Masterclass on Leadership in Disruptive Times COVID-19 and Industry 4.0″

Overview

“Disruption is happening everywhere and in every aspect of our lives. It is happening at a scale and speed that is unprecedented in modern history, impacting diverse industries, from financial services to retail, media, logistics and supply chain, manufacturing, education, professional services, and life sciences. Leaders are finding it challenging to navigate the near-insurmountable challenges resulting from the impact of these disruptive events on their organization.

The right leadership is critical for organizations to thrive in a disruptive business environment. How should we define leadership in such an environment? Are the current leadership practices and competencies still relevant in the face of such disruption? What are the attributes of a “disruptive digital leader”? How can leaders set themselves up not only to survive but also to thrive in navigating the challenges of disruptive events and crises?”

– Sattar Bawany (2020), Leadership in Disruptive Times. ISBN-13: 978-1-95253-8360,
Business Expert Press (BEP) LLC, New York, NY (July 2020)

We face a new era of radical uncertainty and disruption brought about by challenges such as the ongoing and escalating COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, financial crises, terrorism, Brexit, demographic changes in the labor market, rapid developments in transformation of the digital technology in the workplace in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0).

The management of shocks and crises is becoming an everyday occurrence. Organizations also need to be agile, and leverage opportunities and drive innovation to remain competitive in the face of these disruptive and increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) challenging business environment.

In the Industry 4.0 workplace which is characterized by rapid and continual disruption, organizations must be agile and quickly respond to change. As a result, businesses require leaders who are not only effective interpersonally, but who can also manage increasingly complex organizations.

Effective leaders today must be able to make decisions faster and lead change efficiently, while skilfully influencing in a more interconnected, collaborative landscape. Additionally, they need to foster a “digital-ready” organizational culture that embraces – rather than resists – continuous change.

Building on cutting-edge research, the program will develop the participant’s ability to embark on complex problem solving and decision-making, develop their cognitive readiness and critical thinking skills as well as accelerate change processes at the workplace. It will provide the participants with a set of best practice approaches, framework concepts, and tools enabling them to lead their organization with impact and efficiency and engaging their teams resulting in the maximizing of its performance during these disruptive and changing times.

Brief Overview of the Disruptive Nature of COVID-19 Pandemic

Since China first reported the existence of a new virus to the World Health Organization (WHO) on 31 December 2019, the virus, now known as SARS-CoV-2, causing COVID-19 disease, has spread quickly throughout the whole of China and today in almost all countries globally [1].

COVID-19 increasingly represent a threat to public health and global commerce. The next phases of the outbreak are profoundly uncertain. The prevalent narrative, focused on the pandemic, to which both markets and policymakers have gravitated as they respond to the virus, is possible but underweights the possibility of a more optimistic outcome.

Managing the Challenges and Leveraging the Opportunities of the COVID-19 Pandemic for Businesses 

The profound impact of COVID-19 has yet to be fully realized yet as the consequences for our businesses, organizations, economy, and society is expected to continue over the rest of 2020 and into the following year.  The epicenter of the pandemic has shifted from China to Europe and the US.

The disruptive nature of COVID-19 requires leaders to demonstrate agility in reinventing their business models and adapt their organizations to meet with the challenges posed by this new pandemic on various stakeholders including employees & their families, customers, suppliers and business partners as well as governments.

For many companies around the world, the most important consideration from the first ten weeks of the COVID-19 outbreak has been the effect on supply chains that begin in or go through China. As a result of the factory shutdowns in China during Q1, many disruptions have been felt across the supply chain, though the full effects are of course still unclear.

A global slowdown would affect all organizations with small and medium enterprises (SMEs) more acutely. Less developed economies would suffer more than advanced economies. Service sectors, including aviation, travel, and tourism, have been reported to be the hardest hit. Airlines have already experienced a steep fall in traffic on their highest-profit international routes.

The strongest business leaders are dealing with the short term—by acting rapidly to protect their employees, customers, business, and the public—while anticipating the eventual rebound. The situation remains fluid and even if the epidemic subsides in the coming weeks and months, how can organizations and leaders lead and engage their teams during these challenging times and normalize operations in the aftermath?

