Smollan COVID-Leadership-Guide April2020 · 2020. 4. 23. · TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUR...

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www.smollan.com TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUR LEADERSHIP GUIDE SMOLLAN LEADERSHIP GUIDE A DEFINING LEADERSHIP MOMENT. Stay safe. Stay connected. We’re in this together. We are in a unique time in human history where leadership will play an extraordinary role in countries, communities, companies, families and organisations. How we lead now and into the weeks and months to come, will be critical to navigate through this crisis. There has never been a more important time to step up. We have created this document to help. There are no rules for a situation like this, but we wanted to share our best thinking on guiding principles for approaching this crisis. We set out our best advice for leadership behaviours, tips for managing yourselves and your teams remotely and staying connected to the business and to one another. Our mandate during the COVID-19 outbreak is, as far as possible, to prioritise people over profit and commit our resources to supporting our teams in the field at this challenging time. At times like this we must carry on...we have a vital role to play in society right now. I ask you to lead with courage, compassion, composure and decisiveness. It’s our time to serve. Let’s bring our A-game! As always, if you have questions please feel free to write to me.

Transcript of Smollan COVID-Leadership-Guide April2020 · 2020. 4. 23. · TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUR...

Page 1: Smollan COVID-Leadership-Guide April2020 · 2020. 4. 23. · TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUR LEADERSHIP GUIDE SMOLLAN LEADER HIP GUIDE A DEFINING LEADERSHIP MOMENT. Stay safe. Stay connected.

1www.smollan.com

TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

OURLEADERSHIPGUIDE

SMOLLAN LEADERSHIP GUIDE

A DEFINING LEADERSHIP MOMENT.

Stay safe. Stay connected. We’re in this together.

We are in a unique time in human history where leadership will play an extraordinary role in countries, communities, companies, families and organisations. How we lead now and into the weeks and months to come, will be critical to navigate through this crisis.

There has never been a more important time to step up.

We have created this document to help. There are no rules for a situation like this, but we wanted to share our best thinking on guiding principles for approaching this crisis. We set out our best advice for leadership behaviours, tips for managing yourselves and your teams remotely and staying connected to the business and to one another.

Our mandate during the COVID-19 outbreak is, as far as possible, to prioritise people over profi t and commit our resources to supporting our teams in the fi eld at this challenging time. At times like this we must carry on...we have a vital role to play in society right now. I ask you to lead with courage, compassion, composure and decisiveness. It’s our time to serve. Let’s bring our A-game!

As always, if you have questions please feel free to write to me.

Page 2: Smollan COVID-Leadership-Guide April2020 · 2020. 4. 23. · TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUR LEADERSHIP GUIDE SMOLLAN LEADER HIP GUIDE A DEFINING LEADERSHIP MOMENT. Stay safe. Stay connected.

CORONA PANDEMIC APRIL 2020

FAST FACTS ABOUT COVID-19

WHY IS OUR ROLE SO IMPORTANT

OUR GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR LEADING IN CHALLENGING TIMES

LEADERSHIP BEHAVIOURS

COMMUNICATIONS FRAMEWORK

TOP 3 TIPS FOR HOSTING VIRTUAL MEETINGS

LOOKING AFTER YOURSELF

LOOKING AFTER OTHERS

REMOTE WORKING TIPS

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CONTENTS

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FAST FACTS ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS AND WHY YOU SHOULD KEEP REINFORCING

Droplets Cough

Breath

Contact

Coronavirus transmission is from human to human

Clear communication and constant reinforcement of the key messages and facts about the Coronavirus, will result in less spread and keep our people safe.

Please ensure that your teams know the facts and how they can protect themselves. You cannot reinforce enough!

HOW IS THE CORONAVIRUS TRANSMITTED?r

The Coronavirus is transferred through droplets.

rSymptomsmay appea

between

fromexposure

2-14 days

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS TO WATCH OUT FOR?

Headache High fever

Runny Nose Trouble breathing

Sore throat or cough Pneumonia

Muscle Pain Sepsis

CommonSymptoms

PotentialComplications

Coronaviruses usually cause mild tomoderate upper respiratory tract illness

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CORONA PANDEMIC APRIL 20205

HOW TO PREVENT THE TRANSMISSION OF THE CORONAVIRUS?

rThe most effective means of prevention of COVID-19 are:

Frequently washing your hands using alcohol-based hand sanitizer or soap and water (for 20 seconds)

Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth

Avoid shaking hands with people

Cleaning frequently touched surfaces as viruses can last up to 24 hours on objects.

Social distancing - avoiding public spaces and limiting movement of people.

