How Not to Lead in Crisis

George, W., (2010). Tragety at Toyota: How not to lead in crisis. Retrieved February 27, 2010 from: http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6381.html

This article, written by Harvard Business School professor Bill George, discusses how Toyota’s CEO mishandled the recent recall crisis Toyota has been and is going through. He states “this is not a crisis of faulty brakes and accelerators, but a leadership crisis”. He states that CEO Akio Toyoda went into hiding instead of dealing with the crisis head on. He refers readers to his book, 7 Lessons for Leading in Crisis, and recommends that Toyoda and other leaders use these seven lessons to deal with crisis situations: face reality, starting with yourself; don’t be Atlas, get the world off your shoulders; dig deep for the root cause; get ready for the long haul; never waste a good crisis; you’re in the spotlight, follow true north; and, go on the offensive, focus on winning now. This article and the seven recommendations briefly discussed are good tools for managers to consider using in everyday management practices and especially in crisis situations.