2020 has become a shorthand for crisis: a global pandemic; a spotlight on racism and implicit bias; and political discord and uncertainty. But through crisis, there is an opportunity for leadership. And, 2020, if nothing else, has equipped lawyers and business leaders with the tools needed to lead organizations through crisis going forward.

The challenges of 2020 linger into 2021. This article presents the top five lessons learned from the past year, to ensure that organizations will not just survive crisis, but will rebound stronger than ever.

1. Always Develop a Crisis Contingency Plan (or Two, or Three, or Four)

The uncertain trajectory of COVID-19 has established the need for properly developed and thorough contingency plans. Organizations should consider establishing crisis response teams at multiple levels of their companies, such as international, national, state, regional, and local.  The teams, particularly at the higher levels, should span all areas of the organization, including operations, communications, information technology, human resources, privacy, commercial, and legal, to anticipate and prepare for possible or likely crises.  When the likelihood for instability increases, crisis teams should drill down into specific contingencies, such as business shut downs and illness outbreaks with respect to COVID-19.

2. Thoughtfully Communicate with Stakeholders and the Public

Before crisis contingency plans become a reality, companies should be internally aligned on their public relations strategy and prepare communications for various scenarios. Having crisis communications prepared in advance of a time-sensitive emergency allows for more effective messaging with less litigation risk.