What does strong crisis leadership look like? What makes a strong crisis leader?  How do you develop a strong crisis management team? What role does emotional intelligence play in crisis leadership?

In this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser, along with Sr. Consultant Jenn Otremba and Consultant Bray Wheeler talk about crisis leadership and their experiences coming up in this field.

Topics discussed include emotional intelligence, crisis leadership skill sets, how to train & develop new crisis leaders, the Harvard National Preparedness Leadership Initiative (NPLI) program, educational and learning opportunities for crisis leaders, and more.

Some relevant previous episodes and blog posts include:

Top Business Continuity & Crisis Management Executive Programs

Managing Uncertainty Episode #5:  Leading during an Active Shooter Situation

 

Episode Transcript

Bryan Strawser: Hello and welcome to the Managing Uncertainty Podcast this is Bryan Strawser, Principal and CEO at Bryghtpath. Joining me today are –

Jenn Otremba: Hi, this is Jenn Otremba, Consult at Bryghtpath.

Bray Wheeler: Hi, I’m Bray Wheeler, Consultant at Bryghtpath.

Bryan Strawser: So this is our long form episode for the week and we’re going to be diving into a round-table discussion about Crisis Leadership. Since the three of us are here, a few weeks back I had done a solo episode on our podcast about characteristics of strong Crisis Leaders, and we’ll link that in the show notes but I think we want to talk just more openly and with a couple of different opinions about what we see as strong and not strong Crisis Leaders, and some of the things we’ve learned along the way. I think between the three of us we’ve got a good thirty-plus years of experience in Crisis Management, and we may have learned a few things along the way.

Jenn Otremba: One or two.

Bryan Strawser: One or two things along the way. So what makes a good crisis leader? What are good examples of crisis leadership? We start there.

Bray Wheeler: What makes a good crisis leader? What demonstrates crisis leadership? I think it’s a lot of things. I think some of it comes a little more naturally to people. Some of it’s learned for folks, but I think some of the key things are really having that ability to kind of see the incident for what it is, and not get too … not overact to it, not get too flustered by it, kind of see it as an opportunity to kind of jump in and manage the situation for what it is, and make sure that you’re trying to do the right things. And make sure that you’re bringing the other people along with you, because it’s not a solo sport by any means.

Jenn Otremba: That’s a good point, it’s not a solo sport at all so I think it’s developing that team around you to work through a situation. It’s being careful to no

What does strong crisis leadership look like? What makes a strong crisis leader?  How do you develop a strong crisis management team? What role does emotional intelligence play in crisis leadership?

In this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser, along with Sr. Consultant Jenn Otremba and Consultant Bray Wheeler talk about crisis leadership and their experiences coming up in this field.

Topics discussed include emotional intelligence, crisis leadership skill sets, how to train & develop new crisis leaders, the Harvard National Preparedness Leadership Initiative (NPLI) program, educational and learning opportunities for crisis leaders, and more.

Some relevant previous episodes and blog posts include:

* Top Business Continuity & Crisis Management Executive Programs

* Managing Uncertainty Episode #5:  Leading during an Active Shooter Situation

 

Episode Transcript

Bryan Strawser: Hello and welcome to the Managing Uncertainty Podcast this is Bryan Strawser, Principal and CEO at Bryghtpath. Joining me today are –

Jenn Otremba: Hi, this is Jenn Otremba, Consult at Bryghtpath.

Bray Wheeler: Hi, I’m Bray Wheeler, Consultant at Bryghtpath.

Bryan Strawser: So this is our long form episode for the week and we’re going to be diving into a round-table discussion about Crisis Leadership. Since the three of us are here, a few weeks back I had done a solo episode on our podcast about characteristics of strong Crisis Leaders, and we’ll link that in the show notes but I think we want to talk just more openly and with a couple of different opinions about what we see as strong and not strong Crisis Leaders, and some of the things we’ve learned along the way. I think between the three of us we’ve got a good thirty-plus years of experience in Crisis Management, and we may have learned a few things along the way.

Jenn Otremba: One or two.

