Crisis Is A Team Sport, Now More Than Ever

There's a myth we need to put to rest: crisis communications lives squarely with the comms team.

It doesn't. Not anymore.

When a crisis hits, the public doesn't want to hear from your spokesperson. They want to hear from your leaders, according to a survey published in Axios Communicators.

"In a crisis, the most trusted sources of information are a company's CEO (22%), followed by senior management (20%) and frontline employees (18%)."

Your comms team can craft the perfect message, but if it's not coming from the right voice, it won't land.

Why This Changes Everything
Your crisis preparedness plan can't live in a single department anymore. It needs to be shared across your leadership team, with everyone aligned on crisis thresholds, response protocols, and who speaks when.

Think of your comms team as producers, not just performers. They're orchestrating the response, but the CEO, CFO, CTO, and other executives need to be ready to step on stage when trust matters most.

Because trust is one of the three pillars of effective crisis management—along with speed and clarity. And right now, your C-suite has more of it than anyone else in your organization.

Lean Into Your Expertise
Here's the other advantage: your leadership team brings specialized credibility to different crises.

Data breach? Your CTO can speak with authority about what happened and what you're doing to fix it. Investor concerns? Your CFO can address the financial impact with precision. Congressional hearing? Your CEO is the face of accountability.

You have incredible expertise sitting around your leadership table. Use it. Lean into that credibility when the world is watching.

How to Actually Prepare Your Team

Here's the thing: you can't build a crisis-ready leadership team without actually involving your leaders.

Start by bringing your CEO, CFO, CTO, and other key executives into the planning process—not just comms. Audit your team to understand where you have strengths you need to play up and where your gaps are. Once you know where you stand, you can build a strategy that plays to your strengths and prepares your team to respond as one.

This isn't about creating more work. It's about having a reputation safety plan, so that when crisis hits, your team knows exactly what to do and who does it.

The Bottom Line

Because a crisis has always been a team sport. Now, more than ever, it's time to prepare as one.

Ready to build real resilience across your leadership team? Contact us to learn how we can help you prepare for what's coming.