The Leading in a Crisis Podcast

Send us Fan Mail On today's episode we take you back to a terrorist bombing at the Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England in 2017. A suicide bomber detonated a backpack bomb loaded with nails just after the concert ended, killing 22 concertgoers and  injuring hundreds more. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack. Our guest today, Amanda Coleman, served as the lead press...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wondered how coordinated disaster response efforts come together in the face of devastating wildfires? Join us on this week's Leading in a Crisis as we sit down with Michael, who has firsthand experience on the ground during the Lahaina wildfires in Hawaii. Discover the intricate role the US Army Corps of Engineers played in uniting federal, state, and local agencies, an...

Send us Fan Mail How does one navigate the chaos of a natural disaster while ensuring cultural respect and effective communication? Join us as we dive into the compelling and heart-wrenching story of the Lahaina wildfire in Hawaii through the eyes of Michael Brogan, a seasoned public affairs expert. He recounts the sheer devastation he witnessed in Lahaina and the complex, multi-agency recovery ef...

Send us Fan Mail Can AI really revolutionize crisis management? Today, we're joined by Justin Snair, the brilliant mind behind Preppr.ai, to discuss how artificial intelligence is transforming the landscape of emergency preparedness. From his roots in the Marine Corps to his innovative work with under-resourced organizations, Justin shares his unique journey and insights on making planning an...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, we continue our conversation with Will Fitzgerald and Celina Cardenas from Occidental Petroleum recounting their first time serving in leadership roles for a major crisis exercise.  Ever wondered how leaders maintain composure and maneuver through the chaos of a crisis? That's exactly what we uncover with  Will and Celina as they recount their experiences at...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, two first time leaders in a major oil spill response drill share their experiences, thoughts, and insights into leading during a major crisis. Occidental Petroleum tapped Will Fitzgerald and Celina Cardenas to serve as public information officer and deputy PIO for a recent drill, giving them their first taste of leading the team in a crisis. They recount for us th...

Send us Fan Mail Unlock the secrets of crisis leadership with the wisdom of corporate communication maestro, John Breed, manager of community and external affairs at ChampionX.  We think John wins the award for working with most CEOs in a career, and he shares some of his tips for managing those relationships, particularly in a crisis. Our conversation traverses the essential traits that make or b...

Send us Fan Mail Emergency situations don't come with a playbook, but when they strike, it's leaders like incident commander Dan Smiley who orchestrate the chaos into coherence. In our latest episode, Dan reveals the behind-the-scenes drama when multiple agencies, such as the EPA and Coast Guard, must unite under the banner of Unified Command. He gives a gripping account of a vessel grou...

Send us Fan Mail Prepare to navigate the stormy seas of crisis management as we welcome the unparalleled expertise of Dan Smiley, whose storied career has taken him from the decks of the Coast Guard to the forefront of oil spill response. Now, as a consultant and podcast voice on crisis leadership, Dan steps aboard our show to chart the integration of AI into the realm of incident command. With an...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, Tom and Marc review the communications coming out from the various parties involved in the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore. This is a complex response involving numerous federal, state, and local agencies, with communications coming from several different groups. Tom and Marc parse through the communications and offer insights for crisis communicato...

Send us Fan Mail Steer clear of the political quagmire and keep your brand afloat during election season! Join host Tom Mueller and guest Kathy Leach from Brand Insights as we traverse the complex terrain of brand risk management amidst the uproar of political campaigns. Discover essential strategies for maintaining your company's integrity without becoming collateral damage in political warf...

Send us Fan Mail Join us for an engaging conversation around risk communication - not the same as crisis communication - with Ann Hayward Walker, a seasoned scientific advisor who has worked major incidents including Deepwater Horizon and Exxon Valdez. Ann has spent many years exploring how people process perceived risk and how an incident management team can effectively communicate around risk is...

