Global Centre for Crisis and Resilience

When a crisis hits, there is no substitute for muscle memory. PwC’s 2019 Global Crisis Survey revealed, by a 2-to-1 margin, that organisations with a crisis response plan fared better post-crisis than those without. A crisis response plan is the foundation of an effective crisis management program: It provides structure and guidance to face the challenges of a significant unplanned event. We customise our approach to meet your expectations, needs, operating environment, and culture.

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In high-stress situations, people tend to revert to their lowest confidence threshold — which means that no matter how good your crisis plan is, it can prove ineffective if your team isn’t comfortable with their roles and responsibilities. Organisations that emerge stronger from a crisis invest time and effort to prepare their teams. By helping each responder understand their role and create plans for each potential scenario, our approach results in a more cohesive, confident response.

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Crisis exercises are powerful tools that build confidence in response capabilities and, according to PwC’s 2019 Global Crisis Survey, help organisations manage crises more effectively. Applying our approach, your team practices appropriate responses to various scenarios. In tabletop exercises, crisis responders participate in a timed simulation that helps to evaluate information collection, decision-making, prioritisation, brand implications, and other response challenges — in a setting that mimics the time pressures and information constraints of a real crisis. An added benefit: Your company tests cross-functional coordination among stakeholder groups and identifies areas for improvement.

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In a crisis, companies instinctively go into a reactive state: Whatever comes at you, you try to swat away. But playing defense doesn’t set you up to emerge stronger. Ready Command, PwC’s integrated crisis command centre, can help your organisation execute a methodical, strategic response, beginning on day one with the implementation of a clear governance structure. As you navigate the crisis, we continuously monitor and assess progress, recommending adjustments accordingly. Ready Command provides the foundation for you to prioritise and address each challenge — and emerge stronger.

In PwC’s 2019 Global Crisis Survey, nearly 40% of respondents ranked communicating with external stakeholders among their top three areas of vulnerability. Stakeholder mapping and engagement provides a framework to identify your stakeholder population, assess their impact and influence, and create opportunities to engage with them before or during a crisis. The result is a forward-thinking, unified approach that can turn stakeholders into allies.

An outside perspective to poke holes in the right places can be a valuable asset. Our crisis strategy and scenario planning approach involves working with you to hypothesise potential outcomes, to draft approaches to mitigate their impacts, and to help you emerge confidently prepared to address any curveball that might come your way. The framework allows you to respond to immediate needs while looking ahead to mitigate possible strategy-derailing events.

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When an organisation faces a challenging situation, it can be tough to step back and take a holistic view while also putting out constant fires. Strategic crisis coordination instills project management with the adaptability required to address a complex crisis. Our approach establishes clear governance, aligned workstreams, and data-driven analysis, combined with a strategic view of risks and opportunities that may be around the corner.

Crisis can be a catalyst to drive strategic transformation, but success depends on an effective and coordinated response. You must respond to a burning fire while you continue to run the business, and simultaneously plan ahead for other unanticipated disruptors. The ability to manage a crisis through these discrete lenses takes practice. Having support to guide you through potential scenarios can be a meaningful way to put out the fire — and to seize opportunity. Our strategic approach to crisis response draws on decades of experience at the forefront of some of the most highly publicised corporate crises. We know what works, and we’ll apply that knowledge to your organisation’s circumstances and help you emerge stronger.

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Withstand disruption, sustain core business functions, respond effectively, reduce impact

Disruption is inevitable. What matters is an organisation's ability to emerge stronger from crisis, fueled by an enterprise-wide foundation of business resilience. We measure that ability in four fundamental pillars:

• Technology and operational resilience: Sustain core business functions and the availability of key technology
• Financial resilience: Withstand financial shocks to liquidity and assets
• Data resilience: Secure the availability, integrity, and confidentiality of critical data
• Workforce resilience: Maintain an available and productive workforce

A mature organisation is able to maintain a state of informed preparedness, continue essential mission critical functions despite a disruption or outage, execute response procedures to the extent possible during a disruption, and leverage knowledge from previous disruptions to enhance business resilience processes.

To help your organisation get there, PwC's approach involves a holistic strategy that applies several core resilience competencies:

• Disaster Recovery
• Incident Management
• Physical Security
• Emergency Response

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Organisations that have experienced a crisis understand that no matter how they responded, there’s always room for improvement. Performing an after action review is a meaningful exercise — for your team and for your stakeholders, who will recognise your emphasis on continuous learning.

The review yields insights that enable your team to identify and prioritise actionable enhancements.

And depending on the nature of the crisis, ‘real-time’ or ‘in-flight’ reviews can also be beneficial, particularly if you’re dealing with a long-term situation that requires course-correction along the way.

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