Bryan Strawser: One or two things along the way. So what makes a good crisis leader? We start there.

Bray Wheeler: What makes a good crisis leader? I think it’s a lot of things. I think some of it comes a little more naturally to people. Some of it’s learned for folks, but I think some of the key things are really having that ability to kind of see the incident for what it is, and not get too … not overact to it, not get too flustered by it, kind of see it as an opportunity to kind of jump in and manage the situation for what it is, and make sure that you’re trying to do the right things. And make sure that you’re bringing the other people along with you, because it’s not a solo sport by any means.

Jenn Otremba: That’s a good point, it’s not a solo sport at all so I think it’s developing that team around you to work through a situation. It’s being careful to not get too emotionally involved with what is going on. I think it’s like you said it’s really keeping a level head as you’re managing through the situation. And then I think also recognizing when you’re beginning to escalate or when the people around you are beginning to escalate and get stressed and separate yourself or separate others as necessary. So it’s really being able to read the room and understand kind of where everybody is at.

Bray Wheeler: That self-awareness is a huge piece of it.

In this episode of our BryghtCast edition of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser, Senior Consultant Jenn Otremba, and Consultant Bray Wheeler take a look at three current risks and upcoming events:

The continuing protests in Hong Kong – where, at the time of our recording of this episode, protestors had taken over Hong Kong’s Legislative Assembly Building. They were later dispersed by police – but not before more than 500,000 protestors had taken to the streets.

Recent aviation incidents in Minnesota and Texas – heightening the importance of ensuring your organization has an effective Aviation Response Plan.

The wrongful death lawsuit filed by the parents of a homicide victim in Utah who made multiple reports with University Police and other officials about a man who ultimately was charged with her homicide. The incident highlights the importance of taking threats of violence seriously and the need for a robust, documented threat management process for companies and educational institutions.

Episode Transcript

Bryan Strawser: Hello, and welcome to the Managing Uncertainty Podcast. This is Bryan Strawser, Principal and CEO at Bryghtpath. And with me today is …

Jenn Otremba: Hi there, this is Jenn Otremba, Senior Consultant Bryghtpath.

Bray Wheeler: Hi, this is Bray Wheeler, Consultant at Bryghtpath.

Bryan Strawser: And this is our BryghtCast news episode for the week of July 1st, 2019. We’re recording this on the morning of July 1st, though you won’t hear it until a bit later this week.

Bryan Strawser: So, what do we got to start off with on our three major events for the week?

Bray Wheeler: This morning we’re going to kick it off unfortunately with some aviation events that happened, book-ending the weekend here.

Bray Wheeler: On Friday, here locally in Minnesota, a medevac helicopter crashed early in the morning on Friday on the Brainerd area of Minnesota, which is about two hours north of the Twin Cities. In that crash, both the pilots and the medevac nurse were killed. The medic on board sustained injuries and is expected to make a full recovery. That occurred over the weekend. Fortunate no patients were on board, but there was foggy weather. It was late in the morning.

Bray Wheeler: Jenn, you have expertise on that one here as kind of an expert. But then the other incident that happened over the weekend was a plane crash in Dallas that killed all 10 on board. It sounded like it occurred on takeoff, veered into a hangar, and then unfortunately that caused the loss of life.

Bray Wheeler: I think really where our focus is this morning is just on that aviation safety, companies having a plan, even if it’s j

In this episode of our BryghtCast edition of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser, Senior Consultant Jenn Otremba, and Consultant Bray Wheeler take a look at three current risks and upcoming events:

* The continuing protests in Hong Kong – where, at the time of our recording of this episode, protestors had taken over Hong Kong’s Legislative Assembly Building. They were later dispersed by police – but not before more than 500,000 protestors had taken to the streets.

* Recent aviation incidents in Minnesota and Texas – heightening the importance of ensuring your organization has an effective Aviation Response Plan.

* The wrongful death lawsuit filed by the parents of a homicide victim in Utah who made multiple reports with University Police and other officials about a man who ultimately was charged with her homicide. The incident highlights the importance of taking threats of violence seriously and the need for a robust, documented threat management process for companies and educational institutions.

