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1 – 10 of over 10000John P. McCray, Juan J. Gonzalez and John R. Darling
The purpose of this treatise is to present an analysis of the importance of positive transformational crisis management. The analysis relates to the difficulty now being faced by…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this treatise is to present an analysis of the importance of positive transformational crisis management. The analysis relates to the difficulty now being faced by Nokia, historically the world's leading manufacturer of technologically advanced mobile phones, of Apple's innovative combination of its iTunes, iPhone, and applications that deliver internet content to the iPhone.
Design/methodology/approach
A crisis, typically considered to be a negative issue, can be a positive transformational event in the life of a business firm when that firm recognizes a crisis and makes appropriate changes in its operations to facilitate positive growth and development. However, the initial stage of a crisis must be recognized and appropriately responded to. The crisis management paradigm that is the foundation for this case analysis focuses on four stages of a crisis: the preliminary crisis, acute crisis, chronic crisis, and crisis resolution. The case deals with the innovations of Apple that have enabled the firm to become a direct competitor to Nokia in the smart phone market. The preliminary crisis stage was not appropriately recognized by Nokia, and the firm was thrust into an acute crisis that has now evolved into a chronic crisis. A brief overview is presented of the historical development of both Nokia and Apple, and an analysis of the present crisis situation in which Nokia now finds itself is presented in some detail.
Findings
It was concluded that Nokia is now in a very difficult position regarding Apple due to its failure to engage in a timely transformational response to the competitive innovations of Apple.
Originality/value
This is an excellent example of failure in positive transformational crisis management.
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Zhan Xu, Kenneth Lachlan, Lauren Ellis and Adam Michael Rainear
Social media, such as Twitter, has become the first and the most frequent place to visit in order to gain information and establish situational awareness in emergencies and…
Abstract
Purpose
Social media, such as Twitter, has become the first and the most frequent place to visit in order to gain information and establish situational awareness in emergencies and disasters. The purpose of this paper is to examine public opinion on Twitter in different disaster stages using the case of Hurricane Irma.
Design/methodology/approach
More than 3.5m tweets capturing the entire disaster lifecycle were collected and analyzed. Topic modeling was used to generate topics at each disaster stage based on Fink’s (1986) four-stage model of crisis and disaster: prodromal, acute, chronic and termination stages.
Findings
The results revealed that media reliance varied across different stages. All topics in the prodromal stage were associated with the early warning and real-time news. The topic of lessons learned from Hurricane Harvey was the most popular at this stage. The acute stage recorded the highest number of daily tweets. The most popular topic was the safety of people and animals. In the chronic stage too, the safety of people and animals remained a major concern. Heroic and anti-social behaviors also received substantial attention. In the termination stage, climate change was the most frequently discussed topic. Politics-related discussions were heated.
Originality/value
The results extended and enhanced the four-stage model of crisis and disaster. These findings can help government agencies and crisis managers address audience needs effectively at various crisis stages in a timely manner.
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Firms involved in international business are affected by many crisis andcrisis‐like events not generally associated with normal operations.Crisis management provides a business…
Abstract
Firms involved in international business are affected by many crisis and crisis‐like events not generally associated with normal operations. Crisis management provides a business firm with a systematic, orderly response to crisis situations. Many crises can be prevented – or at least coped with more effectively – through early detection. The real challenge is not just to recognize crises, but to recognize them in a timely fashion and with a will to address the issues they represent. A crisis in an international business firm can consist of as many as four different and distinct phases: prodromal crisis stage, acute crisis stage, chronic crisis stage and crisis resolution stage. Recognizing these phases, and dealing with them effectively, gives the business manager an important edge in addressing issues of importance to the organization.
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Victor L. Heller and John R. Darling
The purpose of this paper is to explore the issue of crisis management within the Toyota Corporation's series of worldwide recalls for multiple malfunctions on a number of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the issue of crisis management within the Toyota Corporation's series of worldwide recalls for multiple malfunctions on a number of different Toyota brands of vehicles. The analysis relates to the difficulty now faced by Toyota, previously recognized as the world's leading manufacturer of automotive vehicles. The crisis became so great that Toyota corporate leaders even traveled from Japan to testify before a US Congressional Committee hearing.
