Leadership Behaviours You Need To Navigate A Crisis

In a time of crisis, such as the current pandemic we find ourselves in, effective leadership behaviours help businesses stay afloat, or even better, thrive during a falling economy. 

Shona Chatterjee Hayden, Chris Nichols and Chris Trendler, members of ghSMART, a company that specialises in leadership development for large-scale companies and investment firms, have conducted 21,000 assessments of leaders and have since refined their findings. The authors were mostly concerned that leaders would make "rapid decisions about controlling costs and maintaining liquidity. They may encounter unforeseen roadblocks - supply chain issues, team shortages, and operational challenges - that drastically alter the scope of their roles and priorities." While the CEO's roles and responsibilities might have changed drastically during a crisis, their temperament and theories behind their decision-making are as integral as the wider market's changes.

For some leaders, this might be the first real crisis they've faced, and they might be disadvantaged by the fact that, as the authors state, "they have not fully developed their leadership muscles, and the learning curve will be steep." The authors suggest that leaders need to develop four specific behaviours to give their organisation and its employees the best fighting chance for survival. "They must decide with speed over precision," they state, "adapt boldly, reliably deliver and engage for impact," they write. 

Decide With Speed Over Precision 

 As I'm sure you'd know, the pace at which this pandemic has caused turmoil in markets worldwide is unprecedented. The best behaviour from a leader, according to the authors, is to move with speed over precision. "The best leaders quickly process available information, rapidly determine what matters most, and make decisions with conviction". If a leader chooses the opposite approach, they risk the age-old paralysis by analysis. "Leaders must break through the inertia to keep the organisation trained on business continuity today while increasing the odds of mid-to-long term success by focusing on the few things that matter most. A simple, scalable framework for rapid decision-making is critical," they add. 

In certain situations, speed and agility are encouraged more than anything else. It's essential to identify and create a list of at least three to five priorities to ensure that your decision making, despite the rapid speed, is in line with these priorities. 

Furthermore, the authors express how essential it is to embrace action and not punish any mistakes. Instead, leaders should establish a war room and make smart trade-offs in the decision-making process. 

Adapt Boldly

Adapting boldly is the second behaviour essential for managing a time of crisis. Adapting boldly means to "seek input and information from diverse sources, are not afraid to admit what they don't know, and bring in outside expertise when needed." The authors add that the leader should "decide what not to do. Put a hold on large initiatives and expenses, and ruthlessly prioritize. Publicise your 'what not to do choices'". Leaders that do this will bring awareness of the decision-making process and communicate what's shaping their hypothesis. The authors state that a leader should "throw out yesterday's playbook. The actions that previously drove results may no longer be relevant. The best leaders adjust quickly and develop new plans of attack." 

Finally, a leader should look to consolidate their "direct connections to the front line", making sure the organisation has a clear view of every aspect of its operations to ensure that whatever decision is made on the fly, is made with the most information possible. "Whether running a supply chain, leading a waste management company, or overseeing a pharmaceutical company, leaders must get situational assessments early and often," they write. "One way is to create a network of local leaders and influencers who can speak with deep knowledge about the impact of the crisis and the sentiments of customers, suppliers, employees and other stakeholders." 

 

"The best leaders take personal ownership in a crisis, even though many challenges and factors lie outside their control. They align team focus, establish new metrics to monitor performance and create a culture of accountability."  

Reliably Deliver

From here, the authors argue that leaders should use the previous steps to ensure that they can - and the wider organisation - can reliably deliver to everyone in that stakeholder group. "The best leaders take personal ownership in a crisis, even though many challenges and factors lie outside their control. They align team focus, establish new metrics to monitor performance and create a culture of accountability." To make this happen, the authors state that a leader should stay aligned with their list of priorities, and review the organisation's performance up against them frequently. "Review and update your 'hit list' at the end of each day or week," they say.

From here, you establish a set of KPIs to measure performance and keep in mind that "to reliably deliver, leaders must maintain their equanimity even when others are losing their heads". The authors suggest it is a time for leaders to practice self-care more than ever before. "Stock up on energy, emotional reserves and coping mechanisms," they note. 

Engage for Impact 

The fourth and final behaviour is to engage for impact. "In times of crisis," they say, "no job is more important than taking care of your team. Effective leaders understand their team's circumstances and distractions, but they find ways to engage and motivate, clearly and thoroughly communicating important new goals for information." While a leader's plate might already be brimming with obligations and responsibilities, during a crisis, they need to be aware that they're also accountable to keep up communication levels with their staff. 

There are several reasons why this is important. Employees need to feel recognised in the workplace and need to be in line with the organisation's tack in direction. Furthermore, key promises made to clients and stakeholders also need to be met. The authors state that you should ensure there is a focus on both customers and employees, adding that to connect with your customers, you should "reach out, but first do no harm: track and document intel across your customer base. To strengthen relationships and build trust, keep the focus off yourself and explore how you can truly help your customers - for example, by proposing payment schedules to ease their liquidity crunch," for example. 

Communicating to engage for maximum impact both internally and externally will have you better positioned in a time of crisis. You'll be able to make more informed decisions in a short period of time if you take this point seriously. It's not an easy process, but who said that navigating a ship through a storm would ever be easy? 

I wish you all the best as you steer your ship, and I'll be coming back to you very soon with more relevant help and information. 

Thanks again for your time, and I'll see you in the next piece. 

Kobi Simmat - Director & CEO of the Best Practice Group.