Positive reflections......

The last few weeks have been some of the most challenging we have endured. The Covid19 virus has cost us in so many ways. As we adjust to a new way of life, one thing I have come to realise with increasing certainty, is that this virus is going to leave its mark forever.  Irrelevant of this temporary "lockdown", vaccine development and robust testing regimes, our way of life has changed permanently.

From my interactions, what is clear is the scale and volume of issues resulting from the pandemic are truly vast. In reality, what we see in the media are merely headlines. They can only report a fraction of the actual challenges’ organisations and people are facing.

In this blog I want to share my insight on business and industry, based on the conversations I have had with business leaders, steering groups, industry organisations, MP’s and Cabinet members.

The hardest of balancing acts

Seeing the New Year in, the Prime Minister certainly wouldn’t have predicted leading the Country through a pandemic and a spell in intensive care. No matter your political persuasion, this Government has an incredibly difficult job.

The Prime Minister is positively encouraging businesses to operate, to help mitigate long term economic scarring. To do this people need to go to work but not to the detriment of social distancing and Public Health England guidance.

With increased clarity on how to operate safely, businesses I am speaking to feel much more confident about being able to function, to progress with plans and try to develop a degree of routine. However, this does not help with drops in demand for their goods and services.

Schemes such as CIBLS and JRS have been developed to provide help, with other major economies around the world doing the same or similar. While these schemes aren’t perfect, they are a positive start. In particular, I think the CIBLS+ for larger businesses going live today is an important step. These organisations have vast supply chains made up of businesses who rely on their custom. That cash injection could save multiple Companies down the chain.

CIBLS for small business has not been the success Government wanted, with limited take up and money not flowing. The critical point here is accessibility and speed, which to date is poor.

However, discussions, feedback and lobbying continue daily around support for business. Additional financing solutions be those grants, changes to CIBLS, equity schemes, overdraft bridges all remain possibilities.

My point here is I believe Government are listening, I am encouraged by the work done by the likes of Alok Sharma, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and his team. Support will evolve and develop in the months ahead.

Change is the new normal

As momentum shifts and reaction to immediate pressures develop, business leaders are lifting their heads and looking to the future. The key question being what does that future look like?

Two years ago, while listening to a keynote, I was introduced to the concept we live and work in a “VUCA world”. A principal developed from the US military, the principal prescribes that we operate in a Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous world. My colleagues often hear me referring to concept and that change is the new constant in our lives. Never has this been demonstrated or been more relevant than today.

I said at the start of this blog, I believe Covid19 will shape us forever. I hear the phrase “new normal” all the time and that rings true with me. However, the “new normal” will keep changing and we will have to change with it.

Businesses are pivoting, adapting and having to be more agile than ever before. Those who do, will thrive. I think this theme will remain long after Covid19 is a distant memory. Operating structures, offices, culture, systems, technology, markets, supply chains, customers; leaders are refocussing efforts on all aspects of their business.

At a practical level, I have spoken with businesses who are looking at workplace environments to understand what adaptations they need to make to support a “social distancing normal”. They are reorganising open plan offices, looking at workstation ergonomics, implementing shift patterns to reduce concentrations of people, rotating office and home working, as well as instigating PPE and health checks where they have never previously had to.

Manufacturers are looking to diversify supply chains, in some cases moving from global to local. Others are looking to those who have operated through the pandemic, such as food retail, to understand what learnings can be transferred to their own environments as they look to adapt.

I count myself as very fortunate to be able to have such conversations. To play a small part in the business community, hear about its responses and share knowledge with others. The adversity we all face today has created camaraderie, collaboration and community the likes of which I have never seen before. Across industry, sector, supply chain, customer base, competitors and partners we are united in a common goal.

We won’t get everything right. We will make mistakes - I know I have. But we will recover and succeed. So, I am going into this week with confidence and positivity as I see green shoots of hope.

That all said, I don’t want to dehumanise this pandemic. Every day we are given statistics around Covid19 cases, ITU admissions and deaths. Behind each number is a life, with family and friends. The cost they will endure is far greater and lasting. So, above all else, let’s look after our loved ones and each other.