Design/methodology/approach
A crisis, typically considered to be a negative issue, can be a positive event in the life of a business firm, such as Toyota, if the management involved seizes the opportunity to make appropriate changes in its operations to facilitate continuing positive growth and development. However, this opportunity was not initially addressed by Toyota in a meaningful way, and the crisis continued to evolve through subsequent stages, bringing a vast array of negative international criticism. The crisis management paradigm that is the focus for this case identifies four stages of a crisis – the preliminary (pre‐) crisis, acute crisis, chronic crisis, and crisis resolution. The present crisis deals with several different malfunctions that were identified, apparently by customers, in various Toyota brands, but publically ignored by Toyota's management. Therefore, the pre‐crisis stage was not appropriately dealt with by Toyota, and the firm was thrust into an acute crisis that has now evolved into a chronic crisis. A brief overview of the historical development of Toyota is presented, and an analysis of the present crisis situation in which the firm found itself is presented in some detail.
Findings
It was concluded that Toyota is now in a very difficult position in the chronic crisis stage due to the failure of its management to facilitate a timely response to the malfunctions of its vehicles.
Originality/value
The paper presents an excellent example of crisis mismanagement by a previously recognized world leader.
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Victor L. Heller and John R. Darling
The purpose of this paper is to address the importance of effective crisis management, and the commensurate lessons to be learned from the Toyota Corporation's denial of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to address the importance of effective crisis management, and the commensurate lessons to be learned from the Toyota Corporation's denial of malfunctions on a number of different Toyota brands of vehicles during the period 2007‐2010. The case analysis identifies key opportunities the Toyota Corporation had to minimize the crisis by acknowledging the issues and being transparent in its decision making. The article addresses the difficulty now faced by Toyota, previously recognized as the world's leading manufacturer of automotive vehicles, to re‐establish the consumers' trust.
Design/methodology/approach
A crisis, typically considered to be a negative issue, can be a positive event in the life of a corporate firm, such as Toyota, if the corporate leadership involved seizes the opportunity to make appropriate changes in its operations. The crisis management paradigm that is the focus for this case identifies four stages of a crisis – the preliminary (pre‐) crisis, acute crisis, chronic crisis, and crisis resolution. The present crisis deals with several different malfunctions that were identified, apparently by customers, in various Toyota brands, but publically ignored by Toyota's management. Therefore, the pre‐crisis stage was not appropriately dealt with by Toyota, and the firm was thrust into an acute crisis that evolved into a chronic crisis. A brief overview of the historical development of Toyota is presented, and a case analysis of the crisis situation in which the firm is now involved is presented in some detail.
Findings
It was concluded that Toyota is now in a very difficult position in the chronic crisis stage due to the failure of its corporate leaders' willingness to acknowledge the malfunctions of its vehicles and take corrective actions early in the crisis.
Originality/value
This is an excellent example of crisis mismanagement by a previously recognized world leader. This treatise includes a pervasive focus on the strategic lessons that should be learned from Toyota's experience.
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Natural disasters are increasingly more frequent and intense, which makes it critical for emergency managers to engage social media users during crises. This study examined…
Abstract
Purpose
Natural disasters are increasingly more frequent and intense, which makes it critical for emergency managers to engage social media users during crises. This study examined emergency official accounts' social media engagement at each disaster stage based on Fink's four-stage model of crisis and disaster: prodromal, acute, chronic and termination stages and linked topics and sentiments to engagement.
Design/methodology/approach
Using text mining and sentiment analysis, 1,226 original tweets posted by 66 major emergency official Twitter accounts and more than 15,000 retweets elicited across the life cycle of Hurricane Irma were analyzed.
Findings
Results identified the most engaging official accounts and tweets. Most tweets and the most engaging tweets were posted in the prodromal stage. Tweets related to certain topics were significantly more engaging than others. The most frequently tweeted topics by official accounts were less engaging than some seldom tweeted topics. Negative sentiment words increased the engagingness of the tweet. Sadness was the strongest predictor of tweet engagement. Tweets that contained fewer sadness words were more engaging. Fear was stronger in positively predicting tweet engagement than anger. Results also demonstrated that words for fear and anger were critical in engaging social media discussions in the prodromal stage. Words for sadness made the tweets less engaging in the chronic stage.
