Success

What are the main attributes required by business leaders for post COVID-19 economic recovery?

COVID-19 has caused the deaths of thousands of people, impacted the health of many, heightened anxiety and disrupted millions of people’s lives. Already the economic damage is significant and far-reaching and the uncertainty ahead is still the reality of thousands of businesses.

Many businesses face an uncertain future. The challenges and risks ahead mean that business leaders are rightly concerned about how their companies and employees will be affected and what they should do next, i.e. what are the unknown unknowns.

What is the “new normal”? The business landscape has changed in just a few short months. For most companies, large or small, there will not be going back to the 2019 status quo.

But regardless of the extent of the virus’s impact on an organisation and aside from the practical measures that need to be put in place, there are number of fundamental qualities that will distinguish successful CEOs and management teams as they guide their enterprises post COVID-19.

Those fundamental qualities are: Resilience, trust, mindset agility and emotional intelligence.

Resilience, trust and mindset agility are all products of emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is the catalyst for recovery and productivity and is the key to leading a business forward successfully when we can finally begin recovering from this pandemic.

Management teams that can optimise emotional intelligence will adapt and be agile enough to embrace the new normal with a positive outlook and motivated attitude.

Organisations used to describe agile change as “fixing the plane while it flies,” the COVID-19 pandemic has rewritten the rules of upheaval. Those leading any organisation are not fixing the plane in mid-air, they are building it in mid-air!

We know that things are going to have to change following this pandemic. For some businesses, the way the worked in the past are likely to have changed forever. But this does not mean that success is not achievable. With the right attitude and mindset, businesses can face these changes head on and with the confidence they need to adapt.

What are some of the areas of change witnessed by those regions that have come out of lockdown and the reawakening of their businesses:

Changes in the social contract.

Changes in the roles and rules of institutions.

New business models.

Trust & resilience

Unpredictability in financing sources and uses and in capital markets.
Permanence of customer behaviour changes.

Expectations for physical, emotional, financial, and digital safety.
Trust of and wellbeing of employees, stakeholders, customers, suppliers.

Emotionally intelligent leaders will inspire their teams to navigate through these significant post COVID-related uncertainties with confidence and trust.

If your business wants to navigate successfully the uncertainty of the “new normal’ and how to move forward positively, get in touch for a chat.

As experts in emotional intelligence and resilience we would be more than happy to help your leadership teams to develop and to increase their emotional intelligence, etc. in order to find a way forward can be achievable and successful.

Source: Deloitte, LSE – Business review, McKinsey & Co,TES,HBR