Leadership in Times of Crisis
From Chelsey Keith P. Ignacio, writing for Business World…
The true test of leadership, as they say, is adversity.
When everything goes according to plan, or when profits come and grow and employees feel content in the company, playing the role of a leader may seem to run smoothly. However, when a significant crisis happened and plans went sideways for the organization, leaders are tested and need to review the roles they play.
Business leaders surely have experienced being put to the test during the COVID-19 pandemic, which plagued the world with health and economic crises. The new normal disrupted the business-as-usual as the workforce transitioned to a remote setup for safety reasons and urged organizations to reassess their plans and brace for the pandemic’s potential impact.
The COVID-19 crisis, like other major adversities, pushed leaders to step up for their people and businesses.
A crisis of a similar extent like the pandemic affects the personal lives of employees aside from their work. According to management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, one’s own survival and other basic needs come first in people’s minds in a landscape-scale crisis. Hence, leaders must show their caring side toward their people.
This is what leaders in the “front-stage” role present, as called by Sameh Abadir, a professor of leadership and negotiation at IMD, in an article published in MIT Sloan Management Review — inspiring and assuring their teams as well as showing empathy and public commitment.
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