Failure of crisis leadership in a global pandemic: some reflections on COVID-19 and future recommendations

Abstract

Purpose Being a novel public health crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic presented world leaders with difficult options and some serious dilemmas that must somehow be negotiated. Whilst these leaders had limited knowledge about the coronavirus and how the pandemic would potentially evolve, they were still expected to make high-staked judgements amidst a range of uncertainties. The purpose of this paper is to explore the response strategies used by various world leaders from the perspective of crisis leadership within the public health domain. Design/methodology/approach Secondary data was collected from research papers, policy reports and credible media outlets to examine the construct of crisis leadership within the context of the global pandemic. Findings The paper identified three cognitive antecedents to the COVID-19 crisis leadership failures, which helped to explain why certain policy decisions were successful and why others were less so. On this basis, a clear dichotomy was drawn between highly rated leaders and their less successful counterparts in relation to the management and governance of the coronavirus pandemic. Originality/value The uniqueness of this paper lies in its psycho-political approach, which offered insights into the cognitive undertones that underpin the three leadership failures that emerged from the distinct approaches used by world leaders to prepare for, respond to and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The practical recommendations proposed in this paper are hoped to aid better decision-making for leaders faced with the task of managing future public health crises.

Nurse leaders’ perceptions of future leadership in hospital settings in the post-pandemic era: a qualitative descriptive study

“…Leaders recommended that information flow should be developed by ensuring the adequacy of information and developing functional and comprehensive information systems by using digitalisation. Additionally, strengthening leaders' information competencies has been recognised in prior studies (Okoli et al, 2022;Pihlainen et al, 2019). With the most correct and updated information, postpandemic leaders can support the sense-making and well-being of professionals (Dirani et al, 2020).…”

“…Moreover, crisis and ethical leadership will become of greater importance in the future (Morse and Warshawsky, 2021). The use of technological solutions (Dirani et al , 2020; Gjellebæk et al , 2020; Morse and Warshawsky, 2021), supporting the well-being of professionals (Dirani et al , 2020; Morse and Warshawsky, 2021; Nurmeksela et al , 2021; Okoli et al , 2022), and communication interaction along with effective networking skills (Pihlainen et al , 2019; Sanford and Janney, 2019) will also be pivotal in future leadership. In addition, the ability to lead people, allocate human resources (Morse and Warshawsky, 2021; Pihlainen et al , 2019), employ current knowledge (Sanford and Janney, 2019) and develop evidence-based practices will be essential (Morse and Warshawsky, 2021; Nurmeksela et al , 2021).…”

“…In addition, the ability to lead people, allocate human resources (Morse and Warshawsky, 2021; Pihlainen et al , 2019), employ current knowledge (Sanford and Janney, 2019) and develop evidence-based practices will be essential (Morse and Warshawsky, 2021; Nurmeksela et al , 2021). Future leaders should be decisive (Okoli et al , 2022), self-confident and innovative and have good decision-making (Sanford and Janney, 2019), time management (Pihlainen et al , 2019) and digital skills (Gjellebæk et al , 2020). Continuous change in healthcare thus requires leaders with learning abilities (Vasset et al , 2023) and more comprehensive educations (Morse and Warshawsky, 2021).…”

Why some hotels get it right and others don't: Perspective of situational crisis communication theory towards crisis response strategies

“…Moreover, since COVID‐19 crisis is an external crisis, a crisis leader may not give much significance to respond to it. A lack of efficient response during the COVID‐19 crisis from leaders can be detrimental to their image (Okoli et al, 2023). Furthermore, traits in a leader such as taking charge of the situation, guiding the organization, and motivating the employees, during the COVID‐19 pandemic has been found to boost employee morale, leading to a better crisis response from an organization (Caringal‐Go et al, 2021).…”

Mediating Effect of Happiness at Work in the Relationship between Transformational Leadership and Job Performance: A Literature Review

“…Leaders motivate and inspire employees in the company to create a working environment that will cultivate learning, collaboration, and teamwork to achieve the target organizational goals and objectives (Maina & Gichinga, 2018;Klingborg et al, 2006;Okoli et al, 2022). Team leads must ensure that all employees can understand, accept, and work towards aiming corporate goals, which have a mediate effect on employee performance and overall organizational performance.…”