Effective Crisis Leadership : Communication and Focus

Classified under: Articles and readings, Blog Date: 23 February 2021

Reassurance and transparency.

COVID-19 has brought along much uncertaintly about our professional and personal lives. Businesses are experiencing major disruptions ; some are worried about their very survival. It is therefore critical for leaders to help employees stay informed, feel heard, and kept on track.

Firstly, organizational leaders should communicate frankly and frequently about how the company is doing. In difficult times, employees need to know the company’s actual status as soon as feasible. Regular attention from the most important person (MIP) in their professional lives actually maintains performance, trust, and resilience.

Secondly, employees are human beings. So address their visceral need for reassurance and speak to their emotions. It is essential to remember that you’re communicating with people who are making the future viability of your company a top priority in their lives.

Finally, organizational leaders must maintain a focus on what’s most important. This is the health of your employees and families, then the health of the business. They need to know what’s urgent and what can wait. Now more than ever, we need to be real, we need to be human, and we need to pay extra attention to our most important people, at work and at home. Full article : MIT Sloan Management Review