Send us Fan Mail Unlock the secrets to building unshakeable trust between companies and communities with our expert guest, Mary Sue Knowles. With over two decades of expertise, Mary Sue unravels the significance of community advisory panels (CAPs) for effective crisis management and the cultivation of long-term relationships. This episode is a goldmine for anyone looking to understand the sheer po...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, we discuss the value of using live, interactive social media simulation for a realistic experience during crisis training exercises.  We're joined by Geoff Paddock, a journalist-turned-communications expert based in the UK, who brings a wealth of experience in the nuclear and chemical sectors. With Geoff we dissect how digital crisis simulations provide an un...

Send us Fan Mail Discover the crucial elements of crisis management for nonprofits as Randy Sumner of WPNT Communications joins us to unravel the complexities these organizations encounter during turbulent times. Our enlightening discussion ventures into the necessity of meticulous preparation and the adoption of transparent practices to safeguard public trust and ensure financial vitality. Randy,...

Send us Fan Mail Crisis strikes without warning, and the mettle of non-profits is tested in the heat of the moment. This is part 2 of our sit down with Randy Sumner, the seasoned crisis management expert with a wealth of experience from his days as a television news journalist to his current role as an executive coach and crisis trainer at WPNT Communications. We dissect the critical strategies th...

Send us Fan Mail Join the conversation with Tom Mueller and Mark Mullen as we dissect the high-stakes world of crisis management, offering a rare glimpse into Boeing's strategic playbook during the Alaska Airlines incident. Through the lens of crisis communication experts, we unravel the complexities of swift, competing responses amidst public scrutiny and the 'fog of war' that ofte...

Send us Fan Mail This week Marc and Tom review a case study Tom prepared around the recent Alaska Airlines in-flight emergency involving a suddenly missing door plug on the aircraft. Tom pulled together a case study around early phase crisis communications and he and Marc review and discuss how the three companies involved communicated to their stakeholders and customers in the first hours and day...

Send us Fan Mail We continue our conversation with retired US Ambassador Lewis Lucke around his experiences managing huge crisis responses in Iraq and Haiti. Find the ambassador's entertaining memoir of his career as a foreign service officer, Duck And Cover , Improbable Tales from a Career in Foreign Service, on Amazon here. Support the show We'd love to hear from you.  Email the show a...

Send us Fan Mail We're privileged to have an engaging conversation with retired US Ambassador Lewis Lucke. Now, he's not just any ambassador. This man is a seasoned crisis leader who has been at the helm of some of the most challenging situations around the world. From the reconstruction of Iraq to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Ambassador Lucke was right there, making decisions that impacte...

Send us Fan Mail On today's episode we talk about managing a crisis in the form of a unique supply chain disruption and the leadership skills required to deliver fast and effective solutions. Our guest is Jeff Zudock, a 35-year veteran of ExxonMobil and an expert in commercial and supply chain management.  The stakes are high when raw materials go in short supply, and quick action is needed t...

Send us Fan Mail Are you prepared to navigate a supply chain crisis? Will you crack under the pressure, or will you lead like a seasoned captain navigating through a storm? Join us as we share the mic with Jeff Zudock, a supply chain maestro with three decades of experience under his belt at ExxonMobil, now retired.  Jeff gives us a riveting account of managing a supply chain crisis when COVID-ind...

Send us Fan Mail Imagine steering a colossal retail business, like the family-owned Giant Eagle, through the stormy seas of a global pandemic. Our guest, the remarkable Polly Flinn, takes us on that voyage. With her at the helm, they navigated treacherous waters by staying in tune with their customers, using real-time data from weekly polls. That data helped the team adjust their store and pharmac...

Send us Fan Mail When a company buys another firm, the expectation is for profits and revenues to increase.  But what if the opposite occurs?  This is what happened after energy giant bp acquired Castrol, the global leader in premium lubricants products. This is a story of a business crisis and how a new management team turned it around. Our guest, Polly Flinn  is a highly experienced chief market...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we continue our conversation with Adam Wine, a 30-year veteran of the US Coast Guard.  Adam discusses the frustration of being on the response team when politics get in the way and politicians seeking the spotlight lie to the public.    We talk about our experiences working the Deepwater Horizon oil spill response and our frustrations as PIOs dealing with disingen...