Category: risk management

business continuity
Rob CURRIE

Crisis leadership – seizing the golden hour!

Winning strategies for effective crisis management

A recent Netflix series documented Sir Winston Churchill, the United Kingdom’s Prime Minister who guided his nation through the global crisis of the Second World War. While controversial, his leadership brought many together in the fight against fascism and changed the world we live in today. What made him successful in the face of an overwhelming enemy and difficult geo-political terrain? The documentary did not provide enough detail in how Churchill organised himself to clearly state whether he was lucky or did he follow crisis management best practises to victory. What is clear, is that crisis defined his legacy as a leader. Today, crisis still defines how leaders and organisations are perceived.

If Covid taught us anything as a society, it is that crisis is inevitable, and it is highly likely we will not be offered the luxury of deciding when calamity strikes. After a 35+ year career in public and private sector roles, my current professional life has me focused on supporting organisations in preparing for and responding to crisis. The following keys to successful crisis management are a collection of what I have seen as best practises gleaned from working with my clients.

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Facet5 psychometric tool
crisis management
Samantha WOOLVEN

Facet5 – what are and why we use psychometric assessment tools

Unlocking Leadership Potential with Facet5: A Revolution in Psychometric Insight
In the fast-paced, interconnected world of modern business, understanding the complexities of leadership has become a critical success factor. Leaders must navigate intricate team dynamics, drive innovation, and inspire others—all while maintaining a keen self-awareness of their own strengths, preferences, and challenges. Enter Facet5, the psychometric tool that redefines the way we evaluate and enhance leadership potential. Facet5 has been the preferred choice for many senior leaders across Europe, North America, and Canada, widely recognized for its depth, versatility, and practical application.
What Sets Facet5 Apart?
At its core, Facet5 is rooted in the “Big Five” personality model, one of the most scientifically validated frameworks for understanding human behavior. While many tools rely on generic outputs or lack depth, Facet5 dives into the nuances of personality, offering a precise, evidence-based, and actionable framework for self-awareness.
Unlike traditional psychometric tools that can feel static and overly academic, Facet5 strikes a great balance between scientific rigor and business relevance. Its detailed yet intuitive profile enables individuals to explore their personality traits across five core dimensions: Will, Energy, Affection, Control, and Emotionality. These dimensions go beyond broad categorizations, providing insights into how leaders approach challenges, interact with others, and respond under pressure.

Practical Applications for Senior Leaders
For senior leaders, self-awareness is more than a buzzword; it is the cornerstone of effective leadership. The demands of C-suite and executive roles require a finely tuned understanding of how personal behavior influences team performance, organizational culture, and strategic outcomes. Facet5 excels in this arena, offering senior leaders a roadmap for growth that is as insightful as it is actionable.

Building Self-Awareness and Resilience
Facet5 helps leaders uncover their innate tendencies, from how they assert themselves in decision-making to how they manage stress and foster collaboration. In doing so, it equips them with the tools to embrace their strengths while mitigating potential blind spots. A senior leader at a multinational corporation shared, “Facet5 gave me the language and framework to truly understand my leadership style. It was like holding up a mirror to my professional self, with clarity I’d never experienced before.”
Cultural Relevance and Adaptability
Facet5 is particularly adept at accommodating the cultural nuances of leadership across international organizations and project delivery alliances that involve multiple partners. With organizations increasingly embracing global teams, leaders must navigate diverse perspectives and working styles. Facet5’s versatility ensures that its insights remain culturally sensitive and applicable, making it a trusted tool in cross-border leadership development.
Unlocking Collective Potential
Beyond individual insights, Facet5 is an unparalleled tool for building high-performing leadership teams. By fostering a shared language around personality and behavior, it enables leaders to better understand and leverage the diverse talents within their teams. This alignment is crucial for driving cohesive strategy and fostering a culture of collaboration.
One European CEO who implemented Facet5 for her leadership team described the results as transformative: “Facet5 didn’t just help us understand each other better; it gave us the tools to operate as a unified force. We moved from working as individual experts to functioning as a truly cohesive team.”
The Leadership Edge
Leadership today is as much about adaptability and empathy as it is about vision and strategy. Facet5 equips senior leaders with the clarity and confidence to lead with authenticity, empowering them to navigate uncertainty while inspiring their teams.
In a world where leadership is often reduced to buzzwords and quick fixes, Facet5 stands out as a tool of substance. It doesn’t just analyze personality—it unlocks potential, builds resilience, and transforms how leaders see themselves and their teams.
As organizations across Europe, North America, and Canada continue to face rapid change, those who invest in tools like Facet5 are better positioned to thrive. After all, great leadership starts with self-awareness—and there’s no better tool to ignite that journey than Facet5.
To quote a senior HR executive who has deployed Facet5 across multiple markets:
“Facet5 isn’t just a tool; it’s an investment in leadership excellence. It turns insights into action, and action into transformation.”
Ready to discover the transformative power of Facet5 for your leadership? The journey starts with self-awareness—and Facet5 is the key to unlocking it.

The session had three main parts: we started with a review of crisis management principles in accordance with ISO 22361 Security and resilience – Crisis management – Guidelines. We then conducted a guided warm up exercise and moved immediately into an in-depth international hostage scenario. This hostage taking location was defined by the client so that it would be a very realistic exercise.

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crisis management
Rob CURRIE

Human Behaviour and Its Impact on Crisis

One constant through time is crisis, whether it be political, professional, or personal. While no one wants to experience a crisis, it is inevitable. That said, our responses are fully under our control. The examination of the history of crisis leaves us with many lessons learned based on the successes and failures of others.

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crisis management
Rob CURRIE

Crisis Management: Where do I Start?

I recently took on the role of Chair for the Canadian Chapter of the Institute for Strategic Risk Management (ISRM). The first order of business was finding a great Vice-Chair. I was fortunate enough to have Andrea Chedas, the Head of Corporate Security at WealthSimple take on this important role. For our inaugural Chapter event, we partnered with the Threat Intelligence Exchange Roundtable (TIER), a Toronto-based, cross sector group of corporate security/intelligence professionals to host a webinar on crisis management fundamentals.

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