Crisis leadership training prepares senior leaders to lead people and decisions through incidents such as outages, cyber attacks, recalls, accidents or geopolitical shocks. It covers crisis team roles and decision rights, the first 72 hours, decision-making under uncertainty, stakeholder communication and recovery. Bodhih designs it with the ADDIE model around each client's real risk scenarios.
- Recommended: 2 days in person including a live simulation, or 3 × 3-hour live virtual sessions plus a 4-hour simulation
- Level: Advanced · In person · Live virtual · Simulation-based
- Designed with the ADDIE model and customised to your context
- Offered by Bodhih since 2008 to 2,000+ organisations across 7 regions
Also known as: crisis management leadership program, leading through crisis workshop, crisis decision making training, executive crisis simulation
Where and how: crisis leadership training as an in-person workshop in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Jaipur; as a live online course; or delivered overseas in Dubai, Singapore and across the Middle East, Asia and Africa.
Last reviewed · Bodhih Training, Bengaluru
Disruption is routine. Rehearsal should be too.
Cyber incidents, AI failures, supply shocks, extreme weather and regional conflict now sit on almost every risk register. For teams in India, the Middle East and Asia, a problem at a supplier or a data centre far away can become tomorrow's customer crisis.
Most organisations have a business continuity plan. Far fewer have leaders who have practised using it together under pressure. Crisis leadership training closes that gap by rehearsing the human side: who decides, who speaks and how the team stays steady.
In the Allianz Risk Barometer 2026, cyber incidents ranked the top global business risk, with AI rising to second place.
Gartner lists mobilising leaders for growth in an uncertain world among CHROs' four top priorities for 2026.
What participants will be able to do
Stand up the crisis team fast
Activate a crisis team with clear roles, decision rights and a single source of truth within the first hour.
Lead the first 72 hours
Run a disciplined cadence of situation updates, decisions and communications through the first three days.
Decide with incomplete information
Use a simple decision frame to act on the facts you have, set review points and avoid paralysis.
Communicate with candour
Brief employees, customers, regulators and the media with timely, consistent and honest updates.
Keep people steady
Look after the wellbeing and focus of the crisis team and wider workforce under sustained pressure.
Learn and recover
Lead a blameless after-action review that turns lessons into changes in plans, roles and training.
Who should attend
- CXOs and executive committees
- Business unit, country and site heads
- Members of crisis, incident and business continuity management teams
- Heads of IT, security, operations, communications, HR and legal
- GCC leadership teams working with global incident processes
Program outline
Recommended design, customised to your context after a short needs analysis.
01What makes a crisis differentModule 1 · 90 min+
- Incident, emergency or crisis: knowing which one you are in
- Common traps: denial, delay, too many cooks
- The leader's job in a crisis versus business as usual
- Mapping your top five scenarios
02Crisis team structure and decision rightsModule 2 · 90 min+
- Roles: crisis lead, operations, communications, people, legal
- Who decides what, and who informs whom
- Setting up the crisis room, physical or virtual
- Linking your team to global or group processes
03The first 72 hoursModule 3 · 2 hours+
- Hour one: facts, safety, containment and the first holding statement
- A battle rhythm of updates and decision points
- Keeping a decision log
- Handing over across shifts and time zones
04Deciding under pressureModule 4 · 2 hours+
- Acting on 70% of the facts and setting review points
- Guarding against group-think and tunnel vision
- Balancing speed, safety, cost and reputation
- Ethical lines you will not cross
05Stakeholder communicationModule 5 · 2 hours+
- Sequencing employees, customers, regulators, partners and media
- Messages that are honest, human and specific
- Social media and the rumour gap
- Practice: a tough press or town-hall question
06Live crisis simulationModule 6 · 4 hours+
- A realistic scenario built on your risk profile
- Timed injects: new facts, media calls, leaks
- Observers track decisions, roles and communication
- Facilitated debrief with each participant
07Recovery and learningModule 7 · 60 min+
- Looking after the crisis team and the wider workforce
- Blameless after-action reviews
- Updating plans, roles and drills
- Team commitments for the next 90 days
How we deliver it
Scenarios from your risk register
We design simulations with your risk and continuity teams so leaders rehearse the incidents that could really hit them, not generic ones.
Pressure with psychological safety
The simulation feels real, with timed injects and interruptions, but the debrief is blameless so leaders can reflect honestly.
Structured observation
Trained observers track decision quality, role clarity and communication so feedback is specific rather than impressionistic.
Plan-linked follow-through
Every lesson is tied to a change in your crisis plan, roles or communication templates.
Tailored versions
Executive tabletop
A focused half-day tabletop exercise for the executive committee, built around one high-impact scenario.
For site and plant heads
Emphasises safety incidents, evacuation leadership, community and family communication, and coordination with local authorities.
For technology and GCC leaders
Centres on cyber incidents and major outages, working within global incident processes and time-zone handovers.
How we measure impact
Following ADDIE's Evaluate stage, leaders complete a pre and post self-assessment of crisis leadership capabilities, which can be run on AssessAll, Bodhih's AI assessment platform. Observer ratings from the simulation provide a baseline, and a follow-up tabletop drill at around 90 days tests whether decision speed, role clarity and communication have improved. We also track completion of agreed changes to your crisis plan and communication templates.
Pair this program with AssessAll, Bodhih’s AI assessment platform, for pre- and post-program skill measurement.
Frequently asked questions
What is crisis leadership?
Crisis leadership is the ability to guide people, decisions and communication when a sudden event threatens safety, operations or reputation. It is less about having every answer and more about taking charge, setting a clear rhythm, making timely decisions and keeping people informed. Crisis leadership training builds these skills through structured practice and simulation.
What should leaders do in the first 72 hours of a crisis?
First, protect people and contain the damage. Then establish facts, stand up the crisis team, agree who decides and who speaks, and issue an early holding statement. Set a regular cadence of updates and decisions, and keep a decision log. Our program rehearses this sequence with realistic, timed scenarios.
How do you make decisions in a crisis?
Act on the information you have rather than waiting for certainty. Frame the decision, weigh options against safety, stakeholders and values, choose, and set a review point. Assign someone to challenge the group's thinking. The training uses a simple decision frame that leaders practise repeatedly during the simulation.
How do you run a crisis simulation?
Start with a realistic scenario from your risk register. Brief the team, then release new information in timed injects, such as media calls or escalating impacts. Observers track decisions and communication. Close with a blameless debrief and clear actions. Bodhih designs and facilitates the simulation with your risk and continuity teams.
What makes a good crisis leader?
Good crisis leaders stay calm and visible, make decisions without full information, communicate honestly and often, and trust their team with clear roles. They also care for people under strain and learn quickly from mistakes. These behaviours can be practised, which is why simulation forms a large part of the training.
Is this the same as crisis communication training?
No. Crisis communication training focuses on messaging, spokespeople and media. Crisis leadership training covers the wider leadership task: team structure, decision rights, decisions under pressure, people care and recovery, with communication as one part. Many organisations combine both, with spokespeople attending the communication program as well.
Does this replace our business continuity plan or certification?
No. The program is leadership training that helps your team use its existing plans well under pressure. It does not create a certified continuity plan or provide legal or regulatory advice. Where gaps in your plan show up during the simulation, we note them so your risk and continuity teams can address them.