“Chrono” crises: dynamics and organizational crisis readiness

Abstract

Purpose While most organizations prepare for single crisis events (Coombs, 2004), facing consecutive, unresolved crises is not improbable. These scenarios, which we term “chrono” crises, can be considered a subtype of sticky crises – severe, recurring and complex (Jin et al., 2024). This study has three objectives: First, to develop the concept of “chrono” crisis, second, to understand how organizations have responded and what were some of the lessons learned so as to draw insights on how they can respond in the future, third, to propose a “Chrono” Crisis Readiness Protocol on how to manage it. Design/methodology/approach This multiple-case study examines organizations that experienced a new crisis before resolving an earlier one. Nine organizations or industries were purposively sampled for literal and theoretical replication. A total of 248 communication artifacts – media reports, organizational responses and financial data – spanning from 2007 to 2024 were analyzed using pattern matching and cross-case synthesis (Yin, 2014). Findings We first developed a definition for chronologically consecutive, unresolved crises or “chrono” crises. We found that mainstream media made unresolved crises salient through media hype and employed thematic frames when covering “chrono” crises. We also found that organizational responses to “chrono” crises remained uneven. The absence of a standardized response protocol for this type of crisis reflects a knowledge gap in managers assessing the culpability of their organizations, underscoring the need to evolve situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) frameworks for “chrono” crises. Research limitations/implications Drawing on the work on crisis readiness (Jin et al., 2024), this study proposes the “Chrono” Crisis Readiness Protocol to guide organizations on how to manage such crises. Limitations include reliance on documentary evidence and proxy measures (e.g. share price) for reputation. Future research could include interviews and experiments to test the protocol’s effectiveness. Practical implications The “Chrono” Crisis Readiness Protocol encourages fluid thinking and adaptive planning. It offers a structured yet adaptive approach to managing “chrono” crises. Its utility lies in two primary decision-making areas: (1) the allocation of organizational resources across overlapping crises and (2) the selection of an appropriate SCCT strategy for the latter crisis, considering the interaction between crisis clusters. Originality/value In coining and developing the concept of “chrono” crises, this study introduces a novel lens for understanding and managing consecutive, unresolved crisis events.