Incident Response Preparedness: Executive Management in a Crisis

Incident Response

Sep 8

Part 5

One of the most overlooked, but absolutely critical, components of incident response is not technology, detection, or even containment. It’s executive management.

And by “management,” I don’t mean executives in management roles. I mean the management of executives themselves. Hear me out, this is NOT a jab at executives.

I’ve seen it time and again: when a real incident happens, executives do not react the way security teams do. Phil Venables describes this as the outrage factor, an unpredictable human variable that amplifies the impact of an incident. In practice, this means you should expect to encounter incredulity, anger, flippancy, micromanagement, denial, or all of the above. The feeling of ownership that an executive has in the company is hard to empathize with, and these emotions are understandable. The larger the organization, the wider the variability and complexity of emotions at the executive level.

If you haven’t prepared for this dynamic, your IR program is incomplete. During an incident, you will rely on executive leadership to make timely, high-stakes decisions. That requires trust, preparation, and clear structures. Ahead of time, organizations should plan around four key areas:

1. Roles and Responsibilities

This isn’t just a document, it’s an understanding. Executives must know their role and trust others to fulfill theirs.

The CEO should not be peering over the SOC analyst’s shoulder during a ransomware outbreak. She needs timely, accurate updates, not command-line details. But she will want to and these expectations need to be rehearsed and reminded.
Executives shouldn’t be scrambling to craft statements for the media; communications teams should already have templated, legally reviewed messages ready.
The CEO shouldn’t wonder if the SEC will investigate for disclosure failures. A pre-established process for determining materiality must already be in place, with clear ownership.

Trust in roles keeps chaos from spiraling. Only repeated practice and transparency build that trust. This happens through regular full scale table-tops, and not just with the IR team, they must include the executive teams. It’s even advisable to perform scenario table tops with only the executive teams and even the board. Without them, the organization just won’t be ready.

2. Decision-Making Delegation

During an incident, seconds matter. The CISO or incident manager must know what can be decided unilaterally and what requires escalation. And if escalation is needed, executives must be prepared to decide quickly.

Consider the questions that could arise in the first hour of a major incident:

Do we shut down the main customer-facing application?
Do we cut off a supplier, knowing it will delay every shipment?
Do we disable internet access company-wide?
Do we terminate a vendor relationship immediately, even if it stalls operations?

These are not the moments to start a debate. They are the moments to execute decisions that were preconceived, preplanned, and delegated well before the crisis.

3. Communication Forums and Frequency

When systems are disrupted, communication channels often degrade quickly. Email and Teams may not be available, privileged, or safe to use. Out-of-band communications (chat, video, and voice need to be considered here) need to be ready. A good security leader recognizes the necessity of keeping leadership informed. Be proactive about it.

Establish:

Who gets updated (by severity tier).
How often they’re updated (cadence matters).
In what format (verbal briefings often work better than written notes under pressure).

Executives must also understand that messaging must be controlled. In a crisis, one employee posting on social media can derail a carefully timed and legally vetted public response. Control the narrative before it controls you.

4. Attorney-Client Privilege

Attorney-client privilege is not a magic word you add to an email subject line. It is a carefully defined legal protection. Every executive, manager, and responder who may be involved in incident communications needs education on:

Why privilege matters.
What is and isn’t privileged.
How privilege is preserved.
How legal counsel must be engaged from the outset.

Failing here can compromise both your legal defense and regulatory posture.

Final Thought

Incident response is inherently chaotic. Technology and playbooks are not enough. The human element, especially at the executive level, can either amplify the chaos or contain it. Preparing executives to act decisively, communicate effectively, and trust their teams is not optional.

If you practice these four elements, you won’t eliminate the chaos. But you will prevent executive reactions from becoming the incident within the incident. CipherNorth can help you build these programs, these capabilities, and train your teams on these areas. If this is something you’d like to discuss schedule a free consultation.

If you’re looking for a template to get started, we have an Incident Response Plan, Incident Report Template and a 1:1 Consultation to review your program with you available: Production Ready Templates — CipherNorth | Cybersecurity Consulting

Don’t just take our word for it either

When an organization suffers a data breach or other cybersecurity incident, it is not judged by whether it had a low number of vulnerabilities or if it spent enough on security tools. The question is whether it did the right thing based on its budget, size and needs. 4 Metrics That Prove Your Cybersecurity Program Works
Fortunately, there are proven ways to reduce your financial risk from cyberattacks significantly. This article focuses on one of them: a solid incident response plan (IRP). Indeed, the 2023 IBM Cost of a Data Breach report found that incident response planning and testing reduced the average cost of a data breach by a hefty $1.49 million. For many organizations, that savings could mean the difference between survival and bankruptcy—making an IRP a wise investment. How A Security Incident Response Plan Saves Money In Case Of A Cyberattack
Quantifying the costs of an incident in advance is an inexact art greatly aided by tabletop exercises. “The best way in my mind to flush all of this out is by going through a regular incident response tabletop exercise,” Gary Brickhouse, CISO at GuidePoint Security, tells CSO. “People know their roles so that when it does happen, you’re prepared.”
Not only does the incident response plan lead to better cost estimates, but it will also lead to a quicker return of network functions. “Practice, practice, practice,” Draeger says. “Absolutely practice every step of your incident response plan and whatever your critical processes are. How A Security Incident Response Plan Saves Money In Case Of A Cyberattack

Incident Response

Andrew Alaniz