The World is Changing, and So is the Way We Lead
A New Generation of Leaders Born from the COVID-19 Pandemic
Back in the thick of the pandemic, there was a phrase that permeated the airwaves — or some version of it — Do or die.
Heavy, I know.
Sadly, that’s what so many businesses and organizations felt to be true during that time, and we saw it play out over and over again. Today we look around and see near-ghost towns in some places and vibrant, thriving organizations and communities in others.
As we all experienced, ways of work and life had been disrupted at every turn, and things we relied on at a fundamental level (think resources, communication, other people) became inaccessible in one way or another, with only a hope of returning. The metaphorical rug was pulled out from beneath us, and in order to survive, we had to act in whatever ways were available to us.
And who was at the forefront of the vital, quick decisions and patched up processes and procedures that kept companies afloat and allowed teams to retain some semblance of sanity?
That’s right — leaders. You!
Whether team leaders, middle managers, executives, advisors, or anywhere in-between, leaders were given the unique challenge of managing others who were themselves managing a literal world of change –– a mental and emotional load perhaps not ever so heavily placed on leaders in that particular way before.
Now that we’re in the process of moving past the whirlwind of shutdowns, mandates, and health scares that ruled our lives for nearly three years, I think so many of us would like nothing more than to forget it completely — to get back to the world we knew before and cling to it with all we have.
I certainly see the appeal.
But of course, we can’t do that. Too many of us have lost people, have had important life milestones interrupted, and have struggled with the mental and emotional weight of simply being apart.
Rather than clinging to the past with false hopes of returning to the old normal, people are doing what people have often been known to do in difficult times: they are finding bright spots. Hope. They are re-evaluating what is most important. They are creating opportunities for themselves and their teams and defining a new way of leading.
I’ve seen so many leaders use this experience to humble themselves and create something good from the rubble. They have leaned into the new needs that developed on their teams and are using them as opportunities to emerge as stronger leaders than ever before. In doing so, they have created something pretty special: a generation of leaders characterized by folks who were challenged to lead while the world was shut down, and who — despite the lack of a roadmap or historical knowledge to lean on — are leading the new tomorrow.
NEW PARAMETERS FOR LEADERSHIP
A great example of this is that of a dear friend of mine, Holli.
Holli is co-founder of a sustainable apparel manufacturing company, Direct to Source, whose facility is based in Guatemala. In 2019, her company seemed to be well on its way: they were working with locals and providing them well-paying jobs; Holli was traveling there roughly every 4-6 weeks to meet with the team; and they’d just built a beautiful, expansive new facility for their employees to work in. In January of 2020, they’d built a brand new website to share their business with the world, making future plans and onboarding new customers.
And then less than three months later, in March of 2020, the world shut down.
“We were in panic mode,” Holli remembers. “We’d built new things, hired new people. Orders were getting canceled, and there was a government-mandated shutdown of factories in Guatemala… It was really scary.”
When Holli recalled being in those early moments of the pandemic, one of the biggest challenges was simply figuring out their next steps. The first thing they did was take care of their people; Holli recalls Tulio (beloved, late Partner at Direct to Source) making the decision to get bags of rice and beans for their employees, ensuring that despite the uncertainty, they would be able to feed their families. Beyond that, she and her leadership team were understandably at a loss for where to go from there.
But then a curious thing happened. Government officials in Holli’s home state of Colorado were working together to address the shortage of PPE during the time. Through a chain of connections, the conversation eventually reached Holli, whose team — though not able to provide the services they’d intended to provide before the pandemic — ended up being uniquely poised to help address the issue of a PPE shortage. While they didn’t actually end up aiding the state’s government with their needs, the situation did spark a conversation with the Guatemalan government, which then resulted in a partnership even more well-suited to her company’s unique set-up; instead of making apparel, her team would provide PPE for the local government (along with Engineers Without Borders!). Production was on, using the brand new facility they’d just built, which was plenty large enough for the social distancing standards that were required.
Though it wasn’t a turn Holli’s team had expected, they quickly shifted gears and put things into place to be able to meet these new objectives. Public transportation was shut down, so they rented a bus to pick up their employees for work. Even though the new facility was spacious enough for social distancing, they still had to conduct daily testing and temperature checks, so they hired an on-site nurse. The opportunity given to them wasn’t easy to grasp by a long shot, but grasp it they did. And because they did, not only were they able to reopen just two weeks after the shutdown began (while other factories remained closed), but they employed an additional 40 people on top of their original staff, providing living wages in a time when so many others were out of work.
“We supported 100 families,” Holli said. “and on top of that, we could pay electricity and the landlord, who gave us a huge discount. We joked that we made a profit of 25 cents.”
Though funds were certainly tight throughout their time operating in this way, their team was able to see a light at the end of the tunnel, while many companies hadn’t survived long enough to do so. “When the US started wanting apparel again, we were open,” Holli pointed out. “We’d made it, when so many hadn’t.”
