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How to build a crisis management plan in one afternoon
By Jeremy Andrews, Senior Reputation Expert, TheBestReputation · · 3 min read
A useful crisis management plan fits on one page: named roles and backups, a contact list, your five most likely scenarios, pre-approved holding statements, a sign-off path, and a post-crisis reputation recovery step. Review it twice a year and after every leadership change.
The one-page template
- Crisis lead and backup.
- Spokesperson and backup.
- Legal, HR, and IT contacts.
- Top five likely scenarios.
- Pre-drafted holding statements.
- A clear, fast approval path.
- Search recovery step after the cycle ends.
Long binders don't get read under pressure. A page does.
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Common questions
- How often should a crisis plan be updated?
- Twice a year, and whenever key people change roles.
- Should small companies have a crisis plan?
- Yes. Small companies have fewer people to absorb a crisis, so preparation matters more.