Episode Transcript

Bryan Strawser: Hello, and welcome to the Managing Uncertainty Podcast. This is Bryan Strawser, Principal and CEO at Bryghtpath. And with me today is …

Jenn Otremba: Hi there, this is Jenn Otremba, Senior Consultant Bryghtpath.

Bray Wheeler: Hi, this is Bray Wheeler, Consultant at Bryghtpath.

Bryan Strawser: And this is our BryghtCast news episode for the week of July 1st, 2019. We’re recording this on the morning of July 1st, though you won’t hear it until a bit later this week.

Bryan Strawser: So, what do we got to start off with on our three major events for the week?

Bray Wheeler: This morning we’re going to kick it off unfortunately with some aviation events that happened, book-ending the weekend here.

Bray Wheeler: On Friday, here locally in Minnesota, a medevac helicopter crashed early in the morning on Friday on the Brainerd area of Minnesota, which is about two hours north of the Twin Cities. In that crash, both the pilots and the medevac nurse were killed. The medic on board sustained injuries and is expected to make a full recovery. That occurred over the weekend. Fortunate no patients were on board, but there was foggy weather. It was late in the morning.

Bray Wheeler: Jenn, you have expertise on that one here as kind of an expert. But then the other incident that happened over the weekend was a plane crash in Dallas that killed all 10 on board. It sounded like it occurred on takeoff, veered into a hangar, and then unfortunately that caused the loss of life.

Bray Wheeler: I think really where our focus is this morning is just on that aviation safety, companies having a plan, even if it’s just, you’re a small company and you travel via commercial flight, but those things are real and they’re happening.

Bryan Strawser: Mm-hmm (affirmative).

Jenn Otremba: Yeah.

Jenn Otremba: So first of all, I mean this is heartbreaking for the aviation community. Specifically, rotary wing, because this really hits close to home here since it was one of our own here in North Memorial. And we don’t know the cause of either of these accidents.

Over the past several weeks, Hong Kong has been the site of some of the largest protests we’ve seen in history – by some accounts, over two million people took to the streets to protest Hong Kong’s proposed new extradition statutes. Following the protests, the current Chief Executive of Hong Kong temporarily suspended the bills but has not yet withdrawn them from consideration.

In this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser, Senior Consultant Jennifer Otremba, and Consultant Bray Wheeler discuss the current situation in Hong Kong. What should companies do in response to the current situation? What might the future hold? How did we wind up in this situation, to begin with, anyway?

Topics discussed include crisis management, business continuity, alternate workspaces, geographical shifting of work, physical security, global intelligence, and preparedness measures organizations should continue that operate in Hong Kong.

Episode Transcript

Bryan Strawser:

Hello and welcome back to the Managing Uncertainty Podcast. This is Bryan Strawser, principal and CEO at Bryghtpath, and joining me for today’s episode about Hong Kong and what’s going on in the special administrative region of Hong Kong is…

 

Jenn Otremba:

Hi, this is Jenn Otremba, senior consultant at Bryghtpath.

 

Bray Wheeler:

Hi, this is Bray Wheeler, consultant at Bryghtpath.

 

Bryan Strawser:

So this is our deep dive episode where we’re going to get into a topic and talk about kind of its impact on business, and some processes and things that you should be thinking about. And we’re going to focus on the current situation in Hong Kong where if you’ve been paying attention, there have been protests like they have not seen protest before going on in Hong Kong.

 

Bryan Strawser:

These protests are targeted against a proposed bill which has now been suspended, but not withdrawn. This bill would have allowed the extradition of Hong Kong citizens to countries that Hong Kong does not have an extradition treaty with. That’s a really fancy way of saying that China would be able to charge Hong Kong citizens with a crime under Chinese law, and then have Hong Kong export Hong Kong citizens to mainland China for trial. Why is that a problem?

