Pandemic on the plains: a study in crisis leadership

Abstract

Crisis leadership regained importance when the World Health Organization’s Director General declared COVID-19 a global pandemic in March 2020 (World Health Organization, 2020). Though some research was emerging, a gap remained regarding an examination of crisis leadership from the perspective of those on the frontline of the pandemic—the municipal leaders. Using narrative inquiry, this study examined the crisis leadership experiences of five civic leaders in a small Midwestern city during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The research exposed how a crisis situation may generate a disordered environment that resembles the Cynefin Framework’s chaotic and complex domains where causal relationships are difficult to establish. The study revealed how the city successfully functioned in a complex environment by leaders adapting and leveraging existing relationships. The findings also identified the impact social media and politicizing an issue could have on the confluence of information and communication efforts, especially for crisis leaders.