EESCL001 - Brand Resilience: Crisis Communication for Senior Leaders

Course Description

In today’s turbulent world, leaders must be able to communicate with clarity, confidence, and agility—especially under pressure. This intensive three-day program is designed to help you show up with executive presence, lead your team through uncertainty, and protect your organization’s brand when it matters most. You’ll gain tools and practice in a variety of crisis responses, media training, persuasive storytelling, and change leadership, including improv techniques from famed The Second City and frameworks like the Entrepreneurial Operating System. Through hands-on exercises, recent real-world case studies, and a personalized post-course capstone, you’ll gain sharper communication skills, a clear values-based approach to decision-making, and a crisis communication plan tailored to your organization. Be ready to lead through any disruption with composure and credibility.

Learn more about the Brand Resilience: Crisis Communication for Senior Leaders course.

Course Outline

Pre-Course Orientation (Online)

Connect with peers and instructors. Prepare for the immersive experience ahead of you.

Three-Day Immersion at UChicago's Gleacher Center

Participate in high-pressure communication exercises. Learn improvisation techniques. Practice managing crises in real time.

1:1 Capstone Consultation with Instructors (Online)

Submit your crisis communication plan in advance and then review the feedback in a one-on-one session with faculty and industry experts.

Learner Outcomes

In this Chicago Booth Executive Education course, you will learn to:

• Show up as a credible, commanding presence during uncertainty.

  You are taught techniques drawn from public speaking, media training, and Second City improv to communicate with agility and composure, even when pressed by challenging questions from internal or external audiences, such as employees, boards, and reporters.
• Craft memorable, values-aligned messages that stick. 
  You design and manage campaigns, craft messaging, and tell concise, values-aligned stories that resonate with your audience.
• Respond to change quickly with clarity and discipline. 

  You discover how to codify and lead with your values, even when, without warning, a crisis confronts you and your organization.
• Navigate organizational change with as little drama as possible. 

  You gain proficiency in tools such as EOS, the Vision-Traction Organizer, and cascading communication to help keep your teams informed and aligned during transitions.
• Leverage lessons from trusted advisors of senators, CEOs, and major corporations to develop your own crisis communications plan. 

  You extract lessons from real-world examples of leading through crisis and disruption, so you can emulate effective practices and avoid pitfalls in your organization. After you complete the in-person experience, you’ll be able to create your own crisis communications plan, review it with your instructor, and revise it in response to their feedback.

Notes

Offered by the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.