Were Swedbank able to avoid these two traps? Maybe, however it is not entirely clear that it had been for their benefit.

One option would have been to wait until the prosecutor confirmed the notification before firing Wolf. This would mean that they had let their CEO, suspected for criminal actions remain on board, a strategy which would have been hrad to explain for owners and customers. Not only that, it is also a strategy which means that Swedbank wouldn’t have dealt with the crises promptly, thus would have crossed one of the golden rules of crisis management.

Another option would have been to say that they had reasons which, at the time, they could not comment upon. Several experts mean that is what should have been done, as another of the golden rules is to always state the truth in a crises situation This might have been a wise strategy. However, we can just imagine the massive tsunami of speculations that would have been released in media and the media storm which followed in reality would seem small in comparison to letting the speculations run free.

From the outside, we can only see the top of the iceberg in this case. However, when you have been on the inside several of times you know that there is often more to be said.

Swedbank’s case shows that we are sometimes forced to choose between several bad options, often without having access to all facts. Regardless of the situation you should always strive to:

• Show empathy. If there is a victim, always start with an apology – even if it is not your fault. And yes, there is always a victim – otherwise there is no crisis.
• Take responsibility if you have done wrong. If you have not done wrong, explain what your responsibility is and what is beyond your control.
• Take action and explain how to solve the crisis. If you do not know what happened or how to fix the damage, explain how to get clarity of the situation. But most importantly you must act from the first moment.
• Make the crisis as short as possible. If possible, develop all the facts and clarify all the question marks before pushing the button. If the crisis comes to you, make quick decisions and try to close the case as fast as possible. You do not want the crisis to be a serial. Once a story becomes a serial it requires nothing but a spark to flare up again, again and again.
• Tell the truth. Sometimes you do not have to tell the whole truth, but do not lie or give an image that is perceived misleading. The truth might come out later.
• Remember to remain trustworthy, the most important thing is how you handle the crisis once it has occurred. The world often forgives you, although a leader that does not show seriousness most presumably lose their job. Even if it does not seem fair, that is the reality.