The ten year boom just went bust! The sound of that full-blown balloon you just let fly is the sound of the world economies losing air and falling to earth. So many companies have been operating at full capacity for years, always looking to hire in order to meet the demands of the market. Whether a coffee shop, sporting goods store, tech giant, startup or an established traditional business model, companies have been in a constant “Now Hiring” phase since 2012, if not earlier. A traditional leadership model would have a company replace the bottom ten percent of their employee’s annually in an effort to cut the fat and hire anew to improve overall caliber of the organization. This practice was mostly thrown out the window during the ten year growth we’re coming out of because those same companies just needed bodies to maintain current business, much less grow.

Now What?
Business owners and leaders will lock themselves in the board room to evaluate, recalibrate, and shift gears in order to remain relevant in the Post-COVID Economy. Business plans that were developed as recently as six months ago are likely obsolete. The new business strategy will prioritize future crisis management; revisit core values; remain relevant and competitive during economic recovery; evaluate and reset employment contracts; align with key vendors and alliance partners; develop and initiate the new marketing plan; identify pricing strategy and establish priorities around customer retention.

Guerilla Marketing Tactics
The time is now to evaluate your brand, be it personal, or business, or both. Many will have to look at their product or service to determine its relevance going forward. For those that need to pivot, start immediately! For those who are able to maintain the course, start immediately! Be certain your message is clear and that it’s reflected in your branding. Take your message to the market through social media, relevant print/online media, and through your sales and business development channels now!

Customer Service Rises Again
Rising from the depths of the pending recession will require a philosophy of exceptional customer service. This goes beyond the traditional sense in that the customer is defined in many ways. Not only is it the buyer of your products or services, but, it is the operations team working for the operations manager (and vice versa). It’s the inside sales rep doing her best to maximize sales for her employer; her employer is her customer as well. In a typical sales organization, the sales team is the customer to the sales manager. And, employees will be as much the customer to the organization as management is the customer to the rank and file. There’s no excuse for bad customer service; customers will be more valuable than ever on the other side of this.

Crucified by Complacency
There’s no excuse not to be better. One thing we all have a bit more of right now, is uninterrupted time. Focus on personal development; come out of this crisis stronger and more prepared. Revisit your personal goals, core values and principals and don’t be afraid to reset some or all based on current and past experiences. Companies will have to be better and find areas for improvement in order to remain relevant and solvent during the recovery. Complacency has been tolerated of late, only because organizations have been operating too lean for the most part. No longer will bad, or average service be acceptable, whether through the barista or from the customer service representative from the local hardware store. Complacency left unchecked will lead to personal and business demise.

Focused Balance
It’s hard for me to believe that our personal values and priorities will remain the same after experiencing this crisis. Our health and longevity revolve around work/life balance such that we remain physically and mentally healthy, which includes personal and family fulfilment. It means optimizing your calendar for the best use of your time during your “business hours”. However, regardless of your craft, you will have to hone your skills; maximize your effectiveness; know your product, service, and customer better than anyone; and, just be better overall than the other options out there.

Easter – Although the origin of the word ‘Easter’ isn’t certain, an 8th century monk suggested the word came from Eeostre or Eastre, a Tuetonic goddess of Spring and fertility. Another possibility is the Norse eostur, eastur, or ostara, which meant “the season of the growing sun” or “the season of new birth.” In this case, easter would be linked to the changing of the season.

A more recent and complex explanation comes from the Christian background of Easter rather than the pagan. The early Latin name for the week of Easter translates to “white week,” while the Sunday after Easter day was named for the white robes of those who had been newly baptized. People speaking Old High German made a mistake in their translation and used a plural word for dawn instead of a plural for white. From the Latin word “ostarun” we get the German Ostern and the English Easter translation.

Regardless of its true origin, your interpretation, or your faith, I think you’ll agree that we are all pulling for a season of new birth and for the resurrection of a vibrant life without the Corona Virus. The world changed with the arrival of COVID-19. We as a society have an opportunity to unite and rise stronger and with greater worldwide love for humanity. As you and your company are retooling for the future, please do so around core values that resonate within and throughout the world.

We wish you a Happy Easter and a successful changing of the “season”.