Crisis Management Plan

Step 3: Identify response procedures and contingencies

Now that you have determined what risks could impact your organisation and how they would affect your work, you need to identify which actions will help you to respond effectively to each crisis scenario (response procedure). Think about the follow up steps that would be required to resolve a given crisis (contingency procedure), what resources would be required, and how your staff can help.

For example, when facing a ‘public lockdown’ due to the COVID-19 crisis, your organisation might not be able to organise a planned fundraising gala event. You will need your staff to cancel all the planned activities (response procedure), but also to come up with an alternative way to fundraise without face to face contact, such as a crowdfunding or online fundraising event (contingency, follow up steps). A contingency plan for a social media blunder might include issuing statements across your social media platform, while your employees are briefed on what to say on incoming calls.

Write down your response procedures and contingencies in your crisis management plan. You can use the table format in the download below: that keeps it straightforward and simple. List each potential crisis in your first column, the effects in the next, and then list the response procedures, the contingency procedure and the contact persons.

Download the format below for your crisis management plan.