 

Bray Wheeler:

Well I think the big thing for Hong Kong is the fact that they enjoy some pretty good autonomy from China in terms of their control. And Hong Kong citizens are pretty passionate about that fact and-

 

Bry

Over the past several weeks, Hong Kong has been the site of some of the largest protests we’ve seen in history – by some accounts, over two million people took to the streets to protest Hong Kong’s proposed new extradition statutes. Following the protests, the current Chief Executive of Hong Kong temporarily suspended the bills but has not yet withdrawn them from consideration.

In this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser, Senior Consultant Jennifer Otremba, and Consultant Bray Wheeler discuss the current situation in Hong Kong. What should companies do in response to the current situation? What might the future hold? How did we wind up in this situation, to begin with, anyway?

Topics discussed include crisis management, business continuity, alternate workspaces, geographical shifting of work, physical security, global intelligence, and preparedness measures organizations should continue that operate in Hong Kong.

 

Episode Transcript

Bryan Strawser:

Hello and welcome back to the Managing Uncertainty Podcast. This is Bryan Strawser, principal and CEO at Bryghtpath, and joining me for today’s episode about Hong Kong and what’s going on in the special administrative region of Hong Kong is…

 

Jenn Otremba:

Hi, this is Jenn Otremba, senior consultant at Bryghtpath.

 

Bray Wheeler:

Hi, this is Bray Wheeler, consultant at Bryghtpath.

 

Bryan Strawser:

So this is our deep dive episode where we’re going to get into a topic and talk about kind of its impact on business, and some processes and things that you should be thinking about. And we’re going to focus on the current situation in Hong Kong where if you’ve been paying attention, there have been protests like they have not seen protest before going on in Hong Kong.

 

Bryan Strawser:

These protests are targeted against a proposed bill which has now been suspended, but not withdrawn. This bill would have allowed the extradition of Hong Kong citizens to countries that Hong Kong does not have an extradition treaty with. That’s a really fancy way of saying that China would be able to charge Hong Kong citizens with a crime under Chinese law, and then have Hong Kong export Hong Kong citizens to mainland China for trial. Why is that a problem?

 

Bray Wheeler:

Well I think the big thing for Hong Kong is the fact that they enjoy some pretty good autonomy from China in terms of their control. And Hong Kong citizens are pretty passionate about that fact and-

 

Bryan Strawser:

They like their independence.

 

Bray Wheeler:

They like their independence. They like being different. And I think for them it’s a little bit of a easy backdoor for China to be able to get in there and grab protest leaders, political opponents, folks who speak ill of China. Citizens of Hong Kong, that’s their fear, is that it’s not just as simple as it’s made out to be, that it really gives China a lot of opportunity to go in and nab people and bring them out.

 

With this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, we’re joined by all members of our consulting team at Bryghtpath, including the return of the previous co-host Jennifer Otremba, who has returned to us safely after a year of military leave.

Moving forward, we plan to release two episodes weekly.

A news/current events focused episode, dubbed “BryghtCast” covering challenges to the business community from current risks or upcoming events – and how companies should be thinking about these events from a physical security, crisis management, and business continuity perspective.

A deep dive episode into a specific topic related to business continuity, crisis management, intelligence, crisis communications, or a related field. This is the type of podcast episode that we’ve typically done in the past. Look for a new episode next Monday covering the current situation in Hong Kong and steps companies should consider over the coming days and months.

In this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, we’re covering recent developments with Wal-Mart’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) settlement with the US Government, the recent Mayoral elections in Istanbul, Turkey and its impact on national politics there, and the recent escalation in conflict and tension between the United States and Iran in the Persian Gulf.

Episode Transcript

Bryan Strawser:

Welcome back to the Managing Uncertainty Podcast. This is Bryan Strawser, principal and CEO at Bryghtpath. I want to talk a little bit about some changes that we’re going to make to the podcast starting with this episode. We have decided now to release two episodes each week, and they’re going to have a little different focus.

 

Bryan Strawser:

The first episode each week, the one that you’re listening to right now is going to be more of a news and current events-focused discussion. We’re going to look at somewhere between three and five things that are happening in the news or are planned to happen in the coming days that are relevant to your preparedness capabilities around the world.

