The Value of Effective Business Leadership in Times of Uncertainty

The year 2020 will be remembered for a lot of things. And to think we are only halfway through!

Businesses have not experienced such uncertainty since the last financial collapse in 2008. Then again, there is no way of telling if things will really work out for the best.

Even as countries are now recovering after months in quarantine, companies should look at how they can prepare for future scenarios.

The pandemic itself has brought so many lessons for business owners across the United States, but it has underscored the most crucial element for navigating serious crises: business leadership.

 

Global health crises and social upheavals have a serious impact on economic performance. Ever since the World Health Organization declared CoViD-19 a pandemic in March, roughly three million Americans were displaced as strict quarantine controls were put in place. 

Moreover, small businesses in highly vulnerable sectors such as hospitality, food service, leisure, and education were on the brink of either restructuring or closing down.

Despite disruptions in consumer demand, supply chains, and the workforce, thriving during uncertain times is still possible when business owners demonstrate resilience. 

In an article for Forbes.com, leadership consultant Joyel Crawford prescribes the RISE (Reflect, Identify, Strategize, Execute) Method for developing resilience. 

According to Crawford, leaders can overcome any challenge if they are willing to step back and look at a situation critically. From there, they can develop and implement a clear strategy that considers all crucial factors.

Being resilient also means being able to come up with solutions at the heat of the moment. No matter how prepared you are, you can expect problems to arise and place your organization at a disadvantage.

Writing for the Harvard Business Review, Jonathan Breman makes three important recommendations that successful leaders should keep in mind:

 

• Identify and learn from errors. Avoid sweeping lapses under the rug. Instead, discuss them with your team on how to correct them and avoid similar scenarios moving forward.
• Allow for some measure of independence. Decision-making involving your supervisors is not a guided exercise unless the situation requires you to set the direction for the entire team.
• Keep an eye out for opportunities that follow small gains. Fortunes can change in an instant, so it’s important to keep your head in the game and avoid settling for surprise victories.

 

From these perspectives on resilience, we can somehow say that an organization’s survival is not so dependent on the number of resources it has at hand. Instead, it relies on how well a leader generates ideas and applies these in actual management.

 

Demonstrating effective business leadership does not end with making decisions and issuing memos. Successful leaders are able to perform beyond bureaucratic limits to support the workforce in times of uncertainty.

The CoViD-19 pandemic presented unique (and extremely difficult) challenges to business owners. Along with keeping their bottom lines intact, they also need to mitigate the pandemic’s impact on their workforce.

Former Carlson CEO Hubert Joly, in an article for the Harvard Business Review, says that corporate leaders have prioritized the well-being of their employees since day one. Not only did they need to comply with official advisories related to CoViD-19 response, but they also addressed the needs of their employees across three distinct phases: The Shelter-in-Place Phase, the Re-Opening Phase, and the Post-CoViD-19 Phase.

OneVirtual Solutions has been active across all three phases. Following the Philippine government’s declaration of a national emergency, OVS had convened with its employees on alternative work arrangements before local quarantine restrictions were put in place. 

Throughout the three-month lockdown, upper managers were in constant communication with their employees, providing encouragement for those living in remote areas while making necessary adjustments in preparation for the Re-Opening Phase. 

As local border restrictions began easing, OVS had already created a set of health protocols for employees who are returning for work. Aside from providing personalized face masks, it also set up a UV booth and issued strict social distancing policies. It is also observing temperature checks for employees before they enter and exit office premises. And as it contemplates about the “New Normal”, OVS is thinking ahead in terms of securing its talents and guaranteeing quality virtual assistant services.

 

The Post-CoViD-19 world would be a different place for sure, but Joly expects to see companies focusing more on their underlying purpose than on the systems that existed prior to the pandemic. That said, effective business leadership has to begin with strengthening the workforce while making the transition to the “new normal” seamless for the entire organization.

Uncertainty can only be negotiated when leaders look ahead, support their workforce, and make very important adjustments. You can then come out of any crisis stronger and better than you were before. 

 

If you need to give your business a boost, let virtual assistants from OVS handle your time-consuming tasks while you and your core team focus on recovering. Contact us today!