When Failure is Not an Option: Leading in Times of Crisis

伦纳德Deonarine

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2023年2月22日

Failure is never an option when it comes to the safety of your family, business or community. 在某一时刻, you may be the one they turn to in a crisis, emergency or disaster to lead them to the best possible outcome. 然而, certain thought processes and behaviors can interfere with your ability to make critical decisions and effectively manage the incident, ultimately preventing a successful emergency response.

不知道谁说了算

One of the first decisions that needs to be made is who has the authority and responsibility to take charge of the situation. 这一点应该提前很长时间确定. If you don’t know who would be in charge of managing a problem, it is best to start asking now. Far too often, people assume someone else is going to take the leadership role. Other times, multiple people believe they are in charge. 无论哪种情况, 没有明确的领导, the time available to effectively intervene decreases while frustration increases.

Believing You Can Handle the Crisis on Your Own

Another pathway to failure is believing you alone can handle all aspects of the crisis. 事实远非如此. As circumstances take a turn for the worse, you may not even realize the conditions have changed. 在复杂的情况下, where you are planning for an upcoming event or attempting to manage an ongoing incident, the Incident Command System (ICS) is a management tool you can rely upon to keep you out of trouble.

Effective use of the ICS is the standard by which you will be measured, 以及情况的结果. The ICS was refined by the study of management failures where critical decisions needed to be made under incredible time pressure, 事实很少. ICS有特点, forms and assignments that allow you to divide the crisis into manageable pieces and assign capable people to address each challenge.

如果你是事故指挥官(IC), your job is to evaluate how your team is solving the challenges. 如果他们没有取得进展, then additional personnel resources need to be provided or responsibilities need to be reassigned. 最终, the ICS structure provides an effective team-based response with a common operating doctrine to support the response for the multiple entities involved.

Thinking You Should Be at the Center of the Incident

Imagine if a fire broke out on a plane that was flying across the country and you saw the pilot and co-pilot rushing to the rear of the plane to help fight the fire. Their efforts would be heroic and important, but someone should be flying the plane.

在驾驶舱内做出决定, 比如宣布紧急状态, making notifications and rerouting to the nearest airport are just as important as fighting the fire and should be conducted simultaneously. If you are leading the effort to address the crisis, you must be in a location where you have the best ability to think clearly and see problems before they impact your people and plan.

Overcome Pitfalls and Master Incident Leadership

The pitfalls of incident leadership listed here are just a few of the many traps that can lead to failure. Others include a lack of accountability among personnel, 不明确的指挥系统, 缺乏沟通, 缺乏决策文档, 计划流程薄弱, 没能增加人手和分配任务, and failing to rehearse the incident command process with everyone who has a role in an actual crisis.

Mastering the leadership role in a time of crisis is a skill that requires training, 奉献, 决心和谦卑的心. Jensen Hughes can partner with you and your organization to reach your next level of preparedness and help you become a high-performance crisis leader. 进一步了解彩宝网平台的 应急管理 服务 and Solutions.

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作者简介

伦纳德Deonarine
Leonard has extensive experience in the emergency preparedness field, 扑灭了大火, 应急管理, 以及为美国公民提供的培训项目.S. Department of Homeland Security, private corporations, and other organizations.