Turning crisis into opportunity: Update your values for today’s world

As organisations continue to navigate around the COVID-19 pandemic, they may wish to pause and ask, “Are my existing values fit for purpose in a world of remote working, virtual meetings, and where managers are having to work with and manage people in totally different ways?”

Laurence Smith, Chartered Fellow CIPD, and a thought leader in digital mindset and transformation, explained, “In this time of crisis, you may be re-evaluating your corporate values, realising that people are not really living them – or that they don’t suit today’s reality – and are therefore evolving them to align with this new world.

“If you’re changing how you work, manage and lead, then you need to evolve your organisation’s values, and this definitely needs to be a collaborative virtual process involving as many employees as possible, so it is something they really own, and not just ‘buy into’.”

In his upcoming new book, Transformation Mindset: 10 Things Leaders should be Doing Today to turn Crisis into Opportunity, Smith urged organisations to have clearly defined and inspiring values that drive real behaviour, and which are lived by their leaders and supported by systems and HR processes.

And as they continue to operate under crisis conditions, he encouraged companies to continue to collect, communicate and share great examples of people going above and beyond in customer service and business growth.

“Empowered, self-directed teams with appropriate executive sponsorship can have a big impact on employee morale, engagement and experience by helping evolve the values to better suit the new organisation you are becoming and the behaviours you all need to succeed,” Smith concluded.