2021全球弹性组织报告

Contents

TOC\o"1-5"\h\z

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LetterfromtheDeloitteGlobalCEO 2

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Introduction 3

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Attributesofresilience 5

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Prepared 5

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Adaptable 8

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Collaborative 12

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Trustworthy 14

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Responsible 17

Sidebar:Thedisruptionsof2020haveshapedCXOs'perceptions 20

oftopsocietalissues

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Movingforward 22

Endnotes 23

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Methodology 24

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Acknowledgments 24

Resilienceinanageofdisruption

LetterfromtheDeloitteGlobalCEO

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isruptioncancreepliketheoceansrisingtideorsuddenlyoverwhelmlikeastormsurge.Onrareoccasions,asthepast12monthsharshlyremindedus,itcandobothatthesametime.

Feworganizationswereadequatelypreparedfbrtheturmoilthatinundatedglobalmarketsin2020.Theconfluenceofaglobalhealthpandemic,socialandpoliticalunrest,andworseningclimateeventsupendedtheprivateandpublicsectorsaroundtheworld.Mountingchallengesduringtheyearexpandedtheconceptofpreparednessinwaysmanyleadersdidn'tanticipateandpressuredtheminwaysmanycouldn'timagine.

Forthisreport,DeloitteGlobalsurveyed2,260private-andpublic-sectorCXOsin21countriesandspoketoC-suiteexecutivesacrossmultipleindustriestoexaminehowleadersandtheirorganizationsaregrapplingwiththeunewnormaPastheyfacetoughchoices,explorenewwaysofoperating,andconfrontfundamentalshiftsintheirstrategies.

TheseareimportantissuesbecausemostglobalCXOsbelieve2020maynotbeanoutlier.

Morethansixin10ofthosewesurveyedsaidtheythinkwe'relikelytoseeeitheroccasionalorregulardisruptionsofthisscalegoingforward,andthreequarterssaidtheybelievetheclimatecrisisisofsimilarorgreatermagnitudecomparedtotheCOVID-19pandemic.

Ultimately,thisisastudyofresilience.Itconfirmsthatorganizationsthatplanandinvestinanticipationofdisruption—whetherit'sgradualtransformationorasuddenpandemic-arebetterpositionedtoadapt,rebound,andendure.Itvalidatesthenotionthatanounceofpreventionisworthapoundofcure.Anditoffersprovenlessonsfbrincreasingorganizations'viabilityandhealthduringadversity.

PunitRenjen

DeloitteGlobalCEO

Introduction

Whatdoresilientorganizationslooklike?

"Onceyou'vegonethroughaperiodofdisruptiononthescalethatwehavein2020andseenhowyoucanbemoreresilient,itreallychangesyou.Youseehowresiliencecanmakeyourbusinessmoreflexible,adaptable,andforward-thinking,andyoucan'tgobacktohowitwasbefore."

—GregTretiak,executivevicepresidentandCFO,PowerCorporationofCanada

I

NTHEWAKEofatumultuous2020,DeloitteGlobaFsfourthannualreadinessreportexplorestheconceptoforganizationalresilience.

Wewantedtoknowhoworganizationswerecopingwiththeunexpectedchallengestheyfacedinthepastyearandtaptheiropinionsaboutwhatmadetheirorganizationsmoreorlessabletowithstandchaos.Fromthatanalysis,wesoughttoidentifywhattraitsdefineresilientorganizations—traitsbusinessleaderscanemulatetobuildgreaterresilienceintotheirowncompanies.

Weidentifiedfiveattributesofresilientorganizationsthatenableandpromotenimblestrategies,adaptivecultures,andtheimplementationandeffectiveuseofadvancedtechnology.Businessesthatcanbouncebackfromunexpectedchallengestypicallyare:

Prepared.MostsuccessfulCXOsplanforalleventualities,bothshortandlongterm.

Morethan85%ofCXOswhoseorganizationssuccessfullybalanceaddressingshort-andlong-termprioritiesfelttheyhadpivotedveryeffectivelytoadapttotheeventsof2020,whereasfewerthanhalfoforganizationswithoutthatbalancefeltthesame.

Adaptable.Leadersrecognizetheimportanceofhavingversatileemployees,especiallyafterayearlike2020.Tothatend,flexibility/adaptabilitywas,byfar,theworkforcetrait

CXOssaidwasmostcriticaltotheirorganizations5futures.

Collaborative.CXOsindicatedtheimportanceofcollaborationwithintheirorganizations,notingthatitspeddecision-making,mitigatedrisk,andledtomoreinnovation.Infact,removingsilosandincreasingcollaborationwasoneofthetopstrategicactionsCXOstookbeforeandduring2020.

Trustworthy.CXOsunderstandthechallengeofbuildingtrust.MorethanathirdofrespondingCXOswerenotconfidenttheirorganizationshaddonegoodjobsdevelopingtrustbetweenleadersandemployees.Thosewhoaresucceedingarefocusingonimprovingcommunicationandtransparencywithkeystakeholders,aswellasleadingwithempathy.

Responsible.MostCXOsacknowledgethatthebusinessworldhasaresponsibilitybeyondthebottomline.Eighty-sevenpercentofsurveyedCXOswhosaidtheyhavedoneverywellatbalancingalloftheirstakeholders'needsalsofeltthattheirorganizationscouldquicklyadaptandpivotinresponsetodisruptiveevents.That'snearly50percentagepointsmorethantheproportionofCXOswhosaidthesameatorganizationsthathaven'tdonewellatbalancingtheirstakeholders'needs.