These measures help “fl atten the curve” by slowing down the rate of transmission to ensure that the health care systems across the world are not overwhelmed by a sudden spike in demand.

MYTH VERSUS FACT:

Please ensure you are sharing information with your teams from reliable sources like the World Health Organisation, the Centre for disease control and Government authorities.

FLATTENING THE CURVE

1m 1m

Collective action can limit the rise of the new COVID-19 infections and help hospitals manage increased demand for care.

PROTECTIVE MEASURES

Personal: Hygiene & Safety Measures

Community: Social Distancing

Environmental: Cleaning surfaces

No intervention

With intervention

HEALTH CARE SYSTEM CAPACITY

TIME

CA

SES

Source: CDC

A vaccine to cure COVID-19 is available

It can be transmitted through mosquito bites

Eating garlic can prevent infection

Antibiotics can treat the virus

MYTH:It cannot be transmitted through goods manufactured in China or any other country reporting COVID-19 cases

People of all ages can be affected

Washing your hands often, not touching your face, and staying home when you are sick is the best form of prevention.

FACT:

SMOLLAN LEADERSHIP GUIDE6

WHY IS OUR ROLE SO IMPORTANT?

In a crisis, the most basic essentials, that we frequently take for granted, keep a society working i.e. if there is no food and related necessity products, there will be disorder.

The primary form of food distribution is retail.

Our role is critical in making sure there is product availability. If we do this well, we reduce the possibility of disorder.

Obviously, we are not the only ones who are responsible for this, but we play an important role.

What’s more, we can go beyond the call of our normal duties to assist those who are perhaps not as well-resourced or prepared as we are.

THIS IS A TIME TO COLLABORATE IN SERVICE OF THE GREATER GOOD.

We have identifi ed leadership and behavioural principles that will be key in navigating the business and our teams through this crisis.

These principles should be refl ected in all our decision making and actions across the business during this time.

OUR GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR LEADING IN CHALLENGING TIMES

TO THE BEST OF OUR ABILITY, WE WILL PRIORITISE THE WELL-BEING OF OUR PEOPLE (AT LARGE) OVER PROFIT

To play our role in this crisis, we must ensure we are able to operate and keep essential products available for consumers to buy.

We will not actively condone the sale of goods or services at a premium due to increased demand.

THE ENTIRE BUSINESS WILL ALIGN ACTIVITY TO SUPPORT OUR HEROES ON THE FRONT LINES

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We will invest in the necessary resources to keep our teams as safe as possible.

Teams across the business must prioritise activities and “jobs to be done” that support our fi eld teams at this time.

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CORONA PANDEMIC APRIL 20207

LEADERSHIP BEHAVIOURS

REMEMBER THAT SUCCESS

IS GETTING THROUGH

THIS CRISIS TOGETHER.

PatientOpenComposedTransparent

EmpatheticKindNon-judgementalConsistent

BE:

Leading teams in times of crisis requires emotional intelligence. The behaviours we need to demonstrate to keep our people engaged, optimistic, and secure at this time are as follows:

BUILD MORALE5

Be a source of reassurance during this time. Our teams must carry on. We will get through this if we work together.

Say thank you, give feedback often and encourage your team. Everyone is doing their best.

BE DECISIVE AND EMPOWER OTHERS TO DO THE SAME6

Trust yourselves to make the best decisions you can with the information available. In times of crisis, your best decision is likely to be good enough.

Trust your teams and give them the confi dence to make decisions and act as well. To be agile, we must enable our teams.

BE COMPOSED AND RATIONAL 3

People will look to you for direction and support.

Ensure your actions and words break the spread of negative, unproductive emotional cycles by reinforcing facts, reason and composure.

STAY CONNECTED4

Engage with your team regularly and ask them how they are both in a personal and work capacity. Make time for people.

Collaborate actively by staying in touch with what is happening across markets, functions and business units and offer support where you can.

IT IS EASY TO LEAD IN GOOD TIMES - TOUGH TIMES ARE DEFINING MOMENTS FOR ANY

LEADER - GREAT LEADERS STEP UP IN TOUGH TIMES.

GEORGE HENDERSON

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COMMUNICATION GUIDELINES

For example:

We must establish new norms for how we communicate to stay connected with one another in this diffi cult time. Be deliberate about plotting and scheduling your interaction with people over this time.

We have created guidelines for the tone and frequency of communication with your key stakeholders. In times of disruption, a checklist is critical to stay on track.

Understand who your key stakeholders are.

Set up a matrix for how frequently you will communicate and engage with all your stakeholders. We recommend that your frequency of engagement increases at this time.

