From tragic accidents to public relations fiascos, we live in an increasingly crisis-ridden society. In fact, half of the major industrial accidents of the past century occurred in the last 20 years. Incidents such as Bhopal and the Exxon Valdez have become embedded in our consciousness, cultural icons of the worst sort. Other crises, less devastating but with serious impact on their businesses, occur almost daily. Why is this -- and what can be done to reverse this disturbing trend? According to Ian Mitroff, one of the world's leading experts on crisis management, the rise in the crisis rate is due to an ingrained "it-can't happen-to-us" mentality -- which, in turn, leads to a total lack of preparedness for crises. His solution? Find out in Managing Crises Before They Happen. This fascinating book provides readers with a powerful framework that will help them: Recognize the early warning signals that almost always precede a crisis -- Focus on the big picture, not just the details -- Avoid becoming either the victim or the villain in a crisis situation -- Understand the importance of personal character, corporate culture, and thinking outside the box to effective crisis management -- Learn from one crisis things that can prevent or ameliorate the next.

Soundview Executive Summaries - books selected in 2001

Harvard Business Review on Crisis Management (A Harvard Business Review Paperback) by Augustine Normand
Crisis Management: Planning for the Inevitable by Fink, Steven
Crisis in Organizations II by Barton, Laurence
Harvard Business Review on Managing Uncertainty (The Harvard Business Review Paperback Series) by De Geus, Arie

Nice, but very academic
This book is well concieved, but obviously written by someone who has an academic background. The author cites lots of facts and examples, but never really takes the "how to" steps I'd expect from someone who has actually done what he's writing about.

I'd recommend Blindsided by Bruce Blythe instead. It has a tilt to the human side of crises, but is very well done and includes many practical tips. I've actually lost consulting engagements because his book gave too many trade secrets away!

Chapter One: Why Crises Are an Inevitable and Permanent Feature of Modern Societies

Chapter Two: The Failure of Success: The Tylenol Poisonings, Crisis Management's "Ancient History"

Chapter Three: A Best Practice Model: A General Framework for Crisis Management

Chapter Four: Should We Tell the Truth? The Varieties of Truth and Telling the Truth

Chapter Five: Assuming Responsibility: Victim or Villain?

Chapter Six: Detecting Weak Signals: Making Sure That You Are the First to Get the Worst News!

Chapter Seven: Thinking Far Outside of the Boxes

Chapter Eight: Treating the Big Picture

Chapter Nine: Crisis Management 2002: The Challenges Ahead

In The Art of War, Sun Tzu asserts that every battle is won or lost before it is fought. Hence the great importance Mitroff assigns to anticipation and preparation. I think his book would have even greater value if read in combination with Peter Schwartz's The Art of the Long View. Given the importance of this subject to any organization (regardless of its size or nature), I also recommend Steven Fink's Crisis Management.

When concluding his book, Mitroff offers these suggestions: "Start by designing and implementing signal detection [ie early warning] mechanisms throughout your organization. Start by amplifying the signals that already exist in your organization of impending crises. In many cases, the databases that indicate signals of impending crises may already exist, but they need to be reconceptualized to show their relationship to CM." Sound advice. But ultimately, even the most comprehensive and sophisticated CM system cannot predict or suggest, much less prevent, every crisis. Once a crisis occurs, one of the most important questions Mitroff answers is "Now what?" That answer alone is well-worth the cost of this important book.