In a recent episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, Kate and Tamara talked to psychologist, Gill Green, about the psychology behind the successful emergency landing of US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River in January 2009.
The plane suffered a dual engine failure shortly after take-off from LaGuardia Airport due to a bird strike. Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and First Officer Jeff Skiles successfully landed the plane on the Hudson River, saving all 155 passengers and crew.
Leadership during a crisis
Psychologist, Gill Green, who specialises in pilots and aviation, went through several essential qualities that make up a great pilot – from psychological qualities, through to process management and teamwork.
Each of these qualities are just as important for any leader to have if they want the best chance of successfully managing a crisis.
1. They are steady, resilient and focused
Leaders stand a better chance of successfully navigating their organisation out of a crisis if they’re starting off with a steady mindset. Of course, that can be hard – we’re all human – but it does help if leaders aren’t prone to panicking in unexpected or difficult situations.
Resilience is crucial in helping us recover quickly and take considered action when something happens. As are leaders who can focus on what’s important during a crisis.
2. They have a procedure and follow it during a crisis
As Gill explains, it’s very easy to panic during crisis situations and react impulsively.
It’s also easy to make mistakes (even in non-crisis situations) when you’re carrying out a task you’ve done hundreds of times before.
This is why pilots have things like pre-flight checklists to work from, and why it helps organisations to have checklists to fall back on when things are stressful.
It might seem pointless to have a checklist for a task you do on autopilot because you’ve done it so much, but when things go wrong checklists minimise the work your brain does to keep on track.
3. They have good people management skills, even when under pressure
In a crisis situation, effective leaders know how to get the best out of their people. They know which of them has the skills, experience and temperament to benefit certain roles and they listen to any recommendations they have.
This also means creating an environment of psychological safety, where team members know they can raise points about how a situation is being managed – even if it means questioning something the boss supports.
4. They understand the importance of great communication and teamwork
A great crisis leader can connect with others and work together to solve problems. They make the whole crisis response run more smoothly.
Having a crisis team in place that can get their thinking across to each other quickly and clearly is also a massive benefit. But great crisis leaders are also open to hearing these new ideas and approaches. They understand that the most important thing is resolving the crisis efficiently and empathetically, and that getting there is always a team effort.
5. They’re committed to continuous learning, training and improvement
The fantastic thing about Sully and his crew is that there’s nothing superhuman about them.
They were all highly trained and disciplined professionals who communicated brilliantly with each other when it mattered the most.
Like all pilots, Captain Sullenberger and First Officer Skiles went through rigorous training and simulations and knew what procedures to follow to help them get the best outcome.
It’s easy for our “chimp brains” to take over when a crisis hits – it’s this training and practising (like we do in crisis simulations) that helps our brains focus on the process that’s been repeatedly rehearsed. We’ve dealt with threats like this before, and we know we can work through them.
If the ‘Miracle on the Hudson’ has a lesson for leaders, it’s that ordinary people can do extraordinary things when they’re calm in a crisis. They just need the training, discipline and team to get them there.
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featured photo by Mike C. Valdivia on Unsplash