STEP 1

STEP 2

YOURTEAM

YOURPEERS

YOUR LINE MANAGER

YOUR CUSTOMERS /

CLIENTS

YOUR FAMILY AND

FRIENDS

Establish the best technology tools and platforms to use.

STEP 3

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CORONA PANDEMIC APRIL 20209

Example of a communication matrix:

YOUR TEAM Daily informal communication

Friendly and empathetic. WhatsApp / instant messenger, telephonic or email.

Weekly check-ins / status updates

More formal, authoritative and direct.

MS Teams; Zoom; Lifesize or other VC facility.

YOUR PEERS Weekly Empathetic, encouraging, informative.

WhatsApp; email; telephonic.

YOUR CLIENTS/CUSTOMERS Daily informal communication.

Informative and encouraging.

WhatsApp / instant messenger, telephonic or email.

Weekly updates Professional, open and decisive.

MS Teams; Zoom; Lifesize or other VC facility.

YOUR LINE MANAGER Weekly updates Open and honest. MS Teams; Zoom; Lifesize or other VC facility.

YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS This is based on your personal context, but we recommend touching base with your loved ones every day, as this time can be lonely for people.

YOUR TEAM

YOUR PEERS

YOUR CLIENTS/CUSTOMERS

YOUR LINE MANAGER

YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS

FREQUENCY OF COMMUNICATION

TONE OF COMMUNICATION PLATFORM TO BE USEDSTAKEHOLDER

Create your own communication matrix:

FREQUENCY OF COMMUNICATION

TONE OF COMMUNICATION PLATFORM TO BE USEDSTAKEHOLDER

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VIRTUAL MEETING FACILITATION TIPS

TIPS TO MAKE IT EASIER:

Schedule it in send meeting requests

Be aware of your mood you can inadvertently energise or defl ate others

Engage socially too virtual coffee breaks or lunch.

*Houseparty is a fun social app where you can chat, play quizzes etc. with friends.

All our meetings over the next while will be virtual. We have compiled some tips on how to run and participate in video conference meetings as effectively as possible.

We’ve put together some useful tips on how to run better virtual meetings and keep your teams and clients engaged,

motivated and connected.

SET AND KEEP THE GROUND RULESAt the start of meetings, agree that people will not respond to calls and messages on their phones (unless absolutely necessary), check emails or multitask.

USE VIDEORequest that where possible, people turn their video functions on.

CONVEY WARMTH AND PRESENCE Create warmth visually by looking directly into the camera as often as possible so it appears as though you are making “eye contact” with participants.

MINIMISE PRESENTATION LENGTH Leave more time for discussion when using video conferencing. It is diffi cult for people to engage in a presentation for a long period of time.

IF YOU’RE HOSTING, ARRIVE ON THE CALL EARLY

Virtual meetings can feel impersonal. To create a personal

connection, arrive early on the call so that you can greet people

as they join the call.

BEGIN WITH THE END IN MINDClearly state the objective of the meeting at the onset of

the call so participants are aware of the desired end

results of the meeting.

MAKE IT INTERACTIVE Make presentations and

meetings interactive by calling on people for commentary or

questions. You can also use the chat function.

Page 6: Smollan COVID-Leadership-Guide April2020 · 2020. 4. 23. · TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUR LEADERSHIP GUIDE SMOLLAN LEADER HIP GUIDE A DEFINING LEADERSHIP MOMENT. Stay safe. Stay connected.

CORONA PANDEMIC APRIL 202011

LOOKING AFTER YOURSELF

It is human nature in times of uncertainty to have your mind go to the worst-case scenario, creating anxiety and fear. Anxiety clutters our minds and keeps us from seeing clearly the best course of action.

There are a few useful tools to overcome this tendency and structure your thoughts, energy and time in constructive and healthy ways. Invest in yourself, so that you have the capacity and ability to invest in others.

CALM THE MIND1

Mindfulness is a key tool for building mental resilience. It is the skill of noticing your thoughts, unhooking from the non-constructive ones and rebalancing quickly. There are several apps available to help increase your mindfulness.

TAKE BREAKS

CONNECT WITH OTHERS

COMMIT TO SOME FORM OF EXERCISE

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Regularly take time for yourself to refl ect and think by removing yourself from the work environment you’ve created in your space. Sit quietly, have a cup of tea/coffee or take a moment to look out the window.

Human beings are social by nature. Look for opportunities to make meaningful connections with people virtually. Call a friend or family member or send a colleague a message to see how they are doing. Socially distancing doesn’t have to mean emotionally distancing.

Looking after your mental health includes looking after your physical health too. You can use bodyweight training programmes, freely available online. We’ve included some free resources below...