Originality/value
This study provided detailed instructions on how to increase the engagingness of emergency management official accounts during disasters using computational methods. Findings have practical implications for both emergency managers and crisis researchers.
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Qiang Li, Wenjuan Ruan, Wenjie Shao and Guoliang Huang
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the demands of the core stakeholders and how these stakeholders drive the information disclosure behaviors of the enterprise and local…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the demands of the core stakeholders and how these stakeholders drive the information disclosure behaviors of the enterprise and local government.
Design/methodology/approach
Content analysis was conducted. The authors collected and analyzed information disclosure laws and regulations regarding environmental emergencies in China, as well as related media reports and official accident investigation report about the oil pipeline leakage and explosion accident in City Q. The authors divided the whole process of the accident into four stages, i.e., the prodromal stage, acute stage, chronic stage, and resolution stage, and then analyzed the different demands of stakeholders and the different information disclosure behaviors of the enterprise and local government during these four stages.
Findings
During the environmental emergency, the enterprise and local government exhibited information disclosure behaviors for their own benefits. There was severe information asymmetry between the enterprise and local government. Local government acted more positively in terms of information disclosure than the enterprise due to the demands of stakeholders. There were significant differences between the driving effects of different stakeholders. The effects of central government and local communities were the strongest, followed by news media and environmental organizations, whereas general public had the weakest impact. In addition, the effects of stakeholders on the information disclosure varied throughout different stages.
Originality/value
This paper considered a Chinese typical case study, thereby providing details of information disclosure behaviors of the enterprise and local government during an environmental emergency, and making comparative analysis on the driving effects on information disclosure by different stakeholders.
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Toby J. Kash and John R. Darling
This article deals basically with the dynamic environment of today’s businesses. Despite all of the efforts a company puts forth to scan the environmental issues, crises can occur…
Abstract
This article deals basically with the dynamic environment of today’s businesses. Despite all of the efforts a company puts forth to scan the environmental issues, crises can occur and have to be managed. We have first reviewed several crises in businesses during the recent times, to define and identify the nature of a crisis. Then the anatomy of a crisis is presented schematically. Finally, by recommending certain preventive measures and interventions, the article concludes that acknowledging a crisis and communicating with the stakeholders are as important as planning the prevention, diagnosis, and intervention to solve crisis situations.
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Paula Sonja Karlsson and Matt Offord
The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact the pandemic had on higher education institutions (HEIs), the opportunities they were able to harness, and whether they are…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact the pandemic had on higher education institutions (HEIs), the opportunities they were able to harness, and whether they are better prepared to deal with future disruptions as a result.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors do this by presenting a reflective case study using a combination of crisis and resilience theories as their analytical framework. Case studies are flexible research instruments allowing researchers to draw on both subjective experience and also established theoretical frameworks. Case studies can be used to intensively analyse a specific case from an organisation, sector, or personal perspective. Although the results are not usually generalisable, they can be insightful (Bell et al., 2022).
Findings
The authors found that, in this case, a continuity strategy relevant to the sector, already existed. However, a lack of knowledge meant that the strategy was not used straight away. This was costly in terms of staff and student well-being but, ultimately, HEIs adapted by converging on a practical solution, showing inherent resilience. Further research is necessary to ascertain whether robust business continuity plans would have made the transition smoother.
Originality/value
This paper specifically investigates higher education teaching from a crisis and resilience perspective, using a theoretical framework not previously used for the analysis of Covid-19 in HEIs.
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This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies.
Design/methodology/approach
This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.
Findings
Mighty corporations have had their reputations tarnished, or destroyed entirely, by a series of crises. But executives can prepare for the unexpected and, when a crisis hits, they can take steps to try to convince customers and the public in general that they are worthy of their trust.
Practical implications
The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world's leading organizations.
Originality/value
The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy‐to digest format.
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