How will you chart your path to the future? Start with challenging your mindset. Are you planning for a straight road ahead as we emerge from 2020, or are you planning for an environment of constant pressure and change? I’d recommend planning on the latter and actively and intentionally build resilience into your personal and professional endeavors.
Just like you have in your personal life, the uncertainty and chaos associated with 2020 have likely caused some level of concern for your business. Recovering from COVID will demand more than dusting off the plans made in 2019. Future shocks to the industry are already forming.
Technologies, workplace structure, communication, and so many things that were already rapidly changing were deployed virtually over-night because of the pandemic. Organizations had to adapt and will need to continue to adapt. Business needs faster, data-driven decision making, adaptable strategies, and execution plans. Flexible strategies and execution plans will affect almost every employee as companies assess their future, examine their organizational structures and strategic plans.
For the business leader, adapting the organization to a resilient posture requires more than just an abundance of cash on hand; organizations will need to leverage an ecosystem of partners and suppliers who can refocus their efforts with the agility enabled by Industry 4.0 technologies. Workforces will need to be adept at managing change at a far more rapid pace. Accessible, real-time data will need to drive more and more decisions to enable the resiliency that allows businesses to bounce back from adversity.
COVID won’t be the last shock we experience. You need to make a new plan. That plan must ensure the resilient balance that allows you or your business to withstand future adversity. Do you have a resiliency plan?
Susan Roberts, CEO, The 1182 Group
Photo Credit: Carol M. Highsmith