REPORT FROM THE U.S.—Employees who undergo crisis management training are more likely to meet the challenges of a terrorist attack or other security concern, according to experts.

The issue has received increased attention in the global hotel community since gunmen opened fire in two Mumbai hotels on 26 November. In the days after the attack, many analysts attributed the cool-headed approach of hotel employees to the safe escape of guests at both the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower hotel and the Oberoi Trident complex.

Whether or not those employees underwent formal crisis training has yet to be seen, but that doesn’t belie its importance, experts said.

Ronan Nissenbaum, VP of operations, InterContinental Hotels Group Ron Pohl, VP of brand management and member services, Best Western International

 “It’s not possible to prepare (employees) for every eventuality, but you can definitely train them on the most current and the most probable incidents that can happen in a hotel,” said Ronan Nissenbaum, VP of operations for InterContinental Hotels Group.  

Ron Pohl, VP of brand management and member services at Best Western International, shared a similar sentiment.

“As in any terrorist attack or security concerns, there are always preventative measures that can be implemented or be put in place at any hotel,” he said.

1. Develop a plan

Before a crisis ever arises, hoteliers should have a plan in place for every probable scenario.

“The No. 1 thing that (hotels) can do is to have a disaster or a critical incident management plan in place before the incident ever happens,” said Jason Brennan, co-founder of Synergy Law Enforcement Solutions, a crisis management consultancy firm, and full-time active polic officer.

He said that by identifying areas of concern long before they emerge in a crisis, employees will be more prepared to react to them.

“Taking out all the information that you can gather ahead of time and then planning is an incredibly helpful tool in a place like India,” Brennan said. “That’s a very dynamic situation with a lot of things going on. To try and have to plan that in the heat of battle is a very difficult thing to do.”

2. Walk through the process

Once a plan is put in place, the next step is to physically walk employees through the processes for every probable scenario.

“It’s not instinctive for people go to go into hazardous situations,” Brennan said. “The more training and exposure you give somebody to that type of stimulus, the more successful they’re going to be.”

Nissenbaum said crisis management is akin to riding a bike—once employees are walked through training and practiced the processes necessary to respond to a threat, they’ll be able to do so again, when a real problem arises.

“The more you train somebody and you can actually do it practically, the more you make them feel comfortable with the situation, and the more likely it is that they will stay calm and behave and know what to do in a crisis situation,” he said.

Walking employees through a plan or process provides another benefit: It allows for critique. 

At IHG, for example, hotel directors of security and directors of training will debrief employees after a drill to discuss what they did well and what they need to improve upon, according to Nissenbaum.

“Whatever they haven’t done perfectly, we try to focus on and make the topic of refresher training next month,” he said.

3. Train early and often

Though the likelihood of a life-or-death crisis arising at a hotel tomorrow is minimal, that doesn’t mean training shouldn’t be conducted today. Every source interviewed for this story said that crisis management training should be conducted early and often.

At Best Western, for example, employees received a broad overview of potential threats as early as their initial orientation.