Mastering VUCA Times – A Hallmark of Great Leadership

The statement that we are living in VUCA times seems like an eternal truth, especially amid current pandemic of Coronavirus. VUCA is an acronym for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity. A hallmark of great leadership is leading and inspiring your teams through VUCA times.

Let me reference one of my favorite HBR posts, “Why the Future Belongs to Tough-Minded Optimists.” The article was written by Bill Taylor 4 years ago and still relevant today as you read the opening line, “Unease is rippling through financial markets, and a sense of anxiety has overtaken society.” In the article Bill argues that the future belongs to leaders who are tough-minded optimists. The notion of “Tough-minded optimism” was first coined by John Gardner as a blend of original ideas, deep convictions, and resilience in the face of change. According to Gardner, “the future is not shaped by people who don’t really believe in the future.” Rather, “it is created by highly motivated people, by enthusiasts, by men and women who want something very much or believe very much.”  

Bill asserts that the leaders who are winning big in tough fields and environments have developed compelling answers to following four questions. I have incorporated Kroger's timeless lessons in leadership at the end of each question.

• Do you have a definition of success for your business that allows you to stand for something special and that inspires others to stand with you? The most successful companies and their leaders don’t just sell competitive products and services; they stand for important ideas, ideas that shape the future direction of their fields, ideas that reshape the sense of what’s possible for customers, colleagues, and investors. The most exciting companies don’t want to be the best at what lots of others already do. They want to be the only ones who do what they do. At Kroger, our purpose (Why) of "Feed the Human Spirit" and important cause of "Zero Hunger | Zero Waste" is guiding our path in current VUCA times. Zero Hunger | Zero Waste addresses a fundamental absurdity in our food system: an estimated 40% of the food produced in the U.S. is thrown away, yet 1 in 8 Americans experiences hunger. Kroger's plan is to end hunger in our communities and eradicate waste in our company by 2025.

The Kroger Co. Zero Hunger | Zero Waste Foundation recently allocated $3 million to deploy hunger-relief resources to communities most impacted by coronavirus (COVID-19). 

• Do you and your colleagues work as distinctively as you compete? The great leadership and leaders think differently from everyone else (see above). But they also care more than everyone else — about customers, about colleagues, about how the whole organization conducts itself in a world with so many opportunities to cut corners and compromise on values. It’s good to be efficient and professional; it’s essential to be memorable and meaningful. This emotional connection — between organizations and their people, between brands and their customers — creates positive energy even in VUCA times. A great exemplar of how Kroger cares more than anyone else about safety of our customers and associates is — opening of our first pickup-only store in greater Cincinnati. We went from simply a concept to fully operational pickup-only store in just few weeks and now we are already fulfilling over thousand daily pickup orders.

At Kroger, we believe in food as medicine. Our 135 years as America's leading grocer has taught us that. And today, our team of Dietitians and Nutrition Technicians is committed to helping all Americans experience the healing power of food, especially in current VUCA times.

• Are you as consistent as you are creative? Being optimistic is not the same as being totally open to change. In fact, one reason people get pessimistic about the future is that the organizations they are a part of can’t stop changing. According to management guru Jim Collins, “The signature of mediocrity is not an unwillingness to change. The signature of mediocrity is chronic inconsistency.” If you want to be a tough-minded optimist, then your priorities have to stay consistent in good times and bad. At Kroger, we remain creative yet consistent in current VUCA times – by being there for our customers and communities when they need us the most. For example, our Health & Wellness team has incorporated Healthbot technology into The Little Clinic to help provide the best path of care for our customers/patients in a constantly changing healthcare environment. This includes agile launch of several innovative capabilities such as telehealth platform, scheduling platform, COVID-19 testing & screening tool (www.krogerhealth.com/covidtesting).

"This important work will enable thousands of tests to be available to 1st and 2nd priority people in multiple states." – Dustin Nimmo, Kroger Health and Wellness 

• Have you figured out how your company’s history can help to shape its future? Psychologist Jerome Bruner put his finger on what can happen when the best of the old informs the search for the new. The essence of creativity, he argues, is “figuring out how to use what you already know in order to go beyond what you already think.” That’s why the most optimistic leaders don’t disavow what’s come before. Instead, they reinterpret what’s come before as a way to develop a line of sight into what comes next. Sometimes, the very act of rediscovering the past creates the confidence necessary to craft a game plan for the future. At Kroger, our history of keeping customers at the center of everything still shapes our future, just like Barney Kroger did when he opened the very first grocery store in 1883. The attached video from our CEO Rodney McMullen drives this point home in current VUCA times.

In summary, mastering VUCA times is a hallmark of great leadership. The leaders who master VUCA are able to transform Volatility into Vision, Uncertainty into Understanding, Complexity into Clarity, and Ambiguity into Agility.

Wishing you the very best in current VUCA times. Stay healthy, safe, and blessed!