Mostresilientorganizationsfocusonallofthesetraitstosomedegree,notjustoneortwoofthem.Inpart,thisisbecausethesecharacteristicsoftenoverlapandsupportoneanother.Forinstance,companiesthatpracticestakeholdercapitalismalmostsurelyarefocusedontrustworthinessandethicalbehavior.

Further,thesefiveattributesaren'timmutable,nordotheyjustoccurorganically.Theyrequiredesire,effort,investment,andactiontocultivateandmaintain.Thesurveysuggeststhatorganizationsthatdeliberatelybuildtheseattributesintotheirmindsetsandculturesarebetterpositionedtoovercomedisruptionsandhelpusherina“betternormaドpost-pandemic.Forexample,CXOswhosaidtheirorganizationshaddoneverywellincultivatingresilientcultureswereaboutthreetimesmorelikelythanthoselackingresilientculturestosaytheyweatheredtheeventsof2020well.

Perhapsmostimportantly,thedatasuggeststhatspeedmatters.OrganizationsthatmadeearlyinvestmentsinresilientstrategiesduringtheCOVID-19crisis—orevenbetter,hadalreadymadestrategic,workforce,andtechnologyinvestmentsincapabilitiesthatenhanceresilience-outperformedtheircompetition.Thisfindingpointstoafundamentallessonthatthepandemicbroughthome:thatresilienceisasmuchaboutthinkingaheadasitisaboutdoingwhatittakestorespondandrecoverfromacrisis.

Leaderscan'tbesuretheirorganizationsaretrulyresilientuntilthey'retestedbyadversity.

Thetoughestandmostimportanttestmosthaveevertakenarrivedin2020andconfirmedforsomeCXOsthattheirorganizationsaremoreresilientthantheyrealized.Before2020,only24%ofCXOsfeltcompletelyreadytoleadthroughpotentialdisruptions,andonly21%feltcompletelyconfidenttheirorganizationscouldquicklyadaptandpivot,ifneeded.Inthemidstofthepandemic,however,thesenumbersjumpedto34%and30%,respectively,indicatingthattheeventsof2020havegivensomeCXOsaconfidenceboostabouttheirorganizations'—andtheirown—resilience.Yet,thatstillleaves66%ofCXOswhodon'tfeelcompletelyreadytoleadand70%whodon'thavecompleteconfidenceintheirorganizations'abilitytopivotandadapttodisruptiveevents.

Attributesofresilience

Prepared

"Whenthepandemichit,oneofthefirstthingswedidwaspulltogetheracross-functionalteamtobuildanumberofprotocols-thingsthatwethoughtwemightneed.Wedidn'tactuallyknowweweregoingtoneedthemuntilweclosedtheoffices,atwhichpointwewereveryrelievedwe'dplannedaheadandformultiplescenarios."

—HollieCastro,seniorvicepresidentofTalentandESG,YETI

It'snosecretthateffectivemanagementinthebusinessworldispredicatedonstrategyandpreparation.Likeachessgrandmaster,asuccessfulCXOthinksseveralmovesahead,setslong-termgoalsforfutureplays,andassessesrisksandopportunitiesbasedonanarrayofpotentialscenariosandthecompetitivelandscape.

Theorganizationsthatanticipateandplanaheadfordisruption,challenges,andopportunitieswillalmostcertainlybethemostresilient.

PREPAREDNESSMEANSACTINGEARLY

ThemostsuccessfulCXOsplanfbralleventualities,bothshortandlongterm.Oursurveyfoundthatmorethan85%ofCXOswhoseorganizationssuccessfullybalanceaddressingshort-andlong-termprioritiesfelttheyhadpivotedveryeffectivelytoadapttotheeventsof2020,whereasfewerthanhalfoforganizationswithoutthatbalancefelttheirorganizationsadaptedwell.

Togetasenseofwhatenabledbusinessresiliencebefore,during,andafter2020'sdisruptiveevents,weaskedleaderstotelluswhatkeyactionsthey'dalreadytakenorwereplanningtotakeinmakingstrategic,workforce,andtechnologyinvestments.Theseincludedactionsthatsuggestforesightandpreparation,suchasusingtechnologytocreatenewbusinessmodels,diversifyingsupplychainfunctions,andinvestinginremote-workingcapabilitiestosupportworkforcesandday-to-dayoperations(Figure1).

Acrossthekeyactions,wefoundthatpacesetters-organizationsthatwereactivelyplanninginvestmentsintheseprocessesin2020orhadalreadyactedpriorto2020—werebetterabletoweathertheeventsof2020comparedtothosethathadn'tyettakenaction.'

Companiesthattookkeyactionsbefore2020weremorelikelytosaythattheyareweatheringthepandemicwellorverywell

PercentageofCXOswhosaidtheirorganizationsareweatheringtheeventsof2020well/verywell,ascomparedtotheircompetitors/peers:

■Pacesetters:Donepriorto2020 .Planningtodointhenext1-5years

Implementprocessesthatenabletheorganizationtoeasilyredeployworkerstodifferentrolesdependingonneedandorworkerinterests

Havetrainingorrotationalprogramstoenableworkerstoreskill

Increaseuseofadