Armchair Crisis Management: Jack's Personal Disclaimer

Why has Jack Flack -- until now -- ignored Mattel's Chinese toy problems? After all, what could be a sexier business-spin story than a full-blown "crisis," complete with iconic brand names, recurrent product recalls, statement-issuing flacks, finger-waving politicians, and angry parents howling on the local TV news? Irresistible, right?

Nope, because there is nothing easier to get wrong than Armchair Crisis Management.

Why? Because, as anyone who has been on the inside of one of these things can tell you, it's always much more complicated than it looks on the surface. The decision-making is often driven by variables that are unknown to all but a few people in the inner circle, as internal investigations turn up fun facts that make the CEO's hair fall out. And the media reaction can vary significantly based on what else is going on the world. Sometimes a genuinely scary problem gets no attention at all, while other times a relatively meaningless event triggers a media avalanche.

Though some make it complicated, the rules of crisis management are actually very basic.

1. Define the problem.

2. Fix the problem, and try to rectify its harm.

3. Make the changes required to avoid the problem recurring.

4. And clearly communicate all those things as you go.

Pretty simple stuff. Yes, in theory. But when the wind is whipping salt water in your face, the wheel is spinning through your hands, and the radio shorts out, you suddenly find yourself wondering how the heck your three-hour tour turned into such a mess. Thus, everybody is a crisis management expert, until they find themselves in the middle of one.

Jack Flack estimates that his own overall record with crisis management is probably something like 124-1-4, if you count the situations when the oily rag was removed before it caught fire. Not bad. But as with ultimate fighting, the record doesn't really capture the impact of defeat. Jack's lone loss was as brutal as they come, and the four draws felt far worse than proverbial sister-kissing. Thus, Jack shows unusual humility when assessing how others are managing a crisis.

With that said, stay tuned for more...