Covid-19: Corporate Stories of the Resilient
By: Farhan Elias
Tags: Responses, Partnerships, Covid 19, Resilience, Corporate Innovation

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change”: Leon C. Megginson

A billboard advertisement that came up in Texas last month shows the profile of a young woman wearing the now all-pervasive mask and it calls out to the reader ‘Best ever time to get braces’. This invitation by ‘SmileAtTheWorld’ Orthodontics is a simple yet brilliant example of how a business could make itself anti-fragile via a creative narrative — or for that matter an innovative business model or a mutually benefitting partnership.

More than six months have passed by as the world slid into a state of suspended animation. Economies plunged as commerce slowed. Businesses dithered at first, knowing not how to deal with this ‘black swan’ of an event. Then they moved — exhibiting their own styles, selecting their paths and picking signals as the moving parts moved. These actions can be mapped across two dimensions:

Response Orientation — Most corporates swung into action immediately exhibiting their ‘good citizen side’. This social service, caring face are stories companies could tell their great grand employees. Some of these however, could have deeper implications on how certain industries are run. Some companies slowly matured and opened up to new ideas and designs that would have commercial implications with potential to reshape relationships between key actors.

Response Impact & Sustainability — Much of the responses we saw in the beginning days were fleeting and transient. However, some structures have come in place that could metamorphosize into new business models.

The responses across the two dimensions create a quadrant. Therefore, we can classify the corporate responses over the last six months into the following four buckets:

Step-up: Many companies poured their operational assets, production capacities and design skills to step-up and be responsible corporate citizens. Rolls Royce and Formula 1 rushed to build ventilators, Neiman Marcus and Joann are making masks, gowns and scrubs. LVMH (Louis Vuitton owner) will use its perfume production lines to make hand sanitizers. While difficult to quantify the impact in mitigating the spread of the virus, these actions gave corporates and employees the opportunity to be counted among the first responders. Such initiatives do not have longevity, and many have been toned down or closed, but the positive PR created lingers. Elevate: Several corporates picked up certain non-commercial activities, that may help entrench themselves into various ecosystems which would in-turn create a network effect for their commercial activities to expand. Instances include new technologies in collaboration with public institutions to self-identify the risk of contracting the virus. As institutions, governments, and individuals go through massive rule changes in their journey, they found the need to work together, as they navigate to a still unclear future. These innovations would create new services and accelerate the use of digital in areas such as public health services. Protect Turf: Sudden stops in the market because of the pandemic and ensuing lockdowns led to a few novel outcomes. An instance is that of Danish start-up Stykka which developed a flat-pack workstation that can be assembled out of folded cardboard. These innovations to protect revenues and market share are simple and innovative but urgent. As author Elizabeth Edwards once said, “She stood in the storm, and when the wind did not blow her way, she adjusted her sails.” These attempt to survive the crisis over a short-term could lead to longer term viable solutions. Change the Game: And then there are companies that shifted models effecting systemic change to business models. These models, that could become mainstream in the future, may require massive overhaul in both business models and technology. Instances include synergies between hospitals and the hospitality industry. Others include workforce partnerships such as the ones between Kroger (which finds itself anti-fragile in the crisis) and Marriott (clearly in a fragile industry) or partnerships of manufacturing capacity, design and domain expertise. These partnerships make long term sense in synergizing and building resilience.

Once the spread is contained and a vaccine is on the way, companies will need to access and sense the changes — to employees, customers, partners, suppliers, markets, policy makers and society at large. Re-calibrations will be required at the workplace and with the workforce to face the post Covid19 world. Resilience must be build into systems as there is no reason to believe that this ‘black swan’ event is a one-off. Solutions should be central with different partners bringing together their expertise, capabilities, and experiences. New metrics and measurement of resilience will need to find their place in corporate parlance, often in contradiction with conventional measurements of efficiencies. Corporates have long been obsessed with hyper-optimization, but resilience may demand redundancies which will account for flexibility. Corporates that act bold, set the right narratives, forge productive partner, radically reshape operating models and redesign systems would emerge as wealth creators in times ahead.