Managing the #VUCA Impact of #COVID-19 Crisis

Since the US War College started to use the term VUCA as far back as 1987, it has been in the business lexicon to describe the volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity of the world after the Cold War. Today, the concept is gaining new relevance to characterizing the current COVID-19 pandemic and the leadership by all organizations required to navigate it successfully.

The degree of uncertainty confronting all of us with the COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented. Where next? How bad? How long? Who can we rely on for the latest and most reliable information? How will our organization – our employees, customers, partners, supply chain – be impacted? How should we respond?

The main emphasis is and should be on containing and mitigating the disease itself. However, the economic impacts are also significant, and many companies are feeling their way towards understanding, reacting to, and learning lessons from rapidly unfolding events. Despite this, we frequently find ourselves managing in situations of absolute ambiguity—when it isn’t clear where you’re going or how you’ll get there. Why does this happen? Market conditions shift rapidly. Customers have more choices than ever. Resources are constrained compounded with your key talents leaving. The list continues.

Since the lockdown as well as the travel restrictions in many countries globally, several clients have contacted us for advice on how to ensure the sustainability of their business including leading and engaging their teams during the current challenging times. Effective leaders demonstrate calm and being present to provide steady, realistic direction and to lead authentically with a high degree of emotional and social intelligence, even when the strategy isn’t clear.

Brief Overview of the Disruptive Nature of Industry 4.0

The Fourth Industrial Revolution or Industry 4.0 as it is more commonly known, is bringing about a paradigm shift in business and the leader’s mental models that will profoundly change the way we work, live and interact and will affect industrialized as well as industrializing economies alike. Industry 4.0 will affect all sectors and disciplines and will have a huge impact on developing countries in particular, where a concentration of low-paid jobs is likely. High-wage jobs will require increased digital skills, and weak education systems in developing countries are often failing to provide basic skills in literacy and numeracy.

Our research has shown that Industry 4.0 is truly a disruptive force which differs in speed, scale, complexity, and transformative power as compared to the previous industrial revolutions. It will increase the visibility of the existing inequalities among people, companies, and countries worldwide, as every country embraces its technologies in its own different way.

We have seen in recent years major technological advancements are revolutionizing industrial production, where automation of manufacturing processes is upgraded with smart autonomous systems capable of self-cognition, self-optimization, and self-customization.

The highly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous and chaotic changes brought about by the internet over the last twenty years are nothing compared to what is to come over the next few years. No industry, no organization is immune from the threat of digital disruption and with labor markets being transformed by artificial intelligence and automation, no individual is immune. The next generation of transformation leaders at all levels is required to drive digital transformation and to lead in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (also known as Industry 4.0).

Is your organization ready for Industry 4.0? Are you ready?

Whether operating in the public or private sectors, in large MNCs or SMEs; participants using various practical tools, frameworks, and templates provided during the Masterclass, you will gain the key skills and personal confidence to become an effective digital change leader within the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution which are characterized by a highly disruptive, ever-increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and uncertain (collectively known as VUCA) business environment.

The Digital Economy as part of the Fourth Industrial Revolution 4.0 has made a significant impact on companies of all sizes across various sectors. In each case, the impact is a different one which makes it essential for companies to have a good understanding and view of what they face and how the Digital Economy will disrupt their company: which opportunities can be seized and which threats have to be faced? Digitization has been happening all around us for years and as consumers, we just expect to have the information we want at our fingertips and have become accustomed to companies making personalized recommendations for us and understanding our online behavior.

Digital acumen is essential for business leaders in today’s hyper-competitive, technology-enabled world. But most companies lack the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in the digital aspects of their business, according to a survey of 436 business leaders by Harvard Business Review Analytic Services.

Your Role as Leader During Disruptive Events (COVID-19 Pandemic and Digital Transformation of Industry 4.0)

To manage the VUCA impact of CIVOD-19, leaders need to focus on your team on delivering value and started to explore what’s possible, be prepared to move forward with a discrete set of priorities. The rate at which the virus can spread is astonishing. So is the rate at which information is changing. Sometimes it seems to change on a minute to minute basis. In this environment, it’s critical to stay flexible and consider that the best-laid plans may well be fluid. There be prepared to make necessary and relevant adjustments and reinvent your plans.

Reassure Your Team During Uncertainty

When the news is scary and the future is uncertain, many employees will look to managers for reassurance — even though you might not have the answers yourself. You can help by first finding your sense of focus.

