Key Insights
- Data-driven businesses are six times more likely to retain customers
- Concrete plans are a thing of the past
- Team efficiency increases with empathy
We’re all more than aware of how Covid-19 has turned the world on its head. Every single one of us has experienced an impact on our professional and personal lives in one way or another. As we start to edge closer to some kind of return to normality again, it’s crucial that business leaders don’t lose sight of the skills they’ve developed and honed during the pandemic.
Ahead are what we believe are the three key leadership skills that will be crucial for a post-pandemic world; agility, data-driven decision making, and perhaps most importantly, empathy. Integrating these into your leadership role will be vital and will help get the most out of your team.
Agility
If Covid has forced one thing, it’s a need for quick thinking and on-the-fly adjustments. Business models of the past have been flung out the window in favour of something much more malleable.
Where before we ran our work lives by a rigid structure, now external forces must be considered more than ever. Unfortunately, this caused many businesses to quickly crumble under the weight of the pandemic.
- Quick Thinking
Quick thinking is an important skill to any leader at the best of times. Especially with Covid, though, it’s been testing on everyone’s resilience. With rates, rules, freedoms, and accessibility changing at the drop of a hat, there’s no question a time will come where you’ll have to adapt.
In many organisations, this means going as far as completely overhauling their supply chain to meet any surges or decline in demand.
It’s this quick thinking and the determination to make it out on top that’s going to keep businesses afloat.
- Continue To Adapt
While we may be through the most challenging period when it comes to the pandemic, there is no going back to pre-Covid plans. It’s therefore integral that leaders can accept what’s what and work hard to adapt, change, and grow at all levels if they’re going to continue to stay in business, even if there’s no concrete plan to follow.
Data-Driven Decision Making
If there’s one major takeaway from Covid, it’s that with the right information, it’s possible to move fast. Thanks to all the available data, the drive for digital adoption during the pandemic was such a success; the huge leaps taken by many organisations around the world have seen them cut their future digitalisation plans from taking years to weeks.
- Going Fully Digital
One good example is Estée Lauder. Before the pandemic, physical stores were responsible for 80% of the American cosmetics conglomerate’s yearly billion-dollar revenue. As a response to the pandemic and the subsequent store closures, Estée Lauder fast-tracked their already-in-the-works digital transformation and were able to cope with shifting all their business online.
- Study The Data
Data-driven companies are more likely to acquire new customers. A whopping 23 times more likely, according to the McKinsey Global Institute. They’re also 19 times more likely to be profitable and six times more likely to retain their customers.
Studying the data is the best way to ensure that the changes you make can improve the customer experience and are the result of informed decisions. Ultimately, it’s customer satisfaction that’ll keep bringing them back time and time again.
- Technology, Processes And People
Three key factors can help you become more data-driven: technology, processes, and people. The best business plans are a perfect combination of the three. Ultimately, it’s strong, clear leadership and a drive to put data-driven decision making at the core of the business that’s going to help your organisation thrive in a post-pandemic world.
Empathy
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we have empathy. Over the past year and a half, leaders in even the biggest corporations have become much more emotionally responsive to the challenges that their employees have faced, both in and out of the office. With everyone is making their way through this pandemic together, checking one another’s wellbeing has typically been our first instinct.
Work calls have been no different, and it’s helped establish a whole new, much closer, and much more sympathetic connection to those we work with.
- Moving Forward With Compassion
We’re all familiar with the strict, bossy employer archetype. Contrary to this, though, studies have always shown that you get much further with compassion. Deeper relationships help create a much more comfortable, safer feeling atmosphere, which inspires employees to do their best.
It also promotes greater collaboration and understanding between team members, irrespective of any differences in age, gender, culture, or personality.
Ultimately, when everyone feels respected, understood, and valued, the team’s efficiency will skyrocket.
- Empathy Drives Innovation
Best of all, empathy can be a great driver of innovation. Feeling secure and valued in the workplace, with trusting relationships, will help many to feel more comfortable and encouraged when taking risks.
When staff are restricted and on edge in their positions, they will not allow creativity and innovation to blossom. Give everyone a bit of compassion and understanding, and you could be amazed at the ideas and innovations they come up with.
In Conclusion
With the world continuing to slowly open up again, who can say when new and unexpected challenges will arise. The best leaders will be able to evaluate all they’ve learned and experienced over the last 18 months.
Taking in the above examples of agility, data-driven decision making and empathy, you’ll be able to tackle any challenges head-on and create a much stronger, longer-lasting organisation in the process.
At Horton International, we are experts in helping businesses achieve their staffing objectives. Because of our in-depth insights into a diverse range of organisations, we’ve developed a solid understanding of how employment in the post-pandemic world is going to look. If you need help navigating your teams going forward and honing your leadership skills, speak with our specialists today.
