When a crisis hits, it’s not your plan that acts — it’s your people.
And in every real event we’ve seen, human capability is the difference between a coordinated response and a fragmented reaction.
Yet, most organisations assume capability instead of building it.
Actual crisis performance depends on how people:
- Understand the situation
- Take initiative under pressure
- Communicate and decide in uncertainty
- Work together — even when the system is strained
Crisis capability isn’t a mindset, a title, or a training day.
It’s a set of four interlocking components that determine how someone performs in a high-pressure situation.
1. Knowledge
This is the foundation. It includes models, terminology, frameworks, and a basic understanding of how crisis management works, both generally and in your specific organisation.
But knowledge alone doesn’t create action. It must be:
- Clear, structured and repeated
- Shared across roles — not trapped in silos
- Connected to real responsibilities
Without it, people improvise — often in the wrong direction.
2. Skills
Skills turn understanding into action. This is about what people can do under stress, not just what they know in theory.
Crisis-specific skills include:
- Leading or contributing to structured meetings
- Making and communicating decisions in incomplete information
- Interpreting what matters in chaos — and letting go of the rest
Skills are built through practice, not presentations. And they decay without repetition.
3. Attitudes & Culture
This is what drives behaviour when rules run out. In high-functioning crisis teams, we see a culture where:
- People take initiative
- Asking questions is encouraged
- Responsibility is shared, not avoided
These traits aren’t trained, they’re cultivated. Culture either enables action or shuts it down. And in a crisis, there’s no time to fix it on the spot.
4. Experience
Those who’ve faced chaos before handle it differently. They don’t panic. They don’t cling to perfect data. They know what matters.
Experience shapes:
- Calm under pressure
- Realistic expectations
- Confidence to act without guarantees
But you don’t need to wait for real events. Organisations that simulate, exercise, and debrief regularly build this experience deliberately and outperform when it counts.
How Do I Cultivate These Components?
Preparing people for crisis management can feel daunting.
In a real event, their actions may determine the future of the organisation, and will be scrutinised by stakeholders, regulators and the media.
Not every organisation has the resources to train continuously or run large-scale exercises.
But every organisation, regardless of its size or ambition, can make sure these five components are in place.
They define the minimum capability every crisis leader needs to perform effectively when it matters most.
1. Crisis Awareness
- Understand what a crisis is — and how it changes everything
- Know how mandates shift, priorities compress, and leadership must adapt
- Ensure all stakeholders see the same reality when the pressure comes
2. Shared Terminology & Concepts
- Agree on the meaning of key terms like “coordination”, “decision-making”, “situational picture”
- Remove ambiguity in language, especially under stress
- Turn abstract terms into aligned action
3. Understanding the Staff Process
- Understand the full sequence from detection to coordination
- Know how crisis meetings are structured and how decisions flow
- Build a shared logic — or teams default to confusion and chaos
4. Plan Awareness
- Know when the plan applies, how it works, and how to follow it without friction
- Ensure every role understands their responsibilities
- Keep plans active through regular review and repetition
5. Developed Skills
- Train regularly in role-specific responsibilities
- Rehearse the common scenarios, not just rare edge cases
- Build feedback loops that enable learning and confidence
Training is not a luxury; it’s operational hygiene.
Bringing It All Together
People are your most important asset in a crisis.
But they can’t succeed without the proper support.
Ensuring individuals have what they need to perform — before, during and after a crisis — must be a clear priority.
Not just once, but continuously.
Want the Complete Playbook?
With Murphy’s platform you get direct access to The Crisis Framework (TCF), our structured model for building crisis-ready individuals and organisations.
Inside the platform you’ll find:
- The full model for individual crisis capability
- Self-assessment and reflection questions for your team
- Clear maturity indicators across all capability dimensions
- Practical tips and exercises to use in training and internal discussions