There are three elements are common to most definitions of crisis:
A threat to the organization
The element of surprise
A short decision time.
Crises such as fire, damage to stock, illness of key staff or IT system failure can make it difficult or even impossible to carry out an organisation's normal day-to-day activities. The crisis may see the organisation losing important customers and at its worst, even forced to cease trading.
Crisis management often includes a strong focus on public relations to recover any damage to the organisation's public image and to assure stakeholders that recovery is underway. Unplanned events can have a devastating effect on small businesses.