I admit it: patience is not my strong suit. As an inherent “fixer,” my automatic response to problems is to immediately go about the business of fixing them. I probably suffer from an over-blown sense of confidence that if I just dig down deeply enough into my “bag of life and work experiences,” I can find the right answer and check the problem off my (or my client’s) list.

However, our firm has dealt with enough corporate crises over the years (from a worker’s death in a manufacturing plant to a senior executive embezzling money to a chemical company’s accident endangering the surrounding environment) that we have learned the “patience lesson.”

While it is critical to respond quickly in a true crisis and to be overly prepared in advance, it is equally important to take a deep breath and to be sure you are considering all the angles of what needs to be done in both the short term and the long term. Your decisions need to be based on more than putting out the immediate fire. How will your words and actions impact your company’s health and reputation in the future, after the immediate problem has been resolved?

Very few corporate executives understand all the nuances and ramifications of a crisis the minute it occurs, so employing the right balance of immediate responsiveness and thorough situational analysis is critical . . .and that requires some degree of patience, which is hard to muster up in a situation where all those around you are likely to be panicking.

It also requires the skill of adaptation – the ability to constantly review and re-review your best-laid plans in the moments that un fold as the various facts surrounding the crisis reveal themselves. This is not a time for rigid adherence to what you always said you would do if “this kind of a crisis” occurred. It is a time for all of your antenna to be out – sensing the small nuances that might bite you if left unaddressed and reading any shifts in public opinion or shareholder/stakeholder response which need to be factored into your unfolding plans and statements.

We have found that the CEOs who are best at handling crisis situations are those who combine pathological honesty with the ability to keep a cool head, listen to trusted advisors and remain ever-flexible . . .  and yes, appropriately patient.

With all of that said, however, “just winging it” is never the right action to take. At the very least, you need to know what to ask, who to ask and who to share information with. And the best way to stay on a safe path in this regard is to have your crisis response plan and various reporting systems spelled out in advance – before a crisis ever occurs.

Internal roles should be well-defined, and those in designated response positions should practice these roles and responses well in advance of an emergency.  Generally speaking, over-reporting (both internally and externally) is better than under-reporting, as people will fill voids with their own – typically negative– speculation. As you are putting your crisis plan in place, think through the chains of command, hotline numbers and online response mechanisms you need to put into place.

Good crisis communication plans allow organizations to assess potential risks ahead of time. They incorporate the need to educate as you communicate (this is particularly important for companies that have complicated and/or difficult-to-understand business scenarios). Accuracy is critical in a crisis, and having an agreed-upon plan in place allows you to say things the way you intended to say them because you are not rushed – the correct messages have already been developed and vetted.

In our 24/7 world of citizen journalists in addition to the traditional news media, having a well-thought-out crisis response plan is a necessity, not a luxury.

Cathy Ackermann, founder and president of Ackermann Marketing and PR, may be reached at cackermann@thinkackermann.com.