A wake-up call to motivate and inspire leaders, this book is a proactive approach to crisis planning and management that guides leaders step by step through a field-tested approach that will empower them to be more effective and less defensive when facing a crisis. It’s not “if” leaders experience a crisis, it’s “when” and “how severe,” but crisis planning is often overlooked or deferred to a later date that’s never scheduled. Combining the author’s three decades of crisis knowledge with memorable stories from the trenches, this book offers sound, practical advice and immediate actionable steps to master the fundamentals of crisis planning and response. Topics covered include how to identify an internal crisis (before someone else does), how to establish and staff a crisis team, how to understand stakeholders’ minds and hearts when a crisis hits and why size doesn’t matter when it comes to crisis. An essential guide for C-Suite executives of companies of all sizes, this book is particularly critical for leaders in construction, pharma, manufacturing, chemicals, transportation, government, nonprofit organizations, food production and hospital systems. Crisis management and PR students will also benefit.