Covid-19: Impetus to shake things up, try something new

MANY pithy statements have been attributed to Jack Welch, the late chief executive officer (CEO) of General Electric. One of my favourites is: "If the rate of change on the outside is greater than the rate of change on the inside, the end is near."

Today, it goes almost without saying that the rate of change on the outside is increasing: the "clock speed" of business - in terms of product cycles, new technology roll-outs, and social media stories - seems higher than ever.

Staying close to Mr Welch's words of caution, are we seeing a comparable growth in responsiveness within firms to the increased pace of change and the speed of external shocks? Do firms have the internal capacity to mobilise and adapt quickly in the face of disruptive challenges? For the most part, the answer is no. The recent outbreak of Covid-19 highlighted how poorly equipped firms are to deal with one-off shocks; and I would argue that many established firms are not even able to keep up with broader shifts in demand and customer expectations.