These are amazing times, but this is not the first crisis that many of us have experienced. Having worked in the freight transportation industry for over 35 years, I have seen ice storms, snowstorms, SARS, mainframe crashes, tornados that have ripped the roof off buildings, the raiding of employees and customers and other challenging incidents. I have been the leader and observed other leaders guide their teams through these types of events. During this Coronavirus crisis, we have had the opportunity to observe the leaders of the U.S. government and medical emergency teams lead America through the epidemic. What are some lessons that we can all take from the events to date?
Lesson 1: Create and Maintain a Crisis Management Leader, Team and Plan
The White House had a pandemic team, but the leader left and was not replaced; the team was disbanded. These types of crises don’t happen every day; nevertheless, it is very helpful to have a leader, team and written plan for the major crises that can be anticipated. In certain parts of North America, one can anticipate a hurricane, tornado, ice storm or other type of natural or man-made disaster. The president reportedly ignored early warnings of the severity of the virus and grew angry at a CDC official who in February warned that an outbreak was inevitable.
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