The Leading in a Crisis Podcast
Interviews, stories and lessons learned from experienced crisis leaders. Email the show at Tom@leadinginacrisis.com. Being an effective leader in a corporate or public crisis situation requires knowledge, tenacity, and influencing skills. Unfortunately, most of us don't get much training or real experience dealing with crisis situations. On this podcast, we will talk with people who have lived through major crisis events and we will tap their experience and stories from the front lines of crisis management. Your host, Tom Mueller, is a veteran crisis manager and trainer with more than 30 years in the corporate communications and crisis fields. Tom currently works as an executive coach and crisis trainer with WPNT Communications, and as a contract public information officer and trainer through his personal company, Tom Mueller Communications LLC. Your co-host, Marc Mullen, has over 20 years of experience as a communication strategist. He provides subject matter expertise in a number of communication specializations, including crisis communication plan development, response and recovery communications, emergency notifications and communications, organizational reviews, and after-action reports. He blogs at Blog | Marc Mullen Our goal is to help you grow your knowledge and awareness so you can be better prepared to lead should a major crisis threaten your organization. Music credit: Special thanks to Nick Longoria from Austin, Texas for creating the theme music for the podcast.
Episodes
Alarms don’t announce themselves politely. They scream into your day and force you to decide who speaks, what’s true, and how to steady a room full of worried people. That’s where Ruth Rendon has spent her career—first as a Houston Chronicle reporter, then as a corporate communications leader at bp, Marathon Petroleum, and SABIC—bringing order to messy moments with clear words and tight networks.
We mine stories...
Sirens fade, but the lessons shouldn’t. On this episode, we sit down with Helen Hynson Vettori—former paramedic, federal emergency planner, and now the mind behind the Black Swan thriller series—to explore how real-world crises become page-turning stories that sharpen leadership and preparedness. From street-side triage to cross-agency strategy, Helen shows why decisive action at the edge must pair with deep collaboratio...
Outrage online isn’t always organic—and when it’s engineered, it can hit hard. We sit down with crisis and risk consultant Phil Borremans to expose the mechanics of rage farming: coordinated attacks that use psychology, algorithms, and incentives to inflame audiences, distort brand updates, and turn a minor moment into a market-moving storm. From bots and fake accounts to “coordinated amplification,” Phil maps how bad...
In this episode, Philippe Borremans joins the podcast to explore key crisis preparedness and response strategies, including the growing challenges of deepfake videos, the widening trust deficit, and persistent capability gaps in the crisis comms field.
Phil shares key findings from his latest annual survey of over 100 crisis communications professionals — revealing results that are both surprising and, in some cases, ...
Imagine walking into a crisis room with a complete first-draft playbook—roles, spans of control, holding lines, and a 48-hour plan—ready in minutes. That’s the promise we explore with Chris Hamilton and Peter Heneghan, veterans of 10 Downing Street, BP, and AstraZeneca, and now the co-founders of Albie.ai. Their take isn’t hype: it’s a grounded, human-first approach to using AI as a co-pilot that speeds up the work wi...
Crises don’t wait for perfect plans, which is why Michelle Ehrhart’s mantra—practice makes permanent—hits so hard. Michelle, former VP of global communications at FedEx and now CMO at the University of Memphis, joins us to share the field‑tested playbook behind her new book, Crisis Compass. Tom and Michele share stories from their experiences and dig into the habits that turn panic into poise: understanding operations...
A deadly crash at UPS’s Louisville hub put crisis leadership under a microscope—and the first 24 hours told a powerful story about timing, empathy, and restraint. We invited Michele Ehrhart, former VP of Global Communications at FedEx and author of Crisis Compass, to unpack how the early communications played out in this heartbreaking incident.
We walk through the initial statements that landed within hours:...
The first words after a mass casualty event can steady a community—or shake it further. We break down the opening press conferences following the Grand Blanc, Michigan church attack to show how leaders earn trust when stakes are highest: the county supervisor’s grounded empathy, a police chief balancing hard facts with community care, a seasoned Michigan State Police PIO orchestrating structure and boundaries, and the...
