C-Suite Blind Spot – The 2020 & Beyond Workforce Structure – Anticipating the New Unknown

Blind Spot

As we quickly move through July 2020, it’s very clear COVID19 and the challenges created by the global pandemic are not going away for some time. As the pandemic lingers, corporate short-term crisis management is evolving into necessary long-term strategic planning. C-Suites’ are facing challenges on a magnitude seldom, if ever, experienced before. As boundaries between time, space, information, status, and safety become blurred, traditional management and corporate status quo are being challenged.

During a time mired in unprecedented uncertainty and never experienced externalities senior executives may need to become masters at balancing and influencing. What new elements will need to be considered in development of an efficient and productive remote workforce? What new areas will corporations need addressed to maximize stakeholder investment and productivity while simultaneously maintaining employee rights in a way that is sustainable?

Illumination

As companies develop and launch remote workforce strategies, business model resilience and strategy sustainability will be dependent on how senior teams structure their companies. The expanded remote workforce has uncovered areas that corporations may not have considered or thought not to be of concern in the past. As companies pivot; future sustainability may be very dependent on the identification, digesting and addressing of these previously overlooked areas with viable, flexible, and effective programs.

Some areas that must be considered in developing a viable and sustainable plan includes but is not limited to:

· Embracing technology that support and augment people; not to replace them

· Organizational behavior restructuring that is transparent and maximizes human capital through a more collaborative versus directive and controlled work environment

· Examining and finding ways to address the unexpected stressors of working remotely

· Updating hiring policies to identify critical skills required for success in the remote environment

· Adjusting employee benefits to better support their wellbeing in emerging areas to be considered (e.g. home workstation reimbursements, expanded family counseling

· Expanded employee privacy policies regarding mental, physical, and technical challenges associated with remote work and restructured socially distanced corporate settings

For some, many of the area mentioned above may be new or not yet considered in the development of the strategic plan. Others may already be well underway in exploring or including these into their plan. Each corporation has unique requirements, but every corporation has one thing in common, the need for a winning strategy. Corporations can benefit from hiring a diverse and experienced team to help develop the most appropriate and sustainable strategy for their company.

Many of my accomplishments have been win or lose situations. For me, second place was not an option. My key to success was to assemble a diverse team of specialized individuals who were experts in their fields. Together, we were able to develop strategies that helped me to identity, address and eliminate my “blind spots”. Executives may want to approach their blind spots similarly. When winning or losing are the only two choices, choose to win