Why are slow emergencies so much harder to deal with than fast emergencies?

It’s usually 4:30pm on the Friday before a long weekend when a fast emergency erupts.

It may be a site accident, a critical equipment failure, an asset strike, or an urgent client request. You know what to do, you’ve seen it before; you let go of any dreams of a quiet afternoon and you’re on your way to site, or you’re pacing the backyard or office with the phone glued to your head.

These types of issues are shouting at you from somewhere and demand action.

Fast emergencies are systematically handled with protocols and checklists, Immediate action drills etc.

That was me, many years ago, on the bridge, behind the smoke with the Bridge Cards in my hand.

On the bridge of a warship, we had bridge cards. When a fast emergency occurred, like a steering failure, I would reach for the laminated ‘Bridge Card’ and tick off the checklist with a chinagraph pencil. I’m showing my age here.

However, there’s a more dangerous type of emergency lurking in the shadows.

The Slow Emergency

“It begins on the day that nothing happens, and it never stops.” Brendan O’Shannassy, Super Yacht Captain

Unlike their fast counterparts, these issues creep up gradually, often unnoticed, until they reach a tipping point. They might manifest as a gradual decline in client satisfaction – a silent dissatisfaction that doesn’t immediately trigger alarms but can lead to lost contracts. Or it could be the tightening noose of cash flow, slowly strangling your business’s financial health. Even issues like staff turnover might seem insignificant until you realize they’re symptomatic of deeper cultural problems within your organization.

Slow emergencies demand a nuanced approach. It’s about recognizing the subtle signs before they become catastrophic. The danger with slow emergencies is their deceptive nature; missing one day of action might seem inconsequential, but these days quickly accumulate, leading to weeks, months, and potentially the demise of your business.

Your own mental and physical health could be a slow emergency. You can overload yourself for a short burst, but if you do that for too long, you hit a wall or slowly lose your mojo and become increasingly grumpy, impatient, and ineffective. See my post about burnout for my views on Burnout.

Your relationship with your kids or partner can turn into a slow emergency.

The good news is that if you got this far in business, you have the skills to deal with all sorts of emergencies; you just need patience and awareness to tackle the slow ones.

Addressing these slow-burning crises requires similar skills but applied differently. It’s not about the quick sprint to resolution but rather a marathon of vigilance and strategic planning. There’s often no immediate checklist or standard protocol to follow, as each situation is unique and complex, especially when it involves human factors.

Once you have diagnosed the cause of your slow emergency, apply basic project management methodology like you would for any client project.

I will borrow from my Army friends and give you a framework to help you tackle a slow emergency. SMEAC is a five-paragraph Operations Order format. It is used by armed forces worldwide and is very well-tested. We can use it in our business to help frame a response to a slow emergency. Here is a summary of each paragraph, but Google SMEAC, and you’ll find loads of information.

SITUATION: Define your problem. No, really think about it. High staff turnover is not your problem; culture is. Ask Why 5 times and get from the symptom to the cause.

MISSION: What are we going to DO? This includes: Who, What (Tactical Task), Where, When, and Why? An example may be: Increase sales from customer ABC from X to Y by WHEN.

EXECUTION: How are you going to achieve your mission? Step by step. Make it easy to follow.

ADMIN & LOGISTICS: What do we need to achieve the mission? People, Money, internal v external.

COMMAND & COMMUNICATION: Who owns the mission? How are we going to follow up and communicate? For example, reporting on this mission in your weekly management meeting.

You might be a champion in dealing with a crisis (Fast Emergency) but the real test of leadership lies in managing the slow emergencies. It’s a challenge that requires constant attention, careful planning, and an understanding that the most significant threats to your business might not always be the ones that are shouting the loudest.

The earlier quote from Brendan O’Shannassy is from his Best Seller – “Super Yacht Captain” – he has a whole chapter on fast and slow emergencies. It’s a great read about leadership from his perspective as a yacht captain. Crab a copy for your holiday reading.