The Leadership in Action Series: On Leading in Times of Change

After the Storm: Leading in the Wake of a Crisis

Gene Klann

A lot has been said and written about what leaders need to do during a crisis and to prepare for a crisis. But leadership in the period after a crisis has drawn less attention, even though it may be just as important for an organization’s viability. Here’s a primer to help leaders enable their organizations to emerge from a crisis not only intact but stronger and more purposeful.

The period from September 11, 2001, through the end of 2002 provided many unwelcome opportunities to learn how to be an effective leader during a crisis. The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on 9/11 left the leaders of the companies and military departments that occupied those buildings in ...