Crisis Management essay on Indonesia forest fire
Your assignment must be:
• A thoughtful, detailed analysis of an actual crisis that really happened–not just a report of the facts of a case
• Properly referenced with accurate citations and a bibliography
o At least 3 original references found on your own
• Informed by at least 1 theoretical construct* discussed
• Written in accordance with the framework provided below
Your paper MUST INCLUDE the following six section format:
Introduction
Provide a very brief overview of your case (where, when, what happened). Explain which theoretical construct* you will be applying, why and where in the paper.
1. Pre-Conditions
Crises rarely occur ‘out of the blue’, instead there are usually several warning signs. Discuss the warning signs and why people did not respond adequately in your particular crisis case. This will likely be the longest section of your paper.
2. Trigger—Only pick one!
Discuss the point in time that the crisis kicked-off—the tipping point–how, when, why? This section should be focused and brief.
3. Crisis
Discuss how, when and why the crisis escalated to produce the greatest damage
4. Post-Crisis
Discuss what happened after the acute phase was over
What were the lessons learned [or should have been learned] to prevent a future crisis event. What are your recommendations. This should link with trigger in logical argument.
Summary
Consider all phases of your analysis. In sum, what should we have learned from your paper’s analysis and how did the theoretical framework you selected help us understand this crisis better.
*Theoretical constructs could be, for example, Team Resource Management; Normal Accidents; Naturalistic Decision Making; Human Error (Swiss Cheese); Predictable Surprises; Drift Towards Failure; Critical period; Incubation period; Social defenses; Team learning; Groupthink; Destructive pursuit of idealized goals; Toxic Triangle, Organisational Munchhausen by Proxy; among others discussed in class this term.
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To pass, you MUST demonstrate three skills in the analysis of your case:
Skill 1. Research skills through proper selection of a crisis case study.
• The case study must be a real incident that actually happened.
• The case can be a:
o positive example of a well-managed crisis, for example, US Airways Hudson River landing [Although this example is not available since it was covered in class and the textbook].
o Most likely, the case selected is a bad example or a case of some sort of organizational failure from a changing situation that was not well managed and resulted in some sort of crisis [ie bankruptcy, accident, fatalities, etc]
Skill 2. Analysis skills through proper application of the 4 stages of the ‘Lifecycle of Crisis’ framework:
• Subheadings MUST be listed exactly as directed abover
• Only ONE trigger is acceptable: Trigger should not blame individuals [ie operator error] but rather focus on a systemic tipping point that put the ‘accident waiting to happen’ into motion.
• As such, the trigger is NOT the crash, bankruptcy, fatalities, hurricane, earthquake, etc. That should be discussed as part of the preconditions or crisis itself.
Skill 3. Crititcal thinking skills through proper application of at least one theory—proper application of 2 or 3 is exceptional—IF DONE CORRECTLY. Name dropping in several theories without fully integrating and applying them in the analysis will NOT BE REWARDED WITH A HIGHER MARK.
