Crisis Management Strategies of Small Businesses in the Food Industry in Iran During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic caused an unprecedented shock to many industries in the world, including food industries. They were forced to make fundamental changes in their business strategies to maintain their survival and competitive position. The identification of these crisis management strategies can be useful for making efficient and effective decisions in the future. Therefore, this study aims to identify crisis management strategies of small businesses active in the food industry in Iran during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is a descriptive-survey mixed-method study. In the qualitative phase, participants were 15 experts who underwent interviews continued until reaching theoretical data saturation. They were selected using a snowball sampling method. In the quantitative phase, participants were 314 supervisors and senior and middle-level managers of organizations active in food production in Iran, who were selected using a cluster random sampling method. They completed a researcher-made questionnaire.

Ten crisis management strategies in three general categories of crisis strategies, survival strategies, and resilience strategies were identified. Crisis strategies included “reduction”, “integration and communication”, and “development and endurance”. Survival strategies were “chasing after competitors”, “infrastructure preparation”, and “strategic planning and orientation”. Resilience strategies were “work-related”, “financial”, “marketing”, and “human resource empowerment” strategies. 

The small businesses active in the food industry in Iran used different crisis, survival and resilience strategies during the pandemic to maintain their activities. Attention to these effective strategies is recommended to properly cope with future crises in the food industry.