The Art of Crisis Leadership. Kevin Cowherd
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this, a terrific collaboration was born. After developing the book’s concept and managing my many ideas, Kevin was masterful at bringing my thoughts to life. He worked relentlessly with me to produce a manuscript that I hope has tremendous value and offers meaningful insights to leaders at every level. Thank you, Kevin.
Most importantly, I must acknowledge those folks who told the stories that form the core of this book, those people who opened their hearts and minds to relive their darkest days so that others could learn from their experiences: Denise Whiting, Ed Norris, Jack and Jackie Milani, Kevin Byrne, Stephen Amos, Mark Curtis, Joe Hart, Gerry Sandusky, J.P. Snyder, Colin Goddard, Jim and Joanne Hock and Bert Lebhar.
They told their stories with passion; each experience was emotional. This book is about real people and real life lessons. It would have been impossible to produce without the generosity of spirit and unfailing cooperation of those listed above.
There were many others who supported this project in ways both large and small: Josie Hankey, Jessica Paret, Jennifer Fuson, Content McLaughlin, Tim Weinhold, Frank Barile, Paul Bailey, Kristi Frisch, Joe DeFeo, Ragina Averella, Jim Workmeister and Kevin Atticks, director of Apprentice House Press.
During this chaotic time, the extended Fallston Group team—and its stable of experts—was still able to move our corporate offices from Harford County, Md., to the Canton neighborhood of Baltimore, work at an incredibly high level and continue to over-deliver for those who trust us with their futures. I am eternally grateful for your collective selflessness and dedication.
Yes, we help and serve others during life’s most critical times daily—it’s baked into our DNA. It’s my honor to work shoulder-to-shoulder with the extended Fallston Group team.
On a more personal level, I’d like to thank my parents, Robert Winway and Etna Anderson Weinhold. While they are now looking down upon us, their incredible love and support never wavered. I draw strength and wisdom from each of you daily.
Lastly, there are those who enter your life for reasons that are sometimes explainable, but many times not. They are motivating influences that shape your thinking and drive you to succeed—not because of what they say, but how they live their lives.
They set the example and teach through their actions. Thank you, Pat Casperson, for being the foundation in the lives around you and for selflessly putting others before yourself, always. You are a role model and inspiration.
Foreword
“A rising tide lifts all boats,” the old adage says. It was easy to make profits in the stock market when the technology boom was driving all stocks higher. It was easy to make a killing in real estate when real estate seemed to be appreciating with no ceiling in site. And it was easy to be an effective leader in prosperous times when even poor decisions seemed to be self-correcting. The true test of leadership, however, is the same as the true test of friendship: crisis, adversity.
Other than the study of religion, the study of leadership may represent the oldest recorded intellectual pursuit in human history, but surprisingly few books focus on crisis leadership. If ever there was time to study crisis leadership, it’s now! Global affairs seem in disarray, with conflict being fueled from Russia, ISIS, North Korea, Iran, and China. Within North America, drug cartels appear to have extraordinary influence. In the United States, financial markets are experiencing unprecedented volatility, many large urban centers are undergoing economic hardship, the quality and availability of healthcare seems questionable, normal political discourse has turned into paralyzing vitriol, racial tensions have increased, and the gap between the wealthy and middle class has widened. Admittedly, volatility is part of the human condition. There will be peaks and valleys in the trajectory of every human endeavor. Having conflict and experiencing setbacks are to be expected, but what is needed in the wake of such adversity is crisis leadership that fosters RESILIENCE! Whether the crises are personal, organizational, or communal, leadership that promotes resilience will be that factor that determines success from failure.
I am no stranger to human resilience. In 1992, I was asked to assist in fostering the resilience of the social fabric of the country of Kuwait after the Iraqi invasion and the Gulf War liberation. After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, as a consultant to the NYPD and the New Jersey State Police, I trained first responders to be resilient and later assisted large organizations in being resilient in the wake of the financial crash of 2008. I taught organizations to foster an organizational culture of resilience. I continue to do that today as a professor at The Johns Hopkins University and as a consultant to many large organizations. I’ve authored 20 books including Secrets of Resilient Leadership (٢٠٠٩) and Stronger: Discover the Resilience You Need to Succeed! (2015) that share my experiences in ٣٣ countries on six continents as I’ve tried to promote human resilience in the wake of adversity. In those experiences, I’ve observed that wherever organizations and communities successfully rebound after a crisis, it is largely because of extraordinary crisis leadership—leadership that fosters resilience. Whether working in the Middle East, Oklahoma City, New York City, or working with elite first responders or U.S. Navy SEALs, I’ve seen crisis leadership as an essential of organizational resilience.
The book you are about to read is written by Rob Weinhold, Founder and Chief Executive of Fallston Group and a pioneer in the field of crisis leadership. I’ve worked with Rob on numerous occasions and witnessed first-hand his masterful ability to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in the wake of great adversity. Now Rob shares the richness of his experience in a book that is a unique blend of entertainment and priceless practicality. The book effortlessly glides from one example to another with very important lessons learned. Anyone who is in a leadership position, or who aspires to leadership, should read this most valuable contribution. For as any wise leader knows, it’s not IF crisis strikes, but merely a matter of WHEN. Will you be prepared when it does? The lessons in this book will prepare you to lead before, during, and after a crisis.
George S. Everly, Jr., PhD, FAPM
The Johns Hopkins University
“Glass, China, and Reputation, are easily cracked,
and never well mended.”
—Benjamin Franklin
Introduction
A Life-Changing Experience on the Mean Streets of Baltimore
It was a beautiful fall morning in September of 1992. Back then, I was a young Baltimore police officer on patrol in the Southeastern District of the city, right off Lombard Street near Corned Beef Row and the legendary Attman’s Deli.
I was checking out a house that had reportedly been burglarized when I got the strangest feeling. When you work a neighborhood for any length of time, you develop a sense of when something is out of place, when the rhythm of the streets seems off.
I saw a car speeding in the wrong direction down a one-way street in front of the Flag House high-rise. I saw a housing police officer running. My instincts told me something was very wrong, although I didn’t know what.
I knew that a fellow officer, a young, street-smart, energetic colleague named Jimmy Young, was working plainclothes that day, doing drug buys in the projects. As I looked up at one of the nearby public housing high-rise buildings, I saw what appeared to be a body slumped against a chain-link fence on the third floor.
I could tell it was a black man, wearing the same clothes Jimmy had worn that day. I knew because I’d been joking with him that morning that he was dressed like the skinheads who skateboarded in Fells Point. Jimmy and I had worked closely together in the same squad. We worked-out in the bare-bones, iron pit gym on the second floor of the district and had an easy relationship. He had an infectious smile that captivated everyone he met—he was a great cop. Nervously, I prayed it wasn’t him laying against that fence as I began running toward the building in full sprint.
Suddenly, my police radio crackled. A faint voice said an officer had been shot—I knew the voice belonged to Jimmy’s partner, whom he’d been riding with that day.
I ran into the high-rise, which was very dark, and up the stairwell. I was convinced I’d run into the person or persons who’d shot Jimmy