3 things every organization should do before a crisis strikes

Accidents and mistakes are part of being human.

You cannot get through life without tripping and skimming your knee at least once, and you will disappoint someone by forgetting something.

Equally, a business cannot exist without facing crises now and then.

Mistakes, misunderstandings, accidents, product failures and employee misconduct are all risks that organizations face regularly. Although they’re nearly impossible to avoid, they can be managed.

If key people in your organization are well prepared and vigilant, you can foresee potential risks and prevent many of them from escalating into major crises. If managed especially well, few outside your crisis response team will even know anything happened.

A carefully compiled crisis communication guide can literally save your business when the inevitable occurs.

The key to remember is that there’s no universal crisis handbook you can order and put on your shelf.

Every business is different, and what you’ll need in your response plan will require careful research, documentation and frequent revision. It must also be flexible and evolve with your business.