What emerged from our discussion is that leaders need to aim higher than simply withstanding or
responding to these seemingly never-ending shocks. Although playing
defense may be necessary, it’s not sufficient on its own. Leaders must
instead ensure their organizations can thrive in this new environment. Here are six strategies for accomplishing this.
Take care of yourself
Crises
are stressful and exact an emotional toll. Since the Covid-19 pandemic,
organizations have become more attuned to the importance of their
employees’ mental health and well-being.
The
CEOs we spoke to recognize that to build organizational resilience, it
is essential to create a caring and supportive environment for their
employees. Yet, just as we’re instructed to put on our own oxygen masks
first, leaders must first take care of themselves before they can care
for others. Even though crises require leaders to show confidence, they
should not try to be superheroes, but recognize
they too are only human.
Early
in his career, Nike’s CEO John Donahoe received important advice:
Although elite athletes rely on a team that focuses on their wellness to
excel, business leaders often see getting help as a sign of weakness.
Donahoe now
starts his day
with exercise, meditation, and a gratitude practice. He actively seeks
out others who can provide him useful counsel. He sees caring for his
physical, mental, and spiritual health as part of his job, and
encourages everyone around him to do the same.
Lead with values
Fundamental
values and principles remind us of what’s important so that we don’t
get lost in the fog of uncertainty. In a world characterized by
increasing volatility, our CEOs emphasize the importance of anchoring
leadership around core values and principles, which remain stable even
when the environment isn’t.
That’s
how it went at Best Buy, where one of us (Hubert) was previously CEO.
Without a handbook for the fast-evolving crisis of the pandemic, current
CEO Corie Barry called an emergency meeting with her leadership team
and reached out to Best Buy’s store general managers to decide
collectively how to handle the unprecedented situation. Leading with her
collaborative style and rallying her team around the values they
shared, she established three principles that shaped the way forward: 1)
Make the safety of employees and customers Best Buy’s highest priority;
2) avoid layoffs as long as possible, even if stores were forced to
close; and 3) make decisions based on long-term value creation.
Having
these values-based ground rules enabled Best Buy not only to navigate
the crisis, which entailed shutting down over 1,000 stores and
furloughing over 50,000 employees, but to retain employee goodwill and
thrive as the market rebounded.
Seeing opportunities
Even
the most challenging situations offer opportunities. To discover the
best ones, our CEOs recommend leaving the home office and going to the
marketplace to listen to customers and frontline employees, understand
their needs, and determine how to meet them.
During
the worst of the Covid pandemic, guaranteeing the safety of employees
and customers by offering a sanitized environment was essential for
restaurants and hotels. Amid large-scale closures of facilities that
threatened their business, Ecolab’s CEO Christophe Beck shared with us
how he and his team worked closely with key customers like McDonald’s to
develop disinfection protocols and certifications, which helped
reignite these industries. The skills Ecolab learned from partnering
creatively with their customers are now being leveraged to explore how
they can reduce their water usage and advance their sustainability
goals, opening up yet another growth opportunity.
Rethink your higher purpose
External
shocks can sometimes challenge the existence of a business or even an
entire industry. As the effects of climate change become more widespread
and severe, they are pushing risk-pooling mechanisms to their limits
and forcing insurers to think about alternatives.
Concerns
about such uncertainties prompted global insurance company AXA, where
Thomas is CEO, to re-found its business around its customers’
fundamental need to protect against risks. It reframed the role of
insurance from being a
payor of claims to a
partner in helping customers mitigate risks.
This has led
AXA to expand its catalog of products, including the launch of AXA
Climate, a new unit offering innovative satellite and parametric
insurance and adaptation advice to help businesses, farmers, and
communities build their resilience. This shift also caused the company
to introduce a portfolio of health-related services beyond health
insurance.
These CEOs found that challenging the company’s raison d’être
and rethinking its purpose to address fundamental human needs enables
them to focus the company on a long-term, value-creating agenda beyond
the crisis-du-jour.
Redefine winning
The CEOs advocated for redefining what it means to “win” in this new environment.
With
its mission to “Alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life,”
Medtronic (where Bill was formerly the CEO) is well known for its
purpose-driven culture. For example, Medtronic’s key metric tracks how
many seconds transpire until another person’s health is restored by a
Medtronic product. Over 30 years, that number has fallen from 100
seconds to two
per second today. It’s this purpose-driven metric, and not shareholder value, that
inspires employees to meet human needs with innovative, high-quality products.
Create energy
The
current environment is so draining for employees that the leader’s
primary responsibility is to become a chief energizing officer.
With
his calm, positive, and yet demanding demeanor, CEO Alan Mulally was
famous for lifting everyone’s energy when he turned Ford around. Despite
a desperate situation (Ford was facing a $17 billion loss), he
developed an inspiring vision for the company, crafted a winning
strategy, and created an operating environment where it was safe to
speak about performance issues and easy to get help from others. This
was in sharp contrast to Ford’s previous culture, where reporting
problems without an immediate fix was seen as a sign of weakness. By
reenergizing its culture,
Mulally unlocked Ford’s potential.
Similarly,
Satya Nadella realized Microsoft needed a cultural transformation
following years of stagnation. He introduced a growth mindset and
empathy for customers and fellow employees by encouraging employees to
experiment, learn from failures, and collaborate across boundaries. He
became a role model by admitting his own mistakes, asking for help, and
praising the achievements of others, leading to an open, energizing
environment where innovation could flourish. This was in stark contrast
to the culture he inherited, which has often been described as toxic and
focused on internal rivalry.
. . .
To
thrive in this chaotic new world, organizations need leaders with inner
strength, character, and a moral compass. By continually adapting and
learning, they’ll enable their organizations to navigate these
ever-turbulent waters.
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