herein.

These crisis response leadership resources and solutions represent 30+ years of experience in leading and responding to planned and unplanned events.

And the Crisis Leadership Mastery program represents my best work to-date on how to transform yourself and others into world-class leaders before during and after a crisis response.

Leadership Improvement

For those content with their current leadership abilities, please share with those who may benefit from this opportunity.

For those committed to improving their leadership, I’m honored to share more details how to access this exclusive Crisis Leadership Mastery program here.