COVID-19 Impact on Business

COVID-19 Impact on Business have brought in horror stories for the majority of the working class. In the world of a global pandemic, multinational companies are laying off in huge numbers and board members are getting government bailout. Is this the natural course for small and medium-size companies during a pandemic, or is there a better way to navigate this dark timeline? Open up your Linkedin newsfeed, and one can understand the dark time most company employes and leader are going through. Company founders have found themselves in a difficult position, one where they have to choose between serving their market or riding the wave with their trusted staff. We came across an interview of Aditya Ghosh on CNBC and found the exchange very delightful and promising, The world currently faces Challenges as well as opportunity. How we choose to move forward will determine what our new normal would look like.   From the conversation, these are the biggest give away every startup and business must be aware of.

Advice for Board Members

Investing in Account based marketing companies is a very tedious job. If during the pandemic Board members have the apprehension towards the survivorship of your investment, you need to guide the leaders at the company to the ideal image the company stood for when you decided to invest. Be there for the founders, and ride the wave with them. The strength board members can show to the founders during these trying time will not only calm the ship, but also provide courage and strength to the staff. Pandemic dies bring in a lot more risks towards a startup than regular time. This is much difficult for some startups, compared to others. Board member needs to take a much broader look at risk mitigation strategy, spend time planing a navigation path for the next 3 months, 6 months and a year.  

Advice for Management Teams

Having a healthy balance sheet should be a top priority for management during pandemic times. This the time to get back to the strengthing the core business strategy of your startup. Circling back to the days the company was founded, your business model has to grab the need your business was trying to serve. This is not the time to experiment. Managements need to realign the business model to nail the basics and delivering on the promises made. More on promises made later in the article.  

Advice for The Leaders

It the tough time which defines the legacy of a Leader. Steve Jobs is famously known for the way he brought up Apple after his return in 1997. Or how after Satya Nadella's appointment in a leadership role in 2014, he forever rebuild the company culture. Tough time will always make great leaders. The decisions you make now will define how the world will remember you. These few difficult decisions will separate the great leaders, from the good leaders. Stay calm. Do not take any knee jerk reactions and go on a firing spree. This is the time you need your people the most. Rally the troops and address them with honesty. Ensure to the employees, even if you don't know everything, you have your eye on the ball. Open Communications. Be extremely open to communications with your employees as well as your consumers. Your employes will be with you if you are with yourself. By having clear and open communication you instill confidence, and purpose in each and every employee. In the case of consumers, be emphatical with your consumers. Reduce the promises if you have to. But continue to deliver on these reduced promises.   Conserve cash, and save jobs Some experts say this will go on for a better half of 2020. Some say it might be even longer. We have no idea how long the economic effect of this pandemic and global lockdown will last. Leaders need to construct a stronger moat and longer runway. You will need capital and jobs in the future. This is the time to count every rupee and spend on only the most important expenses.  

Consumer's Home

At the end of the day, the need from the consumer will always remain, how businesses address them will change from era to era. We had different ways to fulfil consumer in the 2000s. and it all changed with the mass acceptance of the Internet in the 2010s. Similarly, we will see three more phases.
  • Before Covid-19
  • During Covid-19 <-- April 2020, we are here
  • After Covid-19
the need from the consumer will always remain
 

Conclusion

Pandemics from the past, Black plague, for example, have led us to break from the broken traditions and usher in a newly reformed system, reimagining the future. The world at the end of this tunnel is one with improved innovative and transparent companies. This article was inspired by Aditya Ghosh's interview on CNBC-TV18