Four questions that every manager should ask themselves during a crisis

15.3.2021

You can really see whether a manager is good or not during a crisis. Crisis management is a totally different discipline than managing people under normal circumstances. In critical moments, a good manager must make even more difficult decisions, and often it is not clear if the solution they chose was good or not. Also, critical management often means that you need to deal with the difficult question of whether you should favour the interests of the company or those of individual workers. In order for a manager to better assess their leadership in crisis and decide what they should focus on, they should ask themselves the following four questions.

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Do my company and I adhere to the rules and priorities that are the basis of our business?

Even during crisis management, leadership should follow the company's basic priorities, according to ICMI.com. Crises come and go, but in order to keep the integrity of your company and to maintain your brand as an employer, you must not distance yourself from the values that your company represents. Ask yourself whether you are adhering to the basic principles of your company culture when dealing with a crisis.

Is there a compromise between the interests of the company and the interests of the workers?

Many managers in crisis face the dilemma of whether they should favour the interest of the company or the interest of employees. But this problem often has another possible solution – a compromise. Try to find a way that is satisfactory to everybody and that is acceptable to both the company and individual staff members.

Human capital is the most important and valuable asset of any company. Am I throwing away any employee's potential?

Human capital and the experience and skillset of employees are the most important assets any company has. Despite financial losses or temporary downturns, any company can gain back what it loses if it keeps its quality workers. This works the other way around too. Even the best company with great results can be brought down by unmotivated and inexperienced workers with bad attitudes. Think about whether you focus too much on the material well- being of the company and neglect the potential of its staff.

Even if I have to make unpleasant and difficult decisions, do I make them in a transparent and fair manner, so that I do not disillusion too many of the people that will be negatively impacted by these decisions?

Decision-making during a crisis is tough, but at the same time, even the most challenging decisions will be accepted better if they are well-communicated and transparent. If you face difficult decisions and announcements, make sure that you communicate well and that you do not make people angry unnecessarily.

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Article source International Customer Management Institute (ICMI) - website for customer management professionals
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