To help you better understand the impact of major crises, we carried out a global study. We analysed 78 crises, with reputational implications, that took place from August 2007. They are divided into four categories according to the type of event that prompted the crisis:
- Behavioural - crises triggered by reports of the illegal or questionable conduct of the company in general or by specific employees, such as anti-competitive conduct or money laundering;
- Operational - crises that seriously impair the company's ability to function properly, for example major accidents or asset seizures;
- Corporate - crises that affect the corporate and financial wellbeing of the organisation, including liquidity issues or material litigation; and
- Informational - crises that seriously affect a company's IT infrastructure or electronic systems, such as customer data loss or theft of commercial secrets.
