Governments must urgently rethink crisis response, new study warns

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Governments must urgently rethink crisis response, new study warns

Governments worldwide are not equipped to handle large-scale global crises and must radically change their approach before the next catastrophe strikes, a new study published by Trinity Business School revealed.

The research, published in the Journal of Management Inquiry, which was conducted by a group of international experts: Sarah Kovoor-Misra, Shanthi Gopalakrishnan, Ana Perez-Luno, Sreevas Sahasranamam and Barbara Larraneta. It concluded that traditional crisis response strategies are too slow, rigid, and centralised to cope with modern global threats like pandemics, climate disasters, and terrorism. The study highlights the urgent need for Crisis Management Ecosystems (CMEs)—broad networks of governments, businesses, NGOs, and communities that work together in real-time to contain crises.

Drawing on case studies from the United States, Spain, and India, the study exposes major weaknesses in government responses to COVID-19, whilst also drawing on positive actions governments took that should be incorporated into future CMEs.

The study explains while some Asian countries had existing crisis management structures due to past pandemics, the U.S. had to rapidly develop a Crisis Management Ecosystem (CME) in response to COVID-19. This reactive approach contributed to delays and inefficiencies in its pandemic response.

Spain’s success in vaccinating 95% of its population in just over a year was due to its multi-level governance, strong public trust, and international partnerships, attributes modern CMEs need. “The Spanish CME was structured as an open system with actors at multiple levels/subsystems. These actors were diverse, and both formally and informally connected," says Trinity Business School Professor Ana Perez-Luno.

India’s response was boosted by its pharmaceutical and tech industries, but resource shortages and uneven regional coordination created major challenges.

The findings are clear: governments must act now to build crisis management ecosystems before the next disaster hits. Without urgent reform, the world risks repeating the same mistakes that led to unnecessary delays, deaths, and economic losses during COVID-19.

ENDS

For more information about the report on the findings contact Adam Kelly-Moore at BlueSky Education at adam@bluesky-pr.com