First, leaders must make sure they are dealing with accurate information. Times of crisis can be confusing and frightening, resulting in an amplification of speculation, conspiracy theories, obfuscation and censorship. Leaders must ensure that they are dealing with facts and not fiction, real information and not a rumor.

During these times of uncertainty, leaders may need to communicate frequently with team members authentically and transparently. To demonstrate a high degree of emotional and social intelligence, share your own emotions and acknowledge those of your team in productive ways. Let team members know that what they feel is okay. Demonstrate active listening and talk with them about your commitment to be there for them and support them even during times of uncertainty. Ask them to do the same and come to you if they are frustrated or concerned. Maintaining open dialogue will keep your team engaged and aligned until a clear direction emerges.

Before you start communicating, take a minute to pause and breathe. Then put yourself in your audience’s shoes. What are their concerns, questions, or interests? What do they need an immediate answer to? You might use language such as, “I know many of you may be thinking…”

The quicker you can address what’s on their minds, the more likely you’ll be able to calm them down. Seek out credible sources of information, and read fully before distilling it into clear, concise language. You can confidently express doubt or uncertainty, while still maintaining authority. You might say, “Reports are still coming in, but what we understand so far is…” Communicate frequently, even if you don’t have news to report so that people know you are actively following the issue. And provide tangible action items. Use language such as, “Here are the steps we are taking,” or “Here’s what you can do,” to demonstrate action.

Design and Development of the Leadership Masterclass

Each of the Modules is designed for the participants to benefit from elements of our “C.P.R.” adult learning framework:

• Contemporary – leveraging on the latest concepts on leadership development
• Practical – explore examples and experience using tools with expert guidance as well as learning a concept, process or tool immediately transferable to their workplace
• Relevant – to the participants’ role as a senior manager and also being able to connect the program to the participant’s organizational context

The content of the Masterclass is based on our global research findings published in the latest book, “Transforming the Next Generation Leaders: Developing Future Leaders for a Disruptive, Digital-Driven Era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0)” which reaffirmed the fact that the current digital transformation which underpins Industry 4.0 (IR4.0) has ushered in a new business environment that is highly disruptive, VUCA-driven as well as fast, open and responsive resulting in several organizational and leadership challenges. Our research has shown that this change has a direct impact on the sustainability of organizations of all sizes across various industries in all markets globally.

The Masterclass includes new bundled tools and resources that participants need to be successful in leading and engaging their team towards achieving sustainable organizational results during the disruptive times. They will be provided with best practices guidelines, recommended books, the latest research and useful checklists on the topics most important to their success as a leader in today’s highly disruptive, digital and VUCA-driven era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0).

Learning Outcomes:

This Leadership Masterclass will provide participants with the following:

1. Perspective on the nature of the various disruptive events
2. Understanding the threats and opportunities in the disruptive and VUCA-driven era of today’s business environment
3. Learning how to resolve effectively complex problem solving and decision making to prevent organizational failure and demise
4. Leverage on best practice frameworks, concepts and practical tools to lead their teams and sustain productivity during these disruptive and challenging times
5. Improve their ability to communicate and lead organizational change during a disruptive event or crisis
6. Learn how to influence key stakeholders and manage the power and political dynamics in change processes
7. Learn how to get started on leading organizational resilience back at the workplace
8. Best practice approaches in developing trust among stakeholders in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic or other disruptive events.

Masterclass on “Leading Through COVID-19 Crisis”

The Masterclass on “Leading Through COVID-19 Crisis” was successfully delivered for the leadership team of RHT Group of Companies and RHTLaw Asia on 12 and 19 March 2020 respectively.

Best Practice Briefings on “Leadership In Disruptive & VUCA-Driven COVID-19 Crisis”

These Best Practice Briefings on “Leading In Disruptive and VUCA-Driven COVID-19 Crisis” is to share the tips and insights on how to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on your business. The links to the previous briefings are appended below:

1. Best Practice Briefing #1 – Reassure Your Team During Uncertainty
2. Best Practice Briefing #2 – Managing the VUCA Impact
3. Best Practice Briefing #3 – Adopt Employee-Centric Strategic Approach
4. Best Practice Briefing #4 – Resolving Business Challenges with Cognitive Readiness

Webinar on “Leading Through COVID-19 Crisis”