Toyota Paying Dearly due to Inept Crisis Management

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) February 5, 2010 -- History is cluttered with the remains of the “formerly great”. Be they companies or executives, they often fell from the pinnacles of success to the bottom because they failed to give people credit for having good, old fashioned, common sense. In many situations, management egos got in the way of smart decisions leading to actions being taken with the misguided belief that a little smoke and mirrors could fool the market.

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Toyota Paying Dearly due to Inept Crisis Management

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Today, consumers are more alert than ever to a suspected scam. There’s a lot of evidence to suggest that, after more than a year of The Great Recession, the average individual is now more likely to be skeptical then ever before. Having been burned by banks, stock brokers, and bubbles created by others looking to get rich on the backs of the average guy or gal; people today are looking hard at anything that could be viewed as “risky”. Any organization treating these individuals as naïve or accepting will put their business and the organization’s future at great risk.

Toyota has problems. But how they’ve reacted to those problems has made them much worse.

With this in mind, here are 7 tips I’d like to share with the leaders of Toyota - and any organization that may have to face a major crisis:

1. First and foremost, recognize that calamities happen. Even the best and most successful will face an unexpected problem at some point, so don’t believe you’re “bulletproof” –it’s like an invitation for bad Karma to surround you. Accept this rule of life.

2. Prepare for the worst. – Make a plan. Do it when things are going well and when there’s no emotion flaring-up to misdirect or overlook how saying or doing one thing could cause a backlash elsewhere.

3. The Boss may not be the best spokesperson. Before it’s necessary to face the media, identify the best person to take the lead. It could be someone at a lower level who has great communication skills. If it has to be the boss – get him or her some media training so they know what to do if required

4. Don’t dither. Responding quickly in difficult situations is critical. When stakeholders see that the leadership is involved, it calms them. Even if there are no immediate answers. Visibly showing care and concern has a great impact.

5. Action is still better than words. Mobilize everybody, even those in other departments, to get to the bottom of the problem. This serves 2 purposes – it ensures the solution will be found more quickly and it shows the organization your concern and commitment.

6. Be open with all stakeholders. In this case, a stakeholder is anyone who has an interest in the outcome. That includes suppliers and dealers who may have a different approach because they understand the world from another perspective. Ask for their assistance – don’t shut them out.

7. Update frequently. Keep everyone up to date on what you are doing. Studies have shown that how a company responds to a crisis can actually create a stronger bond with their customers than existed before the problem. At the same time, today’s more critical customers are likely to leave you if they feel betrayed.

In my 30-years as a corporate executive and as a business success coach, I've spent a lot of time in boardrooms and executive suites. I've seen firsthand what works and what does not work The key is to expect the unexpected, recognize that things often go wrong just when they seem to be perfect, and be prepared to deal with whatever comes.

Background on the expert:

John M McKee, is Founder and CEO of the Los Angeles based international coaching practice Business SuccessCoach.net and the author of 2 books including, Career Wisdom (2007, Wheatmark). McKee works with company leaders in organizations throughout North America. One of the original founding senior executive team of DIRECTV, John has run organizations in size ranging from startups to large billion dollar entities and has faced crises himself. McKee can be reached on email at John@BusinessSuccessCoach.net, the company main phone line at 720.226.9072, or through the company Web site at http://www.businesssuccesscoach.net.

More information can be found online at http://www.BusinessSuccessCoach.net

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