{"id":5769,"date":"2022-07-22T21:20:00","date_gmt":"2022-07-23T01:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/?p=5769"},"modified":"2023-02-24T21:21:37","modified_gmt":"2023-02-25T01:21:37","slug":"time-for-another-wartime-ceo-toolkit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/2022\/07\/22\/time-for-another-wartime-ceo-toolkit\/","title":{"rendered":"Time for Another Wartime CEO Toolkit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When Roe v. Wade was overturned at the end of June, people across the country experienced a range of emotions, many focused on what the ruling meant for them and their families. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The moment the news came out, I messaged the entire company with our plan of action. I didn\u2019t want any of our employees to spend even a second thinking the implications of the ruling for our workforce weren\u2019t on our radar or that support was off the table. Our executive team moved to action that weekend, spending countless hours on internal calls while also talking to benefits councilors and lawyers to build a policy that supports abortion access.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brooks Bell is not in the business of women\u2019s health, politics or social justice. But news like this impacts us because it impacts our people. When people bring their full selves to work, their fears, anxieties and challenges come with them. The Roe v. Wade decision is the most recent in a string of events that have increased a looming shadow of uncertainty on employees across industries. The war in Ukraine, rising global temperatures and talk of recession are just a few of the many challenges that weigh on our minds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evolving challenges like these affect us on both mental and practical levels. Take increased fuel prices, for example. On the micro level, the first couple of times we spend a little more at the pump are annoying. Fewer DoorDash drivers are an inconvenience. But on the macro level, not knowing when costs will rebalance or worrying about how price hikes will impact the economy weighs us down \u2014 and the cumulative weight of these challenges is a lot for any of us to carry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We no longer work in a world where we can compartmentalize who we are at work from the people we are everywhere else. And that\u2019s a good thing \u2014 when people feel they can show up as their authentic selves, culture and performance thrive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But to facilitate authenticity, leaders need to keep up with the pace of change and support employees through chaos by creating a stable environment that helps them navigate uncertainty. We need proactive strategies so we\u2019re prepared for to address unexpected challenges rather than scrambling to react, as we were forced to at the onset of the pandemic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last May I shared principles<\/a> that carried us through the challenges of the pandemic or \u201cwartime,\u201d including leading with empathy, modeling transparency, and making mission-based decisions. At the time, I was just over a year into my tenure as CEO. It\u2019s safe to say a lot has happened since then, and I\u2019ve updated my playbook accordingly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I see these additions as critical to remaining agile and responsive, particularly during times as daunting as the ones we\u2019re experiencing today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Be decisive <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clear decisions are the best antidote for uncertainty. As much as I disagree with Elon Musk\u2019s<\/a> recent return-to-office policy, I appreciate his willingness to plant a firm stake in the ground. No one wants to feel like they\u2019re in limbo at work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

CEOs have to live in the unknown, it\u2019s just part of the job description. But it’s also our job to make sure no one else has to. Employees need clear expectations, so they can focus less on worrying about what\u2019s to come and more on pushing the company forward. By giving them that stability, CEOs can look to what\u2019s ahead while their team feels empowered to focus on the present. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Acknowledge constant change<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strong decision-making isn\u2019t just solving issues as they arise. It\u2019s the ability to match your pace of innovation to the pace of change around you. Change is a constant. Leaders need to acknowledge it and lean into it. Setting everything in plaster, not concrete, can help us keep up. But this often requires a reframing of success metrics (e.g., measuring revenue by focus areas vs. by client or vertical), a continued investment in essential activities regardless of expense, and a core belief in experimentation<\/a>.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While there\u2019s a case to be made for adaptive leaders, we need to move with purpose, but focus less on one specific objective \u2014 moving like feathers rather than arrows. Being intentional in the way we build organizations pays off most when things are in flux. For example, I\u2019ve talked many times about the importance of cultivating a strong culture. But my belief isn\u2019t about culture for culture\u2019s sake. It\u2019s about running a solid business rooted in people-first ideas. The result: an organization equipped for whatever is thrown our way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Widen your moats<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your business is a castle surrounded by a moat<\/a>. Too many businesses focus on forces beyond their control rather than boosting existing competitive advantage (i.e., widening their moats) to take the most defensible position. The more secure your business is, the more secure your people will feel, and vice versa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does this look like? Coca Cola, for example, has a secret moat \u2014 their secret ingredient. During hard times they\u2019ve shined a light on it, leaning into what makes Coke more special than others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Brooks Bell we have a network moat, similar to that of YouTube \u2014 greater participation makes us stronger. As more content creators add videos, more viewers engage with the platform making it a richer body of content for all. Similarly, our insights ecosystem makes us special. As we generate insight for our clients,  business metrics improve, driving momentum within their organization to drive more insights. In recent years we\u2019ve relied on this cycle significantly, giving us a stronger competitive advantage. That\u2019s a moat built for wartime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you would like to request an invite to join our private Slack group for professionals in experimentation, personalization and research, apply here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Nurture integrity & talent<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many organizations say they will double down on people strategy. But blasting your staff with meaningless perks or increasing hires to check the box isn\u2019t effective. A strong people strategy means committing to helping employees find fulfillment and career progress. Organizations need to nurture people, their passions and their skills. Ways this could take shape include ensuring employees have time for non-work passions, prioritizing educational opportunities or accommodating varying work styles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This investment needs to happen under the backdrop of integrity. For us, supporting our people derives from our commitment to teams. Our chief of staff is responsible for organizational fitness, ensuring our actions measure up to our commitment to people. We build teams that can collaborate and have fun together, enabling continued training and knowledge sharing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Focus on the horizon, not the stream<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I touched on in the second point, CEOs need to focus on what\u2019s to come, not what\u2019s right in front of us. During \u201cwartimes,\u201d I think a lot about mistakes made in 2008, like chasing dollars to stay afloat or focusing on what\u2019s coming in the next month or quarter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

CEOs need to stand on elevated ground, looking at the next three mountains and charting a course to summit them. How everyone gets there is up to the team. Leaders need to empower their teams to cover that ground. If the team lacks confidence in the organizations\u2019 awareness of the outside world or if they lack the stability required to do good work, crossing streams will be challenging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Private companies, whatever their business, need to face global challenges head on. The old way of work-life separation is behind us \u2014 we bring all of ourselves everywhere we go. When chaos happens, leaders need to support employees first as empathetic leaders and then as tenacious, decisive CEOs who can guide the organization through it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Companies that can withstand uncertain times \u2014 like the overturning of Roe v. Wade or economic uncertainty \u2014 succeed by matching the pace of change, with leadership looking to the horizon while their teams cross the streams in front of them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s helped your company overcome times like these? How do you help your team cope with uncertainty so they can show up as their full selves? Let\u2019s connect and talk about it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Roe v. Wade was overturned at the end of June, people across the country experienced a range of emotions, … Continue ReadingTime for Another Wartime CEO Toolkit<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5770,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_social_preview_title":"","wp_social_preview_description":"","wp_social_preview_image":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[78],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-leadership"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5769","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5769"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5769\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5771,"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5769\/revisions\/5771"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5769"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5769"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/followgreg.com\/ftravel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5769"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}