Here’s a question we often get: “When does an issue turn into a crisis?” That’s a tricky one, right?
The truth is, it depends on a bunch of things, like your organization’s size, past scrapes with crises, and how comfortable you are with risks.
At the heart of it, a crisis is any situation that might throw a wrench in your everyday operations, smear your reputation, or shake up your financial stability. To figure out where you stand in a crisis, consider the following:
- Have you or your leadership team ever wrestled with a crisis before?
- How do you feel about risks – are you someone who’d run a mile to get away from them, run towards them, or use your fancy footwork to try to bounce safely somewhere in between?
- And what about your clients or strategic partners? Are they the adventurous type, or do they prefer playing it safe?
Still trying to figure out where you land? Revenue tends to be a more straightforward indicator.
The $50MM+ Big Leaguers: The ‘Been There, Done That’ Crew
Organizations raking in more than $50MM annually usually stay several steps ahead of crises. They’ve been in the ring before and know how to duck a crisis punch. And they’ve got their trusty team of advisors in their corner, and very rarely do they face a full-blown crisis. They value everything running smoothly with only small hiccups or bumps in the road.
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Conversations with the Big Leaguers tend to start with:
- “In a few months, we’re about to head into negotiations…”
- “We’re planning to do XYZ, and we’d like to get your thoughts on how this might go sideways…”
- “The board is meeting to discuss XYZ, and I want to be prepared…”
The $1-10MM Hustlers: The ‘Roll with the Punches’ Squad
Then, you’ve got companies bringing in between $1-10MM. They’re awesome at what they do, but they often find themselves scrambling when a crisis hits. But hey, every scrape in the entrepreneurial journey is a lesson learned, right?
The main exception we see with this group is the company that was founded by a serial entrepreneur. Since they’ve been around long enough to see what’s at stake and how easily some things can go sideways, they tend to be on the cautiously optimistic risk-taking side and act more like the Big Leaguers or In-Betweeners.
A tech company based in the Bay Area spotted a privacy issue with its beta testers on a new product feature they were about to roll out to all of its users. They were rushing to get the product to market and thought they could get it under control before anyone noticed. Instead of hitting pause to fix the issue, it inflicted a crisis on itself. The company scrambled around until one of its early investors gave them an ultimatum: Clean up the act and bring in a fix-it team, or say goodbye to future investments.
Conversations with the Hustlers tend to start with:
- “We should have called you sooner….”
- “We thought we had a handle on this, but…”
- “We f*cked up. Help!”
- “Nothing like this has ever happened before…”
The $10-50MM In-Betweeners: The ‘Finding Our Feet’ Folks
The companies making $10-50MM? They’re caught somewhere in the middle. They’ve had a brush or two with minor crises, making them a tad proactive and often addressing emerging issues. They prefer not to have to go through a full-blown crisis ever again, if possible.
A beverage company based in the Pacific Northwest was looking to expand nationally. They were about to go out asking for another round of funding when they got hit with a potential health scare with one of their products. They caught the issue early, but needed a solid plan to avoid a crisis.
Conversations with the In-Betweeners tend to start with:
- “I want to run this by you before we do anything…”
- “We find ourselves in a situation where…”
- “I really hope this doesn’t become a big issue, but…”
Stepping Up the Crisis Game
Whether you’re a seasoned Big Leaguer, a Hustler navigating the learning curve, or an In-Betweener finding your balance, mastering crisis management can be a game-changer. Remember, the best defense in a crisis is making sure it never gets to don the crisis jersey in the first place.
No matter the size or revenue of your company, don’t just wait for a crisis to hit. Be proactive, get ahead of the game, and always have a crisis management plan at the ready. It’s a small step that can make a huge difference. Now, that’s playing it smart!
Gillott Communications is a Los Angeles-based public relations firm that specializes in high-stakes Crisis & Reputation Management with more than 50 years of expertise in strategic communications, corporate public relations, and working with the media.
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