What are some guiding principles that leaders need to follow in a crisis situation?

Leading through a crisis is one of the most difficult things a leader will do in her career. Leading successfully through a crisis is an even greater challenge and a monumental accomplishment. Nothing has prepared us for the demands of the COVID19 pandemic and school closures, the complexity of crisis leadership, and the devastating impact on our students. The impact goes beyond teaching and learning, and into the wellness and mental health of students, staff and families. This impact inspires us to lead to the best of our abilities. And for many, it keeps us up at night.

These past few weeks have made something abundantly clear to me: Leadership matters.

Yes, we’ve talked about the impact of great leadership for years. We’ve read and written about it, and perhaps shared (1 or 100) inspirational quotes about how much it matters. I thought I understood what it takes to be a great leader, but nothing NOTHING prepared me for crisis leadership.

Crisis leadership commands that I lead in a different way. It forces me into a state of constant learning, seeking ways to modify and improve my leadership practices, sometimes second guessing my decisions and worrying about missed opportunities to lead well. I am mentally exhausted and physically drained, but at the end of the day, I’m more determined than ever to lead successfully. Through it all I’ve learned a few things that are helping me become a wiser and stronger crisis leader for my district team, my staff, and my school communities:

1. People First — People are the heart and greatest resource of an organization. There is nothing more important during a crisis than human connection. When people feel emotionally connected, valued, heard and supported, they will rally toward a common goal.
2. Lead with Data — People are dealing with the unknown, an avalanche of misinformation and fear. Our role is to gather information and base our decisions on facts and data. We have to trust that we’ve made the best possible decision for students and staff at that moment in time.
3. Transparency and Clear Communication — People seek honesty and transparency in a leader. Frequent and honest communication is reassuring. When we communicate in an honest and clear manner, we alleviate fears and provide hope.
4. Truly Listen — Listening leaders listen with their hearts and minds. They give their full attention and they listen with empathy and understanding. People need to feel heard, more than ever.
5. Lead with Compassion — Our staff and school communities are dealing with isolation and physical distancing, economic hardship and a deadly virus. They are stressed and in need of compassion and empathy. Lead with grace, give it and receive it. Remember self-compassion and self-care.
6. Lead for Equity — We knew that vulnerable communities and many of our students faced inequity, but school closures and distance learning have truly brought the needs of our most marginalized communities to the surface. Maintain a focus on equity and socially just practices…this is our opportunity to truly transform education.
7. Be Flexible, Things Change — Things are changing by the minute, literally. I find myself planning and developing things that have to be revamped the next day. Flexibility is key. Lead with flexibility and extend it to others.
8. Be Present, Stay Calm — Focus on “what is” and not “what if.” Make decisions based on what you know TODAY. Stay calm, as this will calm others. Stay positive, as negativity is contagious.
9. Dedicate Resources — This crisis is requiring us to be more creative about providing staff and students with the resources needed to navigate school closures. Parents are losing jobs and many are in need of meals and mental health supports. Invest your human and fiscal resources in new and creative ways that may alleviate the pandemic’s negative impact on our students and staff.
10. See #1 — People first. Always.

Despite my years as an educational leader, I struggle with feeling prepared for the demands of crisis leadership. What I do know is that we won’t succeed without the guidance of leaders who listen and lead with humanity, an equity standpoint, a people-first mindset, and facts. I hope that my sharing of these 10 learnings will help you lead through the uncertainty, fear, and complexities of crisis leadership as much as they’re helping me. We can do this, Leaders!

“This difficult, turbulent time will surely someday be seen, in part, as a fertile, living laboratory in which courageous leaders were made, not born.”

Nancy Koehn

The COVID-19 crisis has significantly changed the role of leadership in organizations, having an impact above and beyond the functioning of any given system. The life experiences of many leaders have not prepared them for this VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) crisis.

A static system will not work for leaders under the current state of affairs because of the vast amount of change and the prevailing uncertainty. Instead, leaders need a systematic approach that is agile, up to date and accurate. They cannot rely on their previous leadership capabilities; they need a new compass to be able to navigate these unprecedented times. They need highly trained coaches specializing in leading in times of crisis and recovery.

When uncertainty and ambiguity is high, people look to their leaders for answers. Here are seven strategies effective leaders use in these circumstances:

1. Give a Clear Direction

In times of crisis, leaders owe their people a clear sense of direction, even when visibility is poor. Their focus can be on the short term, which, along with regular updates, gives them the flexibility to respond to constant and rapid change.

2. Focus on People

Leaders need to take the human factor into account more than they have done before. They must lead people, as people. Because their employees are worried and uncertain, leaders need to proactively offer support, encouragement and engagement.

3. Find a Coach

Leaders need to discover their own humanity and bring it to the workplace with them — for many leaders, for the first time. They must find in themselves those “soft areas” that enable connection with their team members beyond the crisis. This magnitude of change is almost impossible to achieve without help or guidance, which is where coaching can help.

4. Be Transparent

In times of crisis, leaders can inspire trust by providing transparent and frequent information about what they know and what they do not know. Employees are not children from whom leaders must hide the grim reality. They are adults. With the right information, provided at the right time, they will develop the trust that is missing in the world right now.

Leaders can also inspire hope in such times, but it should be open-ended hope, without a deadline. No one knows how long the pandemic will continue, so it would be a mistake to offer hope with a timeline (“it will be over by the summer”). If that timeline were wrong, it could hurt morale and weaken psychological resilience.

5. Develop Self-leadership

Leaders need to set an example by leading themselves beyond the boundaries of their own concerns and uncertainties. In a time of crisis, without self-leadership, it is challenging and almost unethical to lead others.

Self-leadership in unknown stormy waters is a process that starts with leaders’ choosing to stand up for their principles or values. They go beyond their own limitations and difficulties to express those principles and values, and they set for themselves a clear direction and vision. Only then they can offer that direction to the people they lead.

6. Care for Their Team

Leaders need to help their team members overcome their fears so they can again be successful employees. They need to legitimize people’s concerns and not hold them against them. Great leaders like Churchill, Ghandi and Mandela are examples of this leadership trait.

7. Learn to Be a Real Leader

Real leaders lead people from where they are to where they know they can be. With the right leaders, employees grow and develop, reaching new heights of achievement. Not everyone who is promoted to a management position is a real leader. Real leaders learn and develop continuously and see the potential greatness in themselves and others.

As structures crumble and businesses are disrupted, we need this type of leader more than ever. They will navigate us through change and uncertainty.

Aviad Goz

Aviad Goz is a global thought leader on personal and organizational development and creator of the N.E.W.S. compassÓ. Aviad has been active in the fields of organizational development and leadership training since 1986 and has worked with leaders in over 2,000 organizations in 50 countries.