Learn the traits you need to succeed in the world of crisis management consulting
Erik Bernstein and I do a lot of remote guest lecturing to college audiences, and invariably are asked, “What does it take to be a crisis management consultant? What skills do I need?”
Here’s what we tell ‘em.
To be a truly effective crisis management consultant, you need to:
- Be able to think and act clearly and decisively when everyone around you may be imitating headless chickens. Most of us know we have this trait from our pre-adult years.
- Be inherently facile with the written and spoken word.
- Be inherently intuitive in your approach to rapidly resolving negative issues, seemingly able to jump from Point A to Point H in your thinking.
- Be compassionate enough to really put yourself in the minds of all stakeholders involved with a particular crisis situation.
- Be responsive 24/7.
Few of us would score 100% on all those desirable traits, of course, but you’ll find that the best in our industry score pretty darn high (he said, with complete immodesty).
If you have other similar recommendations you’d have for those aspiring to the field of crisis management consulting, drop me a line at [email protected]. With your permission, we may use your suggestions, with full credit, in a follow-up piece.
Jonathan Bernstein
[email protected]