Katrina & 9/11 - A contrast in leadership, planning, and execution

Like all Americans, I've been watching events unfold in New Orleans.  A lot of it is emotional, however I've been struck by the difference in leadership styles between New Orleans' mayor Nagin and New York's mayor Giuliani after the terrorist attack on 9/11. 

I'll try to keep this as politically neutral as possible, as one thing that really aggravates me is how political this situation has already become at the expense of simply helping those in need.

9/11 was an event unlike any experienced before in the United States.  However New York had a very detailed and well-rehearsed emergency action plan that was immediately put into place.  The mayor and his various commissioners immediately knew where to go and assembled a rapid-response "war room".  Communication issues were experienced, but they had been planned for and hence the impact was minimized.  Giuliani took immediate charge, and very visibly commanded and coordinated his team.  He also visibly reassured his city and the nation.

Katrina, by contrast, was known to be an event waiting to happen.  Many scientists had predicted this type of catastrophe for decades.  Unlike 9/11, a specific plan was created for this type of event, one part of which called for an immediate and mandatory evacuation when a category 3 hurricane was poised to hit the city.  They waited until a full category 5 threatened before issuing the evacuation order.  They knew the levees could only withstand a category 3 hurricane and the Army Corps of Engineers had tried without success to get a project approved to upgrade them to withstand a category 5. The plan also called using city and school buses to evacuate those without transportation, but this plan was never executed... leaving tens of thousands stranded and hundreds of buses submerged only blocks from the Superdome.  The governor had the authority to call out the National Guard immediately, but waited, and almost 1,000 of the New Orleans police deserted immediately.

Planning and execution.  The plan was there, but the execution wasn't.  I'm sure there will be the investigations and commissions, but one lesson to be learned is to plan, and trust your plan.

Comments

[John Bambenek]

Thanks for the links.

[Mark Graban]

It's a reminder that, as in the manufacturing world, you need both planning AND execution.

It also makes me think that, in a factory, you need leadership... calm under pressure, rather than panic. That kind of leadership is rare.

[Bill waddell]

Very thoughtful observations, as usual, Kevin. I was struck by how poorly the public sector understands the concept of 'process'. In the wake of problems they seem focused on finding individuals to blame when much of what went wrong was purely the result of inadequate processes.

One difference between 9/11 and Katrina was that 9/11, while catastrophic, was localized to several blocks within NYC. Katrina was far broader. The systems put in place since 9/11 have largely focused on training first responders, such as police, fire, emt's and so forth, then mobilizing state and federal help to quickly support their calls for assistance.

In a 9/11 scenarion that makes sense. With Katrina,however, the first responders were completely overwhelmed. Many are dead, some ran, all were completely out of communication. There was no one and no way to send the S.O.S. to the Feds. When all of the first responders are taken out of the game, the entire process breaks down. The Governor, FEMA, the military, and Homeland Security were all in the dark for 24-48 hours.

There were certainly failures of leadership and execution - after the waters recede, the mayor of New Orleans has some 'splainin' to do. But for the most part, the discussion should center on the incapability of the processes, rather than individual blame.

[Bill Waddell]

On the subject of Katrina, the following will take you to a NAM (National Association of Manufacturers) web page that lists the donations and contributions made by hundreds of manufacturing companies:

http://www.nam.org/s_nam/doc1.asp?CID=202372&DID=235077

It makes us proud to be in manufacturing, doesn't it?

[Bud Bilanich]

Excellent thoughts Kevin. It's one thing to have a plan, it's a whole other thing to execute it.
When it comes to manufacturing, nicely bound plans that sit on Plant Managers' office shelves don't do much good. Plans need to be working documents -- something against which you measure your progress, and something which you need to be willing to change as circumstances around you change.