As we’ve written about in an earlier blog, the Business Continuity industry still tends to confuse Incident Management and Crisis Management. To stave off argument, let’s agree on this: Incident Managers handle the response to and recovery from a disaster or business disruption. Crisis Managers work to minimize the negative response – from customers, vendors, employees and media – that result from a disruptive incident.
With that definition in mind, who should be on your Incident Management Team (IMT)? Time and again we see organizations whose IMT is composed of its top leadership. That seems logical; after all, if they’re good at running the business, shouldn’t they be good at managing a disruption of the business? But it may not be the best strategy.
Here are five reasons why your C-Suite or senior leadership team might not be the best candidates for your Incident Management Team:
- Your Crisis Management Team will need a spokesperson. While it may have a trained media person, many situations will require that your chief executive become the ‘face of the company’. For that reason alone, your chief executive cannot also be your IMT Leader. Divided time and divided attention will inevitably result in doing neither job well. Put the leadership of your IMT in the hands of someone other than your chief executive.
- Good operational Managers are not necessarily the most knowledgeable about how things get done (nor what might need to be done to fix those that aren’t getting done). It’s a bonus if the Incident Commander has a thorough understanding of how the business operates. Don’t confuse knowledge of what is done with an understanding of how it gets done.
- Time is of the essence. C-Suite members who are used to making decisions after long debate and by consensus won’t have either of those luxuries in a crisis. IMT roles require those who can quickly analyze the facts and make judgements based on those known facts. There’s not always time for more research. Analysis-paralysis can be deadly during a disaster or disruption.
- Flexibility is a necessary attribute of a good Incident Manager. Those whose management style has been honed by ‘playing the system’ may not be able to adapt to what a disaster or other disruptive incident requires.
- Leadership during a disruption depends on more than command; it requires communication skills and the ability to motivate others. There’s a big difference between management and command. Operational managers’ leadership happens because they have the proper title; successful Incident Managers lead because they can motivate others. Those who have learned to lead by making quick, informed decisions – those with military or police leadership experience for example – are likely to be more successful Incident Managers.
IMT members should be recruited for their knowledge – not their status. They need a clear understanding of the organization, but should not be motivated by profits, bonus plans or self-aggrandizement.
None of this means members of your C-Suite should automatically be excluded from IMT membership. Some of them may make great IMT members. Excluding others may be tricky. Convincing your CEO that he or she is not the right Incident Commander may be difficult (if not scary). There may be political minefields to get through. In the end it may be easier to capitulate and accept the C-Suite as the CMT. But that will probably be the wrong decision.
Having the right person in charge, and the right resources on the IMT, could spell the difference between success and failure. Is that a risk worth taking?
