Leadership Lessons from the Coronavirus Crisis
“The consensus among experts is that 60 to 70 percent of the population will be infected as long as this remains the situation — Angela Merkel, March 11, 2020. ” Photo credit: Omer Messinger/EPA, via Shutterstock
By David Iannelli, Amber Ott and Andrew Sullivan
Like many of you, we’re experiencing the coronavirus crisis homebound, with videoconferences and social media our channels to the world. Watching a tragedy unfold from a distance — without office chats, dinners with friends, visits to the coffee shop — makes the experience all the more poignant. But in our hunger for human connection, the distance also makes examples of effective leadership shine all the more brightly.
We’ve settled on several examples of crisis leadership which we find most instructive. These span different areas of civil society: business, government and NGOs alike. Our analysis suggests crisis leadership falls into three broad categories: preparing for a crisis, managing through a crisis and seizing opportunity in a crisis.
Preparing for a crisis
“Be fast. Have no regrets. You must be the first mover.”
Preparing for a crisis is not something that comes naturally to most leaders. Humans are fundamentally reactive — we’re programmed to react to problems that are upon us, not around the corner. And yet every leader or organization will face a crisis at some point. While it may be impossible to predict what the crisis will be, it’s not impossible to be ready for it.
Dr. Michael Ryan of the WHO explains the importance of being prepared and acting quickly during a crisis. “You must be the first mover,” he says. This two-minute clip is full of punchy insights, all rooted in his experience in emergency response, especially with the ebola virus. Chief among them: “If you need to be right before you move, you will never win. Perfection is the enemy of the good. Speed trumps perfection. The gravest error is not to move.”
Managing through a crisis
“Your actions are jeopardizing public health.”
Restricting the hospitality industry in New Orleans is akin to closing the banking sector in New York or shutting down the corn industry in Iowa. It’s not an easy decision to make, but it’s one Mayor LaToya Cantrell made without hesitation — and enforced.
Mayor Cantrell has a trait that is vital in a crisis: a willingness to make choices that might cause short-term pain with a long-term outcome in mind. After all, bars and music venues will only suffer more if people fear they’ll get sick by visiting them over the long-term.
Transparency, candor and humanity in communications are also critical to managing through the storm of a crisis.
Governor Andrew Cuomo has come to national attention for his plainspoken, detailed and regularly scheduled coronavirus presentations to the media. His utterly open approach offers the public a rare and comforting source of fact-based information.
At a higher level, it’s hard not to be impressed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who shifted the global conversation two weeks ago by saying 60 to 70 percent of the population would be infected if Germans didn’t take decisive action to slow the spread of the virus. Delivered in her understated style, it was a moment of candor which reframed the scale of the crisis and no doubt helped change the behavior of millions of people around the world. Notably, she also didn’t cause anyone (or the markets) to panic because she projected steady confidence.
We all feel a deeply human need to find personal connections in times of crisis. It’s this basic sense of shared grief and humanity that makes Marriott CEO Arne Sorensen’s soul-baring message to employees so compelling. Make sure to watch it to the end.
Seizing opportunity in a crisis
A Louisiana distillery transforming its operation to make hand sanitizer. A North Carolina bicycle company pivoting to produce masks. The Broadway community coming together to sew personal protective equipment.
Jason Zeno, director of operations at Porchjam Distillery in New Orleans, LA, measures alcohol as part of his company’s effort to combat Coronavirus. Photo credit: Chris Granger, nola.com
These are examples of companies or groups of workers seizing the opportunity to contribute to the coronavirus fight. These efforts have a secondary benefit of giving employees a sense of shared purpose.
Rare is the opportunity for employees to share in this kind of galvanizing, mission-driven work. And that’s the larger point. These companies will emerge from the coronavirus crisis stronger than they entered it, and not because they’ll be on steadier financial footing. They’ll be stronger because their employees will be more closely connected. New leaders will have emerged. Teams will have a shared experience that underpins the work they do going forward.
Employees of Kitsbow in Old Fort, NC, manufacturing face shields and reusable face masks
We’re all struggling to find our balance in these uncertain times. It’s a reminder to us how difficult it can be to maintain perspective in a crisis. It’s trite to say we’re in this together, but it’s never been more true. There’s no doubt that only collective action can save lives and restore normalcy. We hope this finds you and your loved ones safe. If you have other examples of leadership in this crisis, we’d love to hear about them.