Mindfulness Apps

Journaling Apps

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Yoga

www.doyogawithme.com

www.tream.com/pilates

Pilates

Turbulance Training Livestrong

Fitness classes

YouTube/bodyproject

HIIT

Please click on the links to view the websites:

Do each workout for 30 seconds

TAKE IT ONE DAY AT A TIME5

Our brains are hardwired to plan for the future. This is frequently a cause of anxiety, especially in uncertain times. Try and remind yourself to deal with things one day at a time and be fl exible in your approach.

7 MINUTE WORKOUT

JUMPING JACKS WALL SIT PUSH UP

AB CRUNCH

TRICEPS DIP

HIGH KNEE RUNNING LUNGE PUSH-UP AND ROTATION

PLANK SIDE PLANK

STEP-UP SQUAT

Page 7: Smollan COVID-Leadership-Guide April2020 · 2020. 4. 23. · TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUR LEADERSHIP GUIDE SMOLLAN LEADER HIP GUIDE A DEFINING LEADERSHIP MOMENT. Stay safe. Stay connected.

CORONA PANDEMIC APRIL 202013

LOOKING AFTER OTHERS

REMOTE WORKING TIPS

Fear and anxiety are two emotions that spread easily from one person to another. As leaders, it is our responsibility to break the spread of negative, unproductive emotional cycles.

Tips for reassuring your team in times of crisis:

IT IS EASY TO BECOME SELF-

INVOLVED IN TIMES OF CRISIS

– REMEMBER NOT TO LOSE

FOCUS ON YOUR TEAMS.PAUSE AND BREATHE

PUT YOURSELF IN YOUR AUDIENCE’S SHOES

SPEAK CLEARLY AND CONFIDENTLY

HAVE SPECIFIC NEXT STEPS

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Have a calm and rational demeanour with teams and clients. They will take their cues from you.

Understand who you are communicating with and what their concerns, questions and interests are and address them.

It is possible to speak with confi dence even without 100% certainty. Be transparent about what you do and don’t know, and what you are doing to fi nd out more.

Provide your team with tangible action items. Next steps give people a sense of control.

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IN CLOSINGAs the leadership team, we have an important role to play in guiding our people and our business through this crisis.

Already, we have seen our teams across the world step up to the plate and take on the challenge of responding to this unprecedented crisis collaboratively, with purpose and commendable dedication.

I would like to thank each and every one of you for the exceptional work you have been doing.

May this document serve as additional support for you and your leadership teams in continuing to navigate our business through this crisis with compassion, agility and commitment.

Times like these sharply bring into focus what really matters. Family, love, kindness, health, people, community and purpose. Let these be central in how we lead and serve one another and all of society at this time. We have a big and important job to do and together we will get through it.

A note from George Henderson.

Page 8: Smollan COVID-Leadership-Guide April2020 · 2020. 4. 23. · TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUR LEADERSHIP GUIDE SMOLLAN LEADER HIP GUIDE A DEFINING LEADERSHIP MOMENT. Stay safe. Stay connected.

REFERENCES:

Brewer, J., 2020. Anxiety Is Contagious. Here’s How to Contain It, Harvard Business Review.Edmondson, A.C., 2020. Don’t Hide Bad News in Times of Crisis, Harvard Business Review.Frisch, B., Greene, C., 2020. What It Takes to Run a Great Virtual Meeting, Harvard Business Review.George, B., Sims, P., McLean, A.N., Mayer, D., 2007. Discovering Your Authentic Leadership. Harvard Business Review.Goleman, D., 2008, Emotionally Intelligent Leadership, Harvard Business Review, 2nd Edition.Hale, J., Grenny, J., 2020. How to Get People to Actually Participate in Virtual Meetings, Harvard Business Review.Hartley, J., Benington, J., 2010, The capabilities of Leadership, Bristol University Press.Hougaard, R., Carter, J., Mohan, M., 2020. Build Your Resilience in the Face of a Crisis, Harvard Business Review.Markman, A., 2020. Slow Down to Make Better Decisions in a Crisis, Harvard Business Review.Molinsky, A., 2020. Virtual Meetings Don’t Have to Be a Bore, Harvard Business Review.Neeley, T., 2020. 15 Questions About Remote Work, Answered, Harvard Business Review.Reeves, M., Lang, N., Carlsson-Szlezak, P., 2020. Lead Your Business Through the Coronavirus Crisis, Harvard Business Review.Shapira, A., 2020. How to Reassure Your Team When the News Is Scary, Harvard Business Review.Taylor, B., 2020. How bad times bring out the best in people, Harvard Business Review.Useem, M., 2010. Four lessons in adaptive leadership, Harvard Business Review.

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