As we move from absolute fear of losing our business to discovering that we might make it through this daunting period, we are piling up lessons about leadership that will help us get to the other side.
We cannot use the same old models; what got us here today will not get us there tomorrow
We learn that what worked in the past is not and will not work today. For example, managing a distributed workforce, one that we can see, and we do not have systems in place to know that they are working creates much anxiety at the senior level. If this is new to us, we will be unintentionally pushing everyone back into the office.
Google just announced that they are expecting employees to work remotely until the summer of 2021. Twitter and Square have announced they are allowing employees to work remotely. The most significant surprise by Facebook is the remote workforce was just as, if not more, productive working than in the office.
Sure there are wrinkles to work out, what about compensation changes, auto allowances, personal tax deductibility for using your houses, etc.?
An essential attribute of any management team is versatility – empty your brain of the old ways of doing business and open it for new understanding and possibility thinking.
In this McKinsey article, they designate four actions the management team should practice.
Put in tomorrow’s team today
Identify and elevate the handful of tangible business skills that matter most
Treat technological acumen as you treat profit targets (This is my favorite)
Liberate teams to solve problems rapidly from a customer-back perspective
Ask yourself, am I a contemporary leader?
