The CEO playbook in times of crisis

Last week, Rich Talent Group and SYPartners co-hosted an intimate discussion among CEOs and other C-level executives across a wide range of industries to discuss how they’re facing this disruptive time. We kicked off the conversation with learnings from Mindy Grossman, CEO of WW, who has been at the helm of multiple corporations as they navigated critical and challenging moments. 

Though the scope of the current health crisis is unprecedented, the group surfaced some fundamental truths about great leadership in times of uncertainty and hardship. After all, how you show up in moments like these is what truly defines you as a leader.

Here are some of the key takeaways from our conversation:

In trying times, the CEO is also the Chief Crisis Officer. 

When people are scared and uncertain, they need someone to cut through the noise. It’s the CEO’s job to provide clarity and confidence that the organization will get through this. They must embrace transparency, empathy, and overcommunication—not only with their employee base, but leadership team and board as well—so they can drive alignment and show up as a united front.

The beginning of a crisis is the time to act fast. 

Particularly at the onset, a CEO must make quick decisions. It’s a time to trust your gut and strive for clarity. It’s also important to create the conditions for others to do the same: Set clear workstreams where everyone has visibility into what’s going on, and then empower people to run with it. This is not about perfection—it’s about leaning into the digital mindset by embracing MVP (minimum viable product), and improving from there.

Streamlining keeps the focus on the essential.

When resources are tight, clarity and action around what’s critical and what’s not becomes a safeguard for your company. Pause on the initiatives that are superfluous, and redeploy talent and energy towards your core business needs and new, creative possibilities.

If there were ever a time to listen, it's now. 

It may seem challenging to slow down and take the time to listen in difficult moments of disruption, but the best leaders do. To paint a clearer picture, seek out a diverse range of voices in addition to those you turn to most often. Not only is listening widely and deeply critical in gauging the emotional pulse of your employees and other stakeholders—it’s the only way to understand what is truly needed from you. 

Adjusting to a new reality may ultimately reveal a better one.

As you patch and pivot your business with new solutions, you might discover value in things you couldn’t do before. For example, with so much happening digitally, a CEO can be in more places at once. For consumer experiences, you may have access to more data that can fuel better services. Take a hard look at your “old” business and ask: What’s working better now than it was before? Then, reimagine how the organization should look on the other side of the crisis.

Never waste a crisis—invest in innovation.

For better or worse, a crisis forces you to come up with new ideas. Though companies are likely making cuts across the business, it’s important to remain proactive on innovation that will accelerate growth. Whether it’s forming a taskforce to dream up “moonshots” or fueling skunkworks, investing in innovation will keep employees invigorated and get you closer to your next breakthrough.

Rebalancing the workload can reveal new talents.

The pandemic has radically shifted people’s personal and work lives. Some people feel overwhelmed with work, while others feel guilty for being underutilized. Leaders can help rebalance the over- and under-tasked by encouraging those who can take on more to raise their hands. By recasting people in this way, you may actually find greater diversity on your teams and talent you never knew you had.

Giving uplifts everyone.

In times of crisis, kindness and generosity is not only helpful—it can be unifying and motivating, and may even help alleviate anxiety. Get creative with giving back in ways that make sense for your organization, whether it’s a fundraiser, supplies drive, or other type of service. What starts off as a do-good initiative may end up also having benefits for well-being and business. 

A crisis should bring you closer to your values, not further from them.

When things are moving quickly and feel chaotic, employees need something to ground them and their decision-making. It makes the case for having a strong sense of purpose and values in place, so everyone has a cultural compass to guide them.  

Being vulnerable and strong are not opposites—they’re one and the same.

As CEO, it can be challenging to strike the right balance of emotional openness and being “strong” for your team. But realness is what people are craving right now. As long as you still carry the overarching torch of optimism, it’s ok to be vulnerable—especially if you want your team to be open in return.