Fuad Sharuji: Why crisis management is important for organisations

"Crisis happens when you least expect it, and that is why it is called a crisis."

The truism uttered above was made by Malaysia Airlines Post Accident Office head and MH370/MH17 crisis director, Mohd Fuad Sharuji, who believes that the image of a particular organisation might be jeopardised if its procedures for managing crises is substandard.

As such, the dissemination of information during tragedies or disasters must be conducted with care an unabashed understanding of the situation, he said.

"We had to be very careful with the information provided to the media because we did not want to overwrite any information that might have been released by the authorities," he said with a sense of caution.

"Even so, we were heavily criticised because of conflicting information relayed between ourselves and other entities," Mohd Fuad added.

He made the comment during the third session (MH370 & MH17 - Crises Unforeseen, Unprecedented) of the Crisis Management Forum 2017 held at the Seri Pacific Hotel on Thursday.

Other speakers included Astro Awani CEO and Editor-In-Chief, Suhaimi Sulaiman, Star Radio Group former COO, Kudsia Kahar, and Malaysian race car driver, Alex Yoong.