The business world won’t be bouncing back from COVID-19. Instead, some businesses will “bounce forward” with the help of three key enablers. That’s the premise we cover in this LinkedIn LIVE discussion on how to achieve business resilience in an Age of Uncertainty.
In this wide-ranging conversation, Celerity CEO Ken Quaglio and I explore the foundations of corporate values that allow organizations to bounce forward to a brighter future. We discuss diversity of thought, innovation, and organizational resilience. We also talk about the balance of assessing risk versus the optimism necessary to build strong organizations that serve their employees, customers, and stakeholders.
This discussion is the first in a series of LinkedIn LIVE events that Celerity will host on business resilience in the weeks and months to come. You can watch a few episode highlights and the complete discussion below. I invite you to join the conversation by connecting with me on LinkedIn and by following Celerity’s company page to stay informed about upcoming events in the series.
Episode highlight
Driving impact over ego: An ethos for driving business forward
Organizational values form the foundation for building the next normal. For us, business resilience is the idea that businesses should not seek to return to where they were pre-pandemic, but that smart businesses can use uncertainty as a catalyst for change that propels them forward into the next normal. Volatility and unknowns create opportunities for radical innovation because existing business models and processes are tested and proven valuable—or worthless—depending on customer behavior. This presents a remarkable opportunity to drive insight from data, focus on feedback mechanisms from customers, and refine operational processes for efficiency.
Episode highlight
Liminal states as a medium for innovation
Edge states present an opportunity for growth. The boundaries where disciplines and environments overlap are fertile ground to cultivate diversity of thought. We currently are experiencing cultural overlap in three realms: economic, societal, organizational. In response, 50% of B2B businesses are waiting for a return to normal.1 Instead of waiting, you can change your business and capitalize on the diversity of thought that springs from economic, societal, and organizational sea change. The organizations that thrive in the age of uncertainty will be those who lean into the discomfort of change and who embrace diverse perspectives with empathy and curiosity.
Episode highlight
What makes a resilient organization?
Companies are most resilient when they embrace the volatility, uncertainty, chaos, and ambiguity (VUCA) that is present around us today. Those who bounce forward will be agile organizations who ask hard questions about efficacy and focus on customer feedback. There are three keys to a resilient organization:
- Knowing your customers and accepting the truth presented in data, rather than assumptions.
- Agile and responsive operating models that allow organizations to adjust quickly to stakeholder feedback.
- An organizational mindset to challenge assumptions, ask hard questions and be willing to change.
Watch the full episode
To hear our discussion on each of the above topics and more, you can watch a replay of the full LinkedIn LIVE event below.
Are you ready for the next normal?
Interested in learning more about how to build business resilience to thrive in the next normal? Reach out today. And make sure to find out about future episodes in the series by following Celerity on LinkedIn.
1 McKinsey, A post–COVID-19 commercial-recovery strategy for B2B companies