Withstanding and recovering quickly from this perilous moment in world history will require enterprises to become resilient in the midst of the pandemic crisis. The action necessary must not be viewed as optional and leaders must be resolute in urgently moving forward. Establishing a Covid-19 Resiliency Plan now will allow businesses to move to a phase of safely and strategically reemerging. As parents look for answers about sending their children to school and we collectively wait for a national plan for survival, businesses must create their own blueprint.
Historically, the answers to non-medical problems have always come from forward thinking companies with missions and values that embrace ingenuity and innovation. Revenue decreases across all business sectors have already been realized. Continued near term loss is undeniable. With no clear facts on how to safely and fully reopen with onsite workers, coupled with a looming recession, many business leaders are exhibiting decision-making paralysis. Enterprises that are still standing have been able to absorb the meteoric shock of Covid-19. In order to continue surviving and not be ravaged in this battle, be resolved to producing a strategically sound Covid-19 Resiliency Plan that contains R6 practices and operational processes.
Successful enterprises have process improvement, in fact continuous improvement models, as part of their organizational DNA. In order to thrive and dominate, corporations should review all business systems, risk analyses, and other critical assessments through the lenses of customers, suppliers, government municipalities, competitors, boards of directors, and employees at key levels. This same critical analysis is needed now in order to be resilient and emerge with strength on the other side of Covid-19.
Even those who wear the mantles of industry disrupters and innovation leaders will have to develop new business models. If your plan is to succeed, then transformational thinking that harnesses the collective knowledge capital of the organization, is ground zero. As you mobilize your Covid-19 resilience response team, they must be empowered for decision-making around our R6 resilient plan process steps.
• Reassess – Identify immediate vulnerabilities and gaps across the enterprise. Make early and swift adjustments based on the original assessments. Stay mindful that a continuous improvement model will demand ongoing review, results assessments and changes implemented. This includes immediate review of cash flow and maintaining a heightened state of examination. Realistic revenue projections and a relentless evaluating of expenditures is a baseline requirement.
Takeaways: Results, Realistic & Relentless
• Recover – In order to regain footing and realize recovery now that is sustainable through a recession, a refocused vision is required that can be embraced by board members, employees, and partners. The recovery vision is realized in the resiliency action plan you put in place. You will recall the dot com crash in 2000 took 8 years for the S&P to recover. Our most recent crash in 2008 took 6 years for prices to recover. Planning must include strategies for immediate and long-term management of the business. This is going to require new and lean ideas and processes. The team managing the plan and the company’s leadership, must remain flexible to recent facts. Stay in real-time mode, on-deck and ready to make plan adjustments and business decisions based on the crisis de jour. Establish review periods in the plan at regular intervals. Refocus and regroup as required, executing the plan while always keeping an eye on the long game.
Takeaways: Refocus, Remedial & Real-time
• Restructure – Here is where reorganizing, including rethinking your business model is activated. Are changes required on how you deliver services? Has the pandemic created new customers for you to target? Everything is on the table for consideration. For example, does your current supply model still work? Should you consider establishing strategic industry partnerships to acquire needed supplies? Without question, restructuring operations are going to be required to quickly respond to unpredictability.
Takeaways: Rethinking & Reorganizing
• Reinvent – The immediate response to Covid-19 was drastic and instantaneous. A remote work force was a seamless transition for some, a little more challenging for others. Throughout the past 6 months, business began delivering services in ways they never considered. During the quarantine, enterprising businesses of all sizes reimagined themselves and added brand new services. Even the entertainment industry has created all kinds of new virtual programming. Where do you start? By simply reviewing all the personal and business necessities and the pain points brought on by the pandemic. Are there new products or services that your company can deliver to address people or industry needs, wants, desires or areas of pain? Is reinventing your business cost-efficient in comparison to profitability? How expeditiously can reinvention occur while moving to your Covid-19 next phase state of operations? Is a remote operations work force a permanent reinvention of your organization? If so, then optimize remote working at your company and keep reinventing how you deliver the best services and work experience virtually.
Takeaways: Review & Reimagine
• Recommit – Be unwavering in recommitting to the drive and desire, along with the tenacity and intestinal fortitude that originally launched, sustained and grew the business. Reinvest in training employees and provide ongoing awareness training and education on both Covid-19 safety and cybersecurity safety, while at home and at work. Reinforce belief and importance of the Company’s core values.
Takeaways: Recommitting & Reinvest
• Reopen – Review the science and make decisions on fully reopening the company that are based on factual data. Require that all employees, temporary contractors, vendors, and visitors adhere to your Covid-19 safety protocols. These practices are in your plan as mandatory operating procedures required for returning the business to partial or full operation.
Takeaways: Review & Require
As the R6 model is implemented, familiar process improvement questions must simultaneously be asked alongside new, emerging questions. What should be the focus of our economic development strategy? How must municipalities transform opportunity zones to save and grow local economies? Will your corporation’s alternative workplace strategies quickly reprioritize funds for technology to support remote working? Are your thought leaders focused on rewarding productivity of remote workers and teams? How can rewards be inclusive to give recognition for the consistency and sacrifices of critical, onsite employees. How do you preserve and even strengthen your corporate culture with units working remotely? What is the safe workplace design for your organization that will support collaboration while keeping safety as priority one?
All queries lead to the one major question: How do I think about my business differently? Just don’t fall into the trap of returning to “business as usual” or even thinking that “the new normal” should be your mindset. In actuality normal is now constantly changing, so “your new reality” or even “today’s reality” is a more realistic headspace to operate under.