What I think is so special about Holli’s story is that, in fact – and as she herself pointed out during our conversation – I don’t think her team did anything particularly special at all. At least, not in the sense of following a complex strategy or innovation that hadn’t been thought of before. On the contrary, what they did was very simple indeed, and perhaps even intuitive: they leaned into their values and prioritized the wellness of their most vital resource – their people. They took the next best step, over and over again, and when an opportunity arose that allowed them to survive and support their team, they ran with it. They mobilized. They tossed out the status quo, let go of what they thought they knew, drew up new plans, communicated, and supported each other through the changes. And their company lived to tell the tale.
Though their journey was anything but easy — Holli will tell you that the human elements of dealing with pain, fear, and deep personal loss were very much a part of their journey — she says that the experience taught her something significant about leadership.
“My whole philosophy was I’ll just outwork everyone else,” she said. “That served me well for a lot of years. I think my biggest change coming out of the pandemic is that that doesn’t work anymore. You can’t just work harder… There are so many things we just can’t control.” She went on to say, “Not everything is my responsibility. I think what that’s allowing is for others to lead and take the helm. When our dear Tulio (Co-Founder and Ana’s [business partner] husband) died, everyone in the factory rallied. They literally took turns doing whatever Ana needed – picking up the kids, bringing lunch… I think when you allow people that space, the response you generally get is pretty amazing.”
Amazing, indeed.
THE GAP
There are, thankfully, many stories that share themes with Holli’s – hope, resilience, teamwork, innovation. But even still, there are stories of leaders who had less support, fewer resources, or just less experience to lean on, but who were called on to lead in the midst of the pandemic anyway.
Based on conversations I’ve had with clients, family, friends, and others who shared their stories with me — what often resulted from this was a gap between leaders; specifically between the habits and mindsets of leaders who were established prior to the pandemic, and those of leaders who either stepped into their first-ever leadership roles or moved to new teams during the pandemic.
As a number of our clients put it, stepping into a leadership role during the pandemic meant that there was no sense of normalcy to compare to or fall back on; these leaders were thrown into the deep end from day one, with little time for normal onboarding, training, or even niceties like bonding time with their new teams. Instead of having time to ease into their roles, build relationships with their teams, and develop processes that worked for everyone, they were required to respond out of crisis mode just to keep things afloat…a state that they are just now truly emerging from.
The lack of resources or guidance led to a sense of disempowerment – a sense that they couldn’t change or create processes that aligned with the needs of their team members and the new world that was forced upon them. This put even more pressure on these new leaders facing unprecedented issues, and resulted in the perfect storm of immobilization and frustration between tenured leaders and their less experienced peers.
“It’s so obvious what I had been trapped in,” one of our clients said, reflecting on what it had been like being a newly appointed leader during the pandemic. As he recently left that organization, it is now so clear to him. “Stress, anger, and blame showed up physiologically. My chiropractor said it was like a switch as soon as I left. My physical body and energetic field went from stress and anger…to zen overnight.”
After leaving his role to care for his own mental and physical health, he learned something valuable about the type of leader he now endeavors to be. “I realized how important the people who I work with are, rather than the work itself,” he said. “Relationships are more important than what I do for work.”
People and organizational culture, in other words, rank higher than the job description.
And my client isn’t alone in his thinking. In 2022, the American Psychological Association conducted a ‘Work and Well-being Survey’; they found that 81% of workers agreed that how employers support mental health would be an important factor as they consider future work opportunities.
We have lived through something deeply destabilizing, something that has made its mark on what we value most both in our personal lives and at work. And it will be largely up to our leaders to put these values into action in order to support the people-focused version of the workplace we all want to see well into the future.
WE COULD BE STRONGER THAN EVER
Both stories tell me something hopeful about the state of leadership now and, perhaps more importantly, what it could be in the future. Those people and companies that were fortunate enough to withstand the pandemic undoubtedly learned humility, nimbleness, and the importance of human connection. New leaders thrown into the thick of things learned the vital importance of human-centered processes and team values that support the whole person, along with the value of structured leadership development and mentorship.
Regardless of where they were before the pandemic, many leaders came away from it with more clarity on what matters most – people. When you are working alongside others with a shared mission and values, you can solve the most challenging of problems, even in the most difficult of situations.
Now that we’re on a path to creating our new normal in the workplace, it’s time to take a collective deep breath. To bridge the gap. To reset our approaches to both leadership and our teams.
We at Integrated Growth specialize in guiding teams of all sizes to becoming healthy, high performing teams, helping them to build effective strategies and team cohesion based on organizational values that serve both profit and people.
Reach out today to learn more about what we do and how we might benefit your team – we love making new connections and re-establishing connections from the past!
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AUTHOR – Gretchen Reid is the Founder and Chief Change and Leadership Architect for Integrated Growth. She has spent over 25 years coaching leaders and creating award-winning Leadership and Talent Development Programs, directly contributing to multiple awards for her clients, including Fast Company’s 50 Most Innovative Companies, Forbes America’s Best Employers List, Forbes Best Employer for Diversity, and ASTD BEST. She is an Adjunct Professor of Change Management in the Strategic HR Masters Program, Denver University, University College. (MS, Career and Human Resource Development, Rochester Institute of Technology, BA, Psychology & Business Management, University of Rochester)