Lets discuss essential tips and strategies to safeguard your organization during turbulent or crisis times.
In 2017, United Airlines faced criticism for strongly banning paying passengers from a flight. The poor chap was randomly chosen to be deplaned. It was a major PR crisis for the airline. However, UA’s slow response and the sheer lack of empathy made it worse. It became a lesson in how not to respond to crises.
Preparing for crises and responding to them proactively have become vital for business survival today. A proactive strategy that helps businesses not only withstand but adapt to crises and thrive in the middle of conflict – that’s what business resilience is all about! These crises come in different shapes and forms, such as:
- Natural disasters
- Economic downturns
- Cybersecurity threats
- False rumors and PR mishaps
- Product sabotage by employees
- Pandemics (COVID-19 is an example)
However, successful businesses know how to pivot and innovate; they’ll emerge stronger than before after facing a crisis. In this blog, you’ll learn what business resilience is. We’ll also discuss essential tips and strategies to safeguard your organization during turbulent times.
Making Sense of Business Resilience
Business resilience, in simpler terms, is your business's ability to bounce back from difficulties. It's often said that many small businesses fail within six months of a Data leak. Still, a genuinely Stretchy business can continue cybersecurity threats and grow stronger by transforming to the challenges they present. That’s what business resilience means, i.e., your capacity to recover from difficulties.
A resilient business will ensure the continuity of its operations and implement strict measures to curb the crisis. Having a solid educational foundation will come in handy regarding risk mitigation. That’s why small business owners should explore online undergraduate degrees to obtain the vital skills required in crisis management. These degrees can help you meet crises with confidence by using skills like:
- Risk management
- Effective communication
- Teamwork and collaboration
- Critical thinking and problem-solving
And since these degrees are online, professionals do not have to worry about juggling work and studies simultaneously. Besides, continuing education will always prove worthwhile, specifically in the business sector, where learning new approaches and strategies is vital for survival.
Mastering a new approach to crisis management would have helped Equifax in face-saving when the 2017 data breach happened; if only Equifax had taken swift action with transparent communication and tried to regain customers’ trust soon after, it wouldn’t have lost so many customers.
That’s why the next section will share some tips to help you stay resilient and handle crises confidently.
How to Deal with Crises in Business? 8 Helpful Tips
Anybody can learn the value of business resilience and crisis management from Starbucks. Starbucks will go down in history as a prime example of how businesses should respond to crises appropriately. During the financial crisis of 2008, Starbucks by:
- Diversifying its revenue streams (introduced new product categories)
- Investing in technology (enabled work-from-home capabilities)
- Engaging with customers and employees to keep their trust
We can take a leaf from their book and develop eight excellent strategies to deal with crises. Here is how it’s done:
1. Have a Plan at Hand
It all begins with having a crisis management plan in place. Remember, crises come uninvited. It's crucial to look for crises and be ready to pursue them with an attentive plan detailing every step to address the dare. A prime example is Johnson & Johnson, which successfully Steered the Tylenol crisis in the '80s because it had prepared for such an event in advance.
A clear example is Johnson & Johnson, which survived the Tylenol crisis in the ‘80s because a crisis like that was anticipated. So, J&J had a clear response strategy for it!
2. Nominate Your A-Team
Have you created a crisis management team yet? Even if there are no indications of a looming crisis for a hundred miles, you should make a dedicated team tasked with responding to this crisis.
Make sure this team is composed of diverse experts who can tackle all sorts of challenges easily.
3. Evaluate Possible Risks
Next, you should continue conducting risk assessments from time to time. Like Delta Airlines, you should evaluate what risks are most likely to hit you in the face and disrupt your business operations.
Keep evaluating the impact of these risks on your business so you’re ready even for unforeseen mishaps.
4. Never Stop Communicating
From the examples of United and Equifax, resilient companies always communicate. Delayed response exacerbates crises. As a business owner, you must keep stakeholders in the loop. Make sure nobody loses their mind during this crisis and follow the company policy.
5. Train Your Workers
Undergrad degrees in risk assessment and crisis management will benefit everyone. That’s why workers should also get ample training on what to do in case of emergency. Major companies ensure that managers hold regular training sessions to prepare the staff to handle different emergencies.
Remember, it’s never too late to give “crisis training” to employees. For instance, tell them what to do if their work emails get hacked or if they fall prey to a phishing scam while at work.
6. Build Financial Resilience
Did you know that Amazon focuses on building substantial cash reserves to survive economic downturns? That is how you become financially resilient to crises. Just like people will always keep some cash on hand as a “rainy day fund,” you should prioritize maintaining a cash reserve, too.
It’ll help you meet business expenses and pay your employees when economic fluctuations, such as a pandemic, hit.
7. Make Ample Use of Technology
Technology is your ally in easing risks. In today's world, few things enhance a business's flexibility more effectively than capitalizing on the right tech tools. We have tools for accounting, legal compliance, keeping track of inventory, monitoring employee performance, and everything else. By using these tools, you can stay alert for unforeseen crises and adapt quickly to thrive in an unforgiving market climate. This emphasis on technology will reassure your audience and empower them to face crises head-on.
So, use these tools to stay alert for unforeseen crises and adapt quickly to thrive in an unforgiving market climate.
8. Keep Updating Your Crisis Plan
But crisis management doesn’t end here; you should keep revising your plan and assessing your business resilience capabilities. For instance, many banks revised their risk assessment/management strategies in the wake of the 2008 housing crisis. They did that to better prepare for future challenges. By stressing the importance of updating the crisis plan, your audience will feel proactive and forward-thinking, always ready to face the next challenge.
In simple terms, business resilience means keeping your vessel afloat when faced with disaster. Simply put, it's Military tactics that enable a business to respond to unexpected upsets. Resilience is about Predicting potential crises, preparing for them, confronting challenges directly, and shaping the narrative along the way. Businesses should learn how to address the media in times of crisis, have empathy for customers, and seek legal recourse. That’s how they can stay prepared for crises and respond to disruptions proactively.