Turbulent Waters, Trusted Anchors:
The General Counsel’s Evolving Role in Navigating Crises
An Economist Impact Report Sponsored by FTI Consulting
DOWNLOAD THE REPORT
LEAD THE WAY
With the increasing frequency, complexity and globalized nature of crisis events over the past five years, the role of the general counsel (“GC”) has become more demanding, strategic and multifaceted.
Among the industries surveyed, organizations in financial services, notably banking and insurance, are leading the way when it comes to crisis management. Over 70% of GCs in this sector said they were more involved in business continuity and financial contingency planning within their organization, compared to close to 60% across all surveyed firms — highlighting the sector’s stricter regulatory requirements and advanced analysis capabilities.
Taking the Helm:
Nearly 60% of surveyed GCs reported being more involved in their organization’s crisis management strategy than five years ago.
Eyes on Strategic Partners:
More than half of the GCs surveyed work with strategic partners on their crisis management strategies.
Not the Same Everywhere:
There are noticeable regional and industry disparities. For example, a higher share of GCs in North America (64%) and the Europe, Middle East and Africa (“EMEA”) region (60%) are are more involved in business continuity and financial contingency planning compared to their peers in the Asia Pacific region (42%).
The general counsel is not only the chief legal officer, but also is being asked to play the role of the chief line manager in charge of the crisis. Everyone is looking to them to lead.”
Steven H. Gunby, President and Chief Executive Officer of FTI Consulting
DOWNLOAD THE REPORT
60% of GCs are more involved in crisis planning.
71% of GCs in the financial services, banking & insurance sector are more involved in business and financial continuity planning.
GCs in North America and EMEA are more likely to analyze red flags impacting reputation and brand than Asia Pacific peers.
Source: “Turbulent Waters, Trusted Anchors: The General Counsel’s Evolving Role in Navigating Crisis,” Economist Impact, 2024.
60%
71%
The Preparedness Paradox
While crisis preparedness is now recognized as a cornerstone of organizational resilience, the survey reveals significant gaps in corporations’ ability to anticipate, plan for and respond to future crises.
4 OF 4
1 OF 4
When asked to select crises that pose the greatest risks to their organizations, reputational or operational crisis events were cited among the top three, out of 12 types of crises, by nearly 30% of GCs. Reputational or operational crisis events are also among the top three crises that their organizations are least prepared to manage, according to about 30% of GCs.
Underprepared for Top Threats
Source: “Turbulent Waters, Trusted Anchors: The General Counsel’s Evolving Role in Navigating Crisis,” Economist Impact, 2024.
Least prepared for crises posing the greatest risks?
Crises posing greatest risk to their business
Crises organizations are least prepared to manage
Reputational
Operational
Capital Markets
28%
31%
30%
28%
28%
25%
The fact that this report reveals that a significant majority of organizations are not incorporating lessons from past crises into their contingency planning is a concern. Leadership teams often recognize what needs to be done, but are yet to take timely and decisive action. Others lack the tools and resources that provide a comprehensive understanding of emerging risks.”
Lars Faeste, EMEA Chairman of FTI Consulting
The Digital Unknown
The role of digital technology in crisis preparedness is undeniable given the widespread adoption of emerging technology across all business areas.
However, less than half of the canvassed organizations are deploying AI and machine learning-based solutions for comprehensive impact analysis of crisis events. This represents a key area for future development, as 33% of GCs identified the adoption of more advanced technologies for crisis monitoring and impact analysis as one of the top three priorities for their legal departments to better prepare for future crises.
As AI continues to evolve, GCs will need to refresh their thinking about how they can best shape their company’s AI approaches to balance risk and innovation. AI tools can be particularly useful for companies to scan for risks and mitigate a crisis. But GCs will need to be sure they understand the maturity level of their companies when it comes to AI so they know exactly how to maximize those opportunities.”
Claudio Calvino, Global Head of Data Science at FTI Consulting
More than 50% of surveyed organizations in the in the retail and fast-moving consumer goods (“FMCG”) sectors use machine-based modeling and IoT — the highest usage across all the sectors.
Demystifying AI: The FTI Consulting Impact
AI and the General Counsel
How Legal Functions Can Safely Implement AI
Crisis Playbook for the Future
The role of digital technology in crisis preparedness is undeniable, given the widespread adoption of emerging technology across all business areas.
