There is an old saying: When the going gets tough, the tough get going. The current crisis is really going to separate the men from the boys, as we watch how leaders around the world react to the crisis. Claude Silver is setting a great example. One thing we can expect to see is women on the rise everywhere and especially in management teams. We are much more practical when it comes to life & death situations.
The current reality of the spreading coronavirus has created a very difficult challenge for companies. These are organizations with many different elements to take into account. There is of course the business element which is essentially about remaining profitable — that’s the bottom line.
Then we have the human/social element that requires special expertise to manage these affairs in the most effective and purposeful way.
The global element is one of the most notable signs of our time.
There is the internal/local organizational element of each organization.
Without getting too deep into details, these are the main elements we’re dealing with. This is a very general list simply for the sake of demonstrating the complexity that we are currently dealing with.
“We must understand that even if things are tough, we still have one another for forging a company security belt.”
Josia Nakash
Under normal circumstances there is competition as each organization is obligated to carry out its mission and reach its goals. This is a challenging task but has proven to be doable when companies are operating under normal conditions. Yet now another element has been added to the equation, perhaps the most difficult on the human psyche — and that is uncertainty.
When there is such a threatening situation like the current coronavirus outbreak, mainly characterized by uncertainty, it brings waves of uncertainty with it. Things like people being let go, working from home, and cancellation of conferences are the norm at the moment, and there may be many other repercussions to come. Enough said.
At the moment the uncertainty is weighing heavily on organizations, and it’s as if management teams need to put themselves into a holding stage. Who could imagine such a thing for any company of ten employees or more, that is used to performing to the beat of its own drum: management, goals, development, research, not to mention HR.
Suddenly this virus comes out of nowhere and forces us to adjust to an unplanned reality. This includes companies known for their exemplary management and order. There is not much to be done about it, except carry out all preventive measures announced by health ministries and other organizations responsibly.
At the same time, we must understand that even if things are tough, we still have one another for forging a company security belt. All efforts must be directed at raising the bar on collaboration, transparency, identifying with each other’s new reality, and the general heightened sense of responsibility.
Every company would be strongly advised to create a pilot program of at least one month detailing what is expected of each worker, so that every individual can identify with the issues as if they were the owners of the company.
I’ve been talking about and applying wisdom of the crowd techniques since 2010. Every day, I thought the world was about to shift to this effective way of doing things. But when I woke up the next morning — everything was exactly the same. I didn’t read about it in the newspaper, or hear people talking about things like group intelligence in the news. And right up until today I don’t see anyone getting too excited about these concepts. Yet the fact remains — a joint effort of many, translates into greater quality. Why is this so hard for us to grasp?
Applying simple wisdom of the crowd techniques is the most beneficial way to deal with the coronavirus and with any problem. This is why we’ve decided to host a weekly virtual Hacking HR TLV meeting to help the local HR community share ideas on how to deal with the current crisis. Who knows, perhaps it will turn into a regular thing.