Crisis manager: requirements and responsibilities

A crisis manager is a specialist, without which not a single large company that has found itself in a difficult situation can do. The requirements for such a professional are quite high, but the financial reward is always “at the level”.

Crisis manager is invited by a manager who helps to either successfully cope with a crisis situation or even bankruptcy, or to prevent their occurrence.

In order to assess the situation and get to the bottom of the matter, the specialist has to work out a huge layer of information. Given that everything happens at another enterprisewhose workers are not always ready for cooperation, even requesting all necessary documents is often a problem. It must be added that the whole process is carried out in a rather tense environment and, as a rule, in time pressure.

Having completed the analysis of the current state of the enterprise, the crisis manager begins to develop measures that can correct the situation. In most cases, they are poorly perceived by the team, as they include staff reductions and the elimination of entire departments, freezing costs and closing the capital flight.

It should also be added that in crisis management it is customary to single out 2 main directions. Representative of the first is arbitration consultant involved in nonprofit partnership. The Union of Managers and Crisis Managers sends such a specialist to the company that officially filed for bankruptcy or about a crisis situation. The arbitration court of the Union is engaged in this. To become such a specialist, only the appropriate license is required.

The representative of the second direction is an independent consultant. It is he, being individual entrepreneur invited by organization on a commercial basis for a detailed analysis, search for problems and the formation of ways to solve them. He also negotiates with creditors, assesses the condition of the enterprise and takes part in certification activities. The list of his responsibilities is much wider than that of an arbitration consultant, the same can be said about the level of responsibility.

The demand for organizations in crisis managers from the side is very high:

• an expensive specialist with specific knowledge and skills is usually not kept in the company “just in case”;
• it is a stranger who can look at the situation with an open mind and see the problem.

Remuneration of a specialist starts from 10 thousand dollars a month. The manager can receive a fixed salary, a certain share in the authorized capital, or a salary in combination with a percentage of the company's profit derived from the results of his work.

The profession of a crisis manager is complex, serious and highly paid, and therefore the requirements for such a specialist are quite diverse.

Currently, in many economic universities of the country, you can study as a crisis manager by entering the profession of the same name. Having completed the bachelor's program, the young specialist can already start work. However, initially such training will cost much more than in the case of other economic specialties.

Higher education may be any other specialized for example, in the field of personnel management, law or finance.

The anti-crisis manager must have an impeccable reputation, as well as be able to establish contacts both with the authorities and with other managers. A big plus is the presence of “psychological” skills, that is, the ability to conduct a dialogue, organize negotiations, speak out publicly, resolve conflict issues and not succumb to pressure.

He must adequately perceive the opinions of others, but remain independent in his own decisions.

Since the crisis specialist works in the economic sphere, it is important for him to have a good understanding of financial strategies and theories, as well as legal legislation. It is considered important to know the structure of the company, the relationship of departments and ongoing processes.

One of the most important qualities required to work as a crisis manager is stress resistance.

Blatant aggression is quite common and unwillingness to make contact from the representatives of the team, whose annoyance at the lack of a salary or worsened conditions is "poured out" on a stranger. Previous managers are also not enthusiastic about the arrival of an anti-crisis specialist, after all, the success of his work will mean the complete incompetence of employees in the organization of leaders.

As a result, if a specialist does not possess such qualities as anti-conflict, the ability to inspire confidence, remain professional in any situation and abstract from unpleasant moments, he will not be able to stretch for a long time in the profession.

The main motto of a professional should be the phrase "End justifies the means".

Another important characteristic is observation. - Experienced crisis managers, thanks to this quality, determine all the shortcomings of the company in a couple of weeks.

In general, the requirements for an anti-crisis professional may differ depending on the specifics of the company that requires a specialist. However, usually an employee is required to have higher education in a specialized field, experience in senior positions and the presence of a portfolio with completed projects. The main personal qualities expected from a manager are stress tolerance, determination, responsibility and a non-standard approach.

You can immediately say that a specific list of responsibilities of the crisis manager will be determined depending on the current situation at the enterprise. However, some points are repeated from time to time.

If necessary, the crisis manager decides how the company will be able to counter external threats, and also draws up a business plan for financial recovery. In most cases, this happens by refinancing obligations and optimizing spending.

It is the crisis manager begins bankruptcy proceedingsnegotiating with creditors, and also checks whether the signs of a crisis are fictitious. This specialist is also conducts an inventory of existing property and analyzes what state it is in. Optimization of financial flows and production is also his task.

Most crisis managers in Russia work for themselves. They begin their career while studying at the university, passing practice in consulting offices, law firms or those large organizations that have their own anti-crisis departments. In these same places, their career begins.

By the way, in this case, a professional must register in the Union of Managers and Crisis Managers.

Some managers finish their professional growth at this stage, but others go further. For example, they are registered as individual entrepreneurs, form their own department in the Union of Managers and Anti-Crisis Managers, or even open full-fledged firms.

Since anti-crisis managers are very much in demand, they get quite high wages. However, in order to form a really high-quality portfolio and receive the most profitable orders, the manager needs to work for the most part with large enterprises, cooperation with which is about a couple of years. Projects that last about a couple of months are not always well received by employers, although in cases where they are accompanied by outstanding results, the reaction is the opposite.