 

Bryan Strawser:

So joining me for this discussion will be the rest of the Bryghtpath consulting team, Jennifer Otremba and Bray Wheeler. I’m going to have Jenn and Bray introduce themselves, and then we’ll come back to me and talk a little bit about what this is going to look like. Jenn?

 

Jenn Otremba:

Hi, I’m Jenn Otremba. I’m a senior consultant here at Bryghtpath.

 

Bray Wheeler:

Hi, this is Bray Wheeler. I’m a consultant here at Bryghtpath.

 

Bryan Strawser:

Why don’t each of you talk just a little bit about your backgrounds for a little bit?

 

Jenn Otremba:

Sure. I’ll start if you want.

 

Bray Wheeler:

Sure.

 

Jenn Otremba:

So I started at Bryghtpath a few years ago now, but I took a little bit of a leave of absence. I’m also in the National Guard. I’ve got over 20 years experience with

With this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, we’re joined by all members of our consulting team at Bryghtpath, including the return of the previous co-host Jennifer Otremba, who has returned to us safely after a year of military leave.

Moving forward, we plan to release two episodes weekly.

* A news/current events focused episode, dubbed “BryghtCast” covering challenges to the business community from current risks or upcoming events – and how companies should be thinking about these events from a physical security, crisis management, and business continuity perspective.

* A deep dive episode into a specific topic related to business continuity, crisis management, intelligence, crisis communications, or a related field. This is the type of podcast episode that we’ve typically done in the past. Look for a new episode next Monday covering the current situation in Hong Kong and steps companies should consider over the coming days and months.

In this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, we’re covering recent developments with Wal-Mart’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) settlement with the US Government, the recent Mayoral elections in Istanbul, Turkey and its impact on national politics there, and the recent escalation in conflict and tension between the United States and Iran in the Persian Gulf.

Episode Transcript

Bryan Strawser:

Welcome back to the Managing Uncertainty Podcast. This is Bryan Strawser, principal and CEO at Bryghtpath. I want to talk a little bit about some changes that we’re going to make to the podcast starting with this episode. We have decided now to release two episodes each week, and they’re going to have a little different focus.

 

Bryan Strawser:

The first episode each week, the one that you’re listening to right now is going to be more of a news and current events-focused discussion. We’re going to look at somewhere between three and five things that are happening in the news or are planned to happen in the coming days that are relevant to your preparedness capabilities around the world.

 

Bryan Strawser:

So joining me for this discussion will be the rest of the Bryghtpath consulting team, Jennifer Otremba and Bray Wheeler. I’m going to have Jenn and Bray introduce themselves, and then we’ll come back to me and talk a little bit about what this is going to look like. Jenn?

 

Jenn Otremba:

Hi, I’m Jenn Otremba. I’m a senior consultant here at Bryghtpath.

 

Bray Wheeler:

Hi, this is Bray Wheeler. I’m a consultant here at Bryghtpath.

 

Bryan Strawser:

Why don’t each of you talk just a little bit about your backgrounds for a little bit?

 

Jenn Otremba:

Sure. I’ll start if you want.

 

Bray Wheeler:

Sure.

 

Jenn Otremba:

So I started at Bryghtpath a few years ago now, but I took a little bit of a leave of absence. I’m also in the National Guard. I’ve got over 20 years experience with the military. I’ve been gone for about almost a year, right guys?

 

Bryan Strawser:

Yeah.

 

Jenn Otremba:

Over in the Middle East working.

 

Bryan Strawser:

I like how you said you kind of took a sabbatical, but it’s not this was by choice.

 

Jenn Otremba:

Yeah. No, no a little bit of a break from Bryghtpath for my other career path there.

 

Jenn Otremba:

I know that I have introduced myself before on the podcast,

In July 2018, the United States Secret Service released a report on School Threat Assessment Teams. This report took a look back at several instances of school violence & school shootings, looked for commonalities, and proposed a number of recommendations primarily centered on establishing and using school threat assessment teams.

