How CEOs Embrace Opportunities During COVID-19  

In a matter of months, COVID-19 has changed virtually every aspect of our day-to-day lives. From personal relationships to professional pursuits, little looks like it did at the outset of 2020. The business world, in particular, has been shaken up by social distancing efforts intended to limit the disease’s spread.

Business leaders are understandably upset about the economic implications of the pandemic-sparked quarantine, but not all view the situation in a negative light. Many forward-thinking CEOs regard this as the perfect opportunity to re-evaluate long-held standards and practices to determine where greater productivity and innovation can take hold.

Opportunity abounds even in the midst of this economic turmoil. All that is required is the willingness to make the most of these opportunities as they arise. In many cases, this simply involves taking action on previous issues that, after being ignored for years, must be addressed promptly to ensure future success.

Ferrell Fuller from Houston IT Services company, ChaceTech offers a few of the most important pivots worth considering while making the transition towards a post-coronavirus economy:

Prioritize Employee Input

Employee safety is of utmost importance, but CEOs don’t always understand the full extent of the risks and challenges that today’s workers face. Hence, the need for strong lines of communication.

Ideally, employees at all levels and across a variety of departments will enjoy influence among stakeholders. Beyond delivering increased safety and workplace morale, employee input could lead to the innovations most capable of granting organizations a much-needed edge in a competitive market.

Observe and Respond to Consumer Changes

While certain consumer trends hold steady over the course of several decades, many changes with lightning speed as soon as new circumstances arise. This has certainly proven the case in an age of COVID-19.

The pandemic has dramatically changed how customers shop. The explosion in demand for toilet paper offers a humorous example, but it represents only the beginning of what could prove a huge shift in the consumer mindset. Understanding these changes will prove challenging, so it’s important to implement systems for gathering consumer insights — and acting on relevant findings.

Apply New Technologies to Increase Agility

With a significant share of employees now working on a remote basis, it’s clear that videoconferencing and other tools can make a huge difference for an evolving workforce. When integrated strategically, a variety of exciting solutions can make organizations far more nimble than previously imagined. Other options worth exploring include machine learning and artificial intelligence, which can be applied to quickly shifting supply chains.

Give Back to the Community

At the moment, consumers identify most with brands they perceive as compassionate. They want organizations to acknowledge their fears. More importantly, consumers hope that the businesses they frequent will strive to make a positive difference whenever possible.

Social responsibility can take many forms, but consumers are most enamored of businesses that purposefully integrate charitable practices into the very fabric of their existence. This emphasis on social responsibility was clear long before the pandemic took over, as evidenced by a 2019 report from the research firm Clutch. In this survey, respondents highlighted social responsibility as more influential than price, with 75 percent adding that they’re more inclined to shop when businesses support issues they find compelling.

There’s no denying the economic devastation wrought by COVID-19, which has brought business to a standstill in many industries. That being said, these difficult times do not call for complacency or hopelessness at the corporate level. Instead, look to today’s new challenges as an opportunity to better serve consumers in a time of need — and to position for success when the pandemic and its economic fallout finally come to an end.