Purpose is the compass for resilience

A CRISIS has the potential to bring out the best in people. Having gone through several crises, I am optimistic enough to believe that this is true, but also sanguine enough to know that the opposite can also happen. Leadership in this time, and a return to personal and organisational purpose, is fundamental to shape the shared reality of work.

In Mandarin the word for "crisis" is composed of two Chinese characters signifying "danger" and "opportunity" respectively. Covid-19 has forced many businesses, us included, to take a long hard look at what they need to do to survive and what can they do to support their employees and customers.

We have had to make hard decisions to embrace agility, and rethink business models and operational procedures. The hospitality industry has been hard hit, along with others. It has forced us to go back to basics and take the opportunity to start afresh with a blank slate. Any company that stays still now is not going to be around long after this pandemic is over.