Despite the increasing focus on crisis management at the board and C-suite levels, gaps in risk management and the untimely or inadequate implementation of protective safeguards threaten to undermine the progress organizations are making to mitigate risks. The indisputable lesson from past crises is the need for consistent preparedness through robust crisis governance regularly reviewed early warning systems, and well-rehearsed contingency and communication plans that include team members beyond the legal department.
The reality today is that the number and variety of crises that companies are facing have soared and are far less rare than could give any general counsel comfort. The magnitude of the impact of any individual crisis is bigger than ever. Whether the company handles the crisis well or not can be the largest single determinant of its market value, as well as its reputation.”
Steven H. Gunby, President and Chief Executive Officer of FTI Consulting
Considering Your Crisis Response
How a GC Can Turn a Challenge Into an Opportunity
The Role of the GC as Crisis Commander
Returning to the top actions that organizations plan to take to be better prepared for the next crisis event, the top two priorities are the creation of a well-rounded crisis response team and increased spend on crisis preparedness activities/tools/technology enhancements, external advisors or vendors. Adopting more advanced technologies for crisis monitoring and impact analysis ranked third.
EXPLORE THE REPORT FINDINGS
“Turbulent Waters, Trusted Anchors: The General Counsel’s Evolving Role in Navigating Crises” was sponsored by
FTI Consulting. Download the report to read more about the actions that organizations can take to ensure business continuity in the event of a crisis, contain risks, set recovery in motion and identify opportunities to build sustainable growth.
DOWNLOAD THE REPORT
For tailored insights from our experts on crisis preparedness, cybersecurity, investigations, litigation and a range of other issues, please visit The Modern General Counsel hub.
Steven H. Gunby President and Chief Executive Officer
Washington, D.C.
RELATED ARTICLES
Preparing for the Inevitable Black Swan
RELATED ARTICLES
Missteps the GC Should Avoid in the First 48 Hours of a Crisis
RELATED ARTICLES
The GC’s Role in Moving Beyond Crisis
Experts Who Deliver
Lars Faeste EMEA Chairman
London, United Kingdom
Claudio Calvino Global Head of Data Science
London, United Kingdom
William J. Perlstein
Global Leader of Forensic & Litigation Consulting and Vice Chair of Client Services
Washington, D.C.
Kate Brader Head of Crisis Communications, EMEA
London, United Kingdom
Jordan Rae Kelly Head of Americas Cybersecurity
Washington, D.C.
DOWNLOAD THE METHODOLOGY
About three-fifths of surveyed organizations are scanning and escalating internal or external red flags less than once a month. As crises intensify in frequency, severity and unpredictability, timely and thorough identification and escalation of red flags can be the difference between a brief interruption and the complete paralysis of critical business functions.
Assessment Lags
2 OF 4
More than two-thirds of the canvassed organizations are not engaging in crisis simulation activities such as stress testing and running workshops/trainings/crisis scenario drills to integrate learnings from past crisis events into the crisis management strategy, according to their GCs.
Lessons from the Past
3 OF 4
Close to 70% of organizations lack an identified ad-hoc cross-functional crisis response team or a pre-selected list of external crisis response advisors that can assemble easily when a crisis arises.
Crisis Response Gaps
GC can use a crisis as their turning point and incorporate learnings from past experiences into plans for the future. Identifying what worked and what did not during an actual crisis response will help identify gaps in processes and strengthen resiliency. Everyone wants to put a crisis behind them, but those who take the time to learn from their own black swan events will be in a better position to address the next one.”
Nicole Wells, Leader of North America Risk & Investigations at FTI Consulting
Roy Huang Head of Asia and the Caribbean
Hong Kong, China
Jon Chan Senior Managing Director, Technology
London, United Kingdom
Nicole Wells Leader of North America Risk & Investigations
Chicago, IL
Meredith Griffanti Global Head of Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Communications
New York, NY
Sophie Ross Global Chief Executive Officer, Technology Segment
San Francisco, CA
Meredith Brown Senior Managing Director, Technology
Chicago, IL
RELATED ARTICLES
Mastering Crises: A GC’s Playbook on Leadership for Turbulent Times
RELATED ARTICLES
Preparing for the Inevitable Black Swan
ARTICLE
Beyond the Horizon: How AI Can Enhance Your Crisis Management Plan
ARTICLE
Beyond the Horizon: How AI Can Enhance Your Crisis Management Plan
ARTICLE
Battling the Waves: How a Crisis Communication Playbook Keeps Your Organization Afloat