Charlie Kirk built his reputation through campus debates, setting up tents where he'd engage students with his signature challenge: "prove me wrong." When a sniper's bullet ended his life at a Utah university, it threatened to become another flashpoint in America's increasingly volatile political landscape. Instead, something remarkable happened.
Just days after her husband's mur...
What does it take to lead through chaos? Tracy Nolan knows firsthand. This remarkable Fortune 100 executive has repeatedly stepped into roles most would consider overwhelming - from transforming struggling retail operations to merging telecom giants during a global pandemic. She also likes to solve puzzles.
Tracy's journey from retail buyer to telecom executive to healthcare leader reveals a unique talen...
What happens when crisis hits your business and the only information people can find about you online is that negative event? In our conversation with communications expert Tiffany Muehlbauer, we dive deep into her innovative "Pool Theory" concept that's changing how organizations approach crisis preparation.
The Pool Theory isn't about shouting louder when trouble arrives—it's about ...
Behind every crisis response lies hidden patterns that determine success or failure. In this illuminating conversation, crisis communications expert Jeff Hahn pulls back the curtain on these patterns, sharing insights from his book "Breaking Bad News" and his decades of experience in the trenches of corporate crises.
Drawing from his 15 years at Motorola handling everything from hazardous material s...
When does crisis preparation cross the line into inauthentic communication? The recent Air India crash that claimed 270 lives sparked a fascinating controversy when their CEO's statement appeared virtually identical to American Airlines' earlier crisis statement.
Crisis communications experts Tom Mueller, Mark Mullen, and guest Destin Singleton dive into this nuanced debate with different perspectiv...
A wall of water 40 feet high. Spotty cell service. A holiday weekend. These factors converged to create one of the deadliest flooding disasters in Texas history this July 4th weekend, claiming over 100 lives along the Guadalupe River, many of them young campers at Christian summer camps with century-old traditions.
We take you inside the communications response, examining how communications flowed during this...
When disaster strikes, every word matters. The recent Air India crash that claimed 270 lives has revealed a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at crisis communications - their CEO's statement was virtually identical to one previously delivered by American Airlines following their own tragic incident.
This apparent copy-and-paste approach has ignited debate across social media, with critics creating side...
What does it take to prepare a community for disaster? In this revealing conversation with municipal crisis planning expert Alicia Johnson, we explore the critical differences between organizational readiness and community resilience—and why both are essential when disaster strikes.
Drawing from her 20+ years of experience in emergency management, Alicia shares how her journey began with witnessing the Yellow...
Leadership under pressure doesn't get much more intense than directing wildland firefighting operations when lives hang in the balance. Kelly Martin, former Chief of Fire and Aviation for Yosemite National Park, brings us into the heart-stopping moments where leadership decisions mean the difference between safety and catastrophe.
Drawing from decades on fire lines, Martin recounts responding to devastat...
When a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck Christchurch in February 2011, crisis manager Brendan Winder faced the ultimate test of leadership. The devastation was immense - 185 lives lost, 8,000 properties abandoned, and a city center that would need to be completely reimagined.
Brendan takes us behind the scenes of the emergency response, revealing the split-second decisions that saved lives and the fortuitous c...
The rise of long-form interviews has created a new challenge for executives trying to balance authenticity with strategic messaging. Communications expert Janie Jordan joins us to unpack why these seemingly relaxed conversations can actually be the most difficult media format to navigate successfully.
We also examine the rapid evolution of crisis communications through recent airline incidents, exploring how ...
The media landscape is undergoing a seismic shift, and crisis communications must evolve alongside it. Communications expert Janie Jordan joins us from Australia to explore how influencers and alternative media are reshaping political discourse and crisis management strategies.
We dive into the Trump administration's controversial addition of influencers to White House press briefings and what it means f...
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