Mindful Learning in Crisis Management

Abstract

All crises emit warning signals. And yet, organizations do not typically see the warnings in time to learn and adapt to prevent a crisis. This conceptual analysis bridges a theoretical gap by connecting current crisis management literature to rhetorical theories that identify barriers to organizational learning. Two connecting models are introduced to outline the barriers to learning, propose the inclusion of learning throughout the crisis cycle, and encourage the adoption of a mindful culture. Previous crisis models are described and an explanation of the similarities between Burkean phi losophy and crisis research is presented. The Mindful Learning Model demonstrates how, if barriers are overcome, learning can not only lessen the impact of a crisis but also potentially prevent a crisis from occurring. Contentions of this analysis are detailed and a research agenda to extend mindful learning is outlined.

Well Known or Well Liked? The Effects of Corporate Reputation on Firm Value at the Onset of a Corporate Crisis

“…In the current research, we focus on how these two dimensions of corporate reputation influence investors' perceptions and reactions at the onset of a crisis, a critical stage in investors' initial attempts to make sense of the crisis (Bundy & Pfarrer, ; Veil, ). The characteristics of the onset of a crisis make the roles of both dimensions of corporate reputation important.…”

What Factors Drive Organizational Learning From Crisis? Insights From the Dutch Food Safety Services’ Response to Four Veterinary Crises

“…Crisis management models distinguish different stages in crisis management in which different processes take place, approaching crisis management as a cyclical process (cf. Smith, ; Veil, ). In the crisis response stage, the operational response to the crisis is organized, while in the revision stage, it is looked back on what went wrong, how and what changes are to be made (Coombs, ).…”

Some Lines Bring Us Together: Sport as Crisis Renewal in Bosnia-Herzegovina

“…Past research connecting crisis communication to rhetorical theories and methods has focused primarily on the organizational rhetoric surrounding a crisis (Veil, 2011). While Springston, Avery, and Sallot (2010) identified a burgeoning number of articles using rhetorical theory to analyze a crisis situation such as apologia discourse (Hearit & Brown, 2004;Marsh, 2006;Rowland & Jerome, 2004), epideictic discourse (Huxman, 2004), constitutive approach studies (Stokes, 2005), and narrative theory (Heath, 2004), they suggested that Johnson and Sellnow's (1995) return to Aristotle's conceptual framework of available means-and types-of persuasion provided a clear picture of typical crisis communication.…”