As president of Washington & Jefferson College, Dr. Knapp's expertise in crisis management proved invaluable in leading the institution successfully through the global COVID-19 pandemic. When the state forced closure of all colleges and universities, he formed a crisis response team, established a set of guiding priorities, and led the formation of a plan that ensured continuity through innovative modes of remote instruction and student support. Thanks to careful oversight, the college maintained full employment of all faculty and staff and adhered to protocols that allowed classes and operations to continue uninterrupted throughout the crisis.

When a criminal assault on a patient occurred at a major, regional medical center, Dr. Knapp worked with the administrative staff to implement a plan to allay fears and restore confidence in the security of the facility. A proactive approach involved timely and effective communication with patients and their families; medical staff and other employees; public officials; and the news media.

When traces of a hazardous substance were found in a municipal water supply near a manufacturing plant of a Fortune 500 company, Dr. Knapp worked with senior leadership and legal counsel to oversee communication of an independent engineering firm's site investigation and the company's voluntary corrective action. He also prepared executives for public hearings and helped the company maintain an ongoing, productive dialog with the community as the issue was remediated.

Two top-25 research universities engaged Dr. Knapp to develop strategies to clarify and strengthen their institutional identities as expressed in words and images. In both projects, he led teams to conduct research with internal and external constituencies, leading to recommendations for thematic and graphic consistency, including institution-wide policies governing key elements of communication.

For the dairy industry, Dr. Knapp oversaw a campaign to combat misinformation about milk products and nutrition. Working with dairy organizations in 17 states, the strategy relied on scientific research and experts to correct misleading rumors. More than 1,200 broadcast interviews were among the methods used to convey the facts to an audience of 40 million.

Since 2004, Dr. Knapp has convened and led The Oxford Conclave on Global Higher Education, a small, invitation-only retreat for presidents of colleges and universities held annually at the University of Oxford in the UK. Nearly 90 institutions have been represented  in this program designed to foster honest dialog about current issues. He replicated the program in South Africa with a retreat called the Stellenbosch Seboka on Higher Education and Ethical Leadership.

Dr. Knapp has conducted training in crisis communication for leaders in many professions and industries. For several manufacturing companies, this has included scenario-based training for plant managers, using simulated crisis situations to practice real-time decision making. Clients for such training have ranged from a global aggregates manufacturer to a Fortune 50 forest products company. 

A newly elected governor in the state of Georgia asked Dr. Knapp to help develop a code of ethics for all gubernatorial appointees. The code was announced as the governor's Executive Order No. 1 and Dr. Knapp subsequently held training sessions with the directors and governing boards of 31 state agencies to familiarize them with the new policy and discuss ethical challenges that could arise in their respective agencies.

Since 2008, Dr. Knapp has been invited frequently to speak to audiences in the United States and abroad on the topic, "How Democracies Fail." From the Council of Europe to Egypt to Equador, he has addressed the challenges of sustaining democratic institutions and the responsibilities of educators and citizens for doing so. As president of Washington & Jefferson College, he introduced and directed an annual Symposium on Democracy, a full day of focused programming in lieu of regular classes. From 2017 to 2024, the symposium featured student-led sessions and discussions with internationally known leaders, activists, journalists, and scholars.

After a decade-long decline in the percentage of collegiate engineering students taking the Fundamentals of Engineering exam, the first step toward Professional Engineer (PE) licensure, Dr. Knapp was engaged by the national organization of state licensing boards to develop a strategy based on research with students and faculty. The result was an award-winning educational program on 300 college and university campuses that helped reverse the trend.

As many corporations in the early 2000s began hiring chief diversity officers to establish initiatives aimed at ensuring workplace inclusivity, John Knapp formed the Atlanta Diversity Management Network, a roundtable of 43 major employers whose executives met regularly to share best practices. Supported by a corporate grant to The Southern Institute for Business & Professional Ethics, he convened and chaired the group's meetings for five years. His leadership included advising several corporate management teams, leading a New York program for the Conference Board on religious diversity in the workplace, and giving the keynote address at the U.S. Federal Reserve System's national diversity conference.