Understanding Crisis

In its simplest definition - A crisis may be defined as a state of danger or difficulty or a turning point of something with adverse consequences that results to damage and/or loss of lives. A crisis management plan in parallel is a process or a series of actions to deal with a crisis in order to minimize its impact.

In anticipation of an inevitable crisis scenario, a crisis management plan can only be as effective as to how you well understand a crisis situation. Regretful events such as the Bali and New York 11 are just but few pictures of a large crisis leaving all those involved seemingly unprepared. Lessons were unfolded from those events.

A crisis management plan may not be a fail safe guarantee to save lives and keep properties intact as a situation happens.. but a well-laid out crisis plan will certainly place an organization into a good position to respond to such. Henceforth, the importance of a crisis management plan should be borne from the inner core of the corporate level and consequently respected upon down to the lowest line of command.

While operational emergency procedures are formed to counter minimal crisis incidents and essentially designed to prevent destruction or save lives.. But more often, it is the ability to interact and communicate that saves an organization in its entirety. With this perception, a crisis communications plan is no less important.

After all that transpired in the MV Princess of the Stars tragedy, it is apparently in this aspect where management failed to extend due recognition.