Crisis Management: Online Tool Kit for Managers

June 25, 2020

How to manage challenges and crises

What happens next, now that we have crossed the peak of the pandemic, and what are the next decisions we need to make? It is questions like these that executives of companies affected by the coronavirus crisis are asking themselves at the moment. The Change Management Tool Kit, recently introduced by the WU Executive Academy, comes at the right time: the new online program consisting of six video podcasts provides managers with practical know-how about crisis management in the exact fields that they need now more than ever: strategy and change, finances and liquidity, digitization, virtual leadership, personal transformation, and stress management.

The online tool kit is available for 200 euros. Customers can also book one-on-one coaching sessions to complement the learning offer.

Broken domino reaction, symbolic for crisis management
Right now, good crisis management is essential.

The economy seems unable to escape the tight grip of the coronavirus crisis, whose long-term effects we cannot even begin to fathom. Two things are for sure: for one, companies cannot do without professional crisis management these days, and for another, it is high time to take measures to secure a company’s success in the long run. With this in mind, the WU Executive Academy has created an online management tool kit to support managers in tackling the crisis we are currently dealing with.

Practical Know-How for Sound Decision-Making in Times of Crisis

“What we are witnessing is that companies of all sizes are struggling and that their management boards are finding it hard to decide on a strategy and, even more importantly, the necessary actions to be taken right now. This is why we came up with our Change Management Tool Kit, which consists of concise and well-structured online sessions offering the very expertise executives need most now,” says Helga Pattart-Drexler, Head of Executive Education at the WU Executive Academy.

The new video podcasts cover the following six fields of knowledge that executives on the middle and higher management levels need to rely on during the crisis:

Strategy and Change

In crisis management, strategies have to be adapted fast. At the moment, however, many companies are still paralyzed from the initial shock. Managers need to start implementing strategic steps based off a process that works best for their company.

Portrait Helga Pattart-Drexler

Helga Pattart-Drexler

  • Head of Executive Education

Even if companies can eventually return to business as usual at some time in the future, their customers might not be ready to do the same, for example looking at widespread reluctance when it comes to visiting restaurants and malls.

Finances and Liquidity

The crisis has taken a toll on revenues and many companies are finding it difficult to pay the bills. It is thus high time to analyze the various fields of business and take a close look at key business figures. Where investments are possible and necessary, they should be made in a targeted way.

Digitization

It’s not exactly news, but the crisis has made it more apparent than ever: no industry will be able to survive without digitization, but digitization should be implemented in a sustainable way. This focus area includes the 101 on the digital economy and gives an overview of the most successful digital business models of the recent past.

Virtual Leadership and Agile Methods

Working from home has become the new standard for many, and virtual collaboration is here to stay (at least for a while). How can managers best lead and support their staff without being physically present? For this purpose, agile methods can help optimize joint work processes and organize teams for future challenges and crisis management.

Pic of a home office in times of crisis management
Virtual cooperation can and should be strengthened in order to be able to be agile in a future crisis. Photo © CC0 Licence

Personal Transformation

The economy is not the only thing changing right now; people are, too. “Which values do we care about most? How do we handle the crisis? What makes for good crisis management?” Pattart-Drexler mentions these questions as examples of topics covered in this part of the Change Management Tool Kit. The future of workplace collaboration is another issue discussed here.

Stress Management

Executives are completely buried by the demands of crisis management. What can they do in order to handle their responsibilities efficiently and also enjoy their work despite the permanent stress and immense work load? Questions like these are dealt with in this part.

Customized Expert Coaching

The WU Executive Academy’s Change Management Tool Kit is available for 200 euros. The online sessions offered as video podcasts are just one component of the package: to delve deeper into the individual topics, managers can book one-on-one coaching sessions with WU experts. “This combines knowledge transfer with the opportunity for individuals to go even further,” explains Pattart-Drexler. It is recommended to book sessions from two hours up to have enough time to deal with the selected topic and consider the particularities of the respective personal context.

For more information about the Change-Management-Tool-Kit, please click here.

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