In this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser discusses the Secret Service’s report on school threat assessment teams, discusses best practices in implementing and managing such teams, and how the experts at Bryghtpath may be able to assist you and your organization.

We did an earlier podcast episode on a similar topic, Threat Management in Educational Institutions, that you may also find valuable.

Episode Transcript

Hi folks. Welcome back to the Managing Uncertainty podcast. This is Bryan Strawser, Principal and CEO at Bryghtpath and this week I want to talk about school safety, specifically a report that came out from the United States Secret Service last fall about enhancing school safety using a threat assessment model.

Within the United States Secret Service, there’s a center called the National Threat Assessment Center that writes a number of analytical reports on really certain aspects of crime that fall within the Secret Service’s jurisdiction or areas of interest. And in this case, the Secret Service was specifically charged back in 1998 in a joint effort with the US Department of Education to take a holistic look at school shootings across the country, school violence across the country, and come up with solutions, and thus was born the the NTAC or the National Threat Assessment Center at the Service.

Last fall in 2018 they released a new report titled Enhancing School Safety Using a Threat Assessment Model, and this is the report that I want to talk a little bit about on today’s podcast.

This report from the Secret Service aims to provide guidance for schools and communities to help identify students of concern, assess their risk level for engaging in violence and identify intervention strategies that can help them mitigate that risk as much as possible.

The report itself has some interesting data in it around school violence and school shootings and kind of similar incidents that are there. But I thought that their key recommendations were really the most interesting part of the report because it really got into here are some ways that we can make schools safer. Here are some things that we could do to identify potentially violent behavior and take some actions to mitigate or prevent those types of incidents from happening.

I think the most important insight coming out of the Secret Service’s report from July of 2018 is that there is no viable profile of

In July 2018, the United States Secret Service released a report on School Threat Assessment Teams. This report took a look back at several instances of school violence & school shootings, looked for commonalities, and proposed a number of recommendations primarily centered on establishing and using school threat assessment teams.

In this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast, Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser discusses the Secret Service’s report on school threat assessment teams, discusses best practices in implementing and managing such teams, and how the experts at Bryghtpath may be able to assist you and your organization.

We did an earlier podcast episode on a similar topic, Threat Management in Educational Institutions, that you may also find valuable.

Episode Transcript

Hi folks. Welcome back to the Managing Uncertainty podcast. This is Bryan Strawser, Principal and CEO at Bryghtpath and this week I want to talk about school safety, specifically a report that came out from the United States Secret Service last fall about enhancing school safety using a threat assessment model.

Within the United States Secret Service, there’s a center called the National Threat Assessment Center that writes a number of analytical reports on really certain aspects of crime that fall within the Secret Service’s jurisdiction or areas of interest. And in this case, the Secret Service was specifically charged back in 1998 in a joint effort with the US Department of Education to take a holistic look at school shootings across the country, school violence across the country, and come up with solutions, and thus was born the the NTAC or the National Threat Assessment Center at the Service.

Last fall in 2018 they released a new report titled Enhancing School Safety Using a Threat Assessment Model, and this is the report that I want to talk a little bit about on today’s podcast.

This report from the Secret Service aims to provide guidance for schools and communities to help identify students of concern, assess their risk level for engaging in violence and identify intervention strategies that can help them mitigate that risk as much as possible.

The report itself has some interesting data in it around school violence and school shootings and kind of similar incidents that are there. But I thought that their key recommendations were really the most interesting part of the report because it really got into here are some ways that we can make schools safer. Here are some things that we could do to identify potentially violent behavior and take some actions to mitigate or prevent those types of incidents from happening.

I think the most important insight coming out of the Secret Service’s report from July of 2018 is that there is no viable profile of a violent student. There’s no viable profile of a student that is going to perhaps engage in a school shooting or active shooter situation. And I know we hear a lot about various traits and behaviors that happen, but the Secret Service’s data shows that there’s really not a profile that you can use to identify this violent attacker. That student attackers have appeared in every practical form that you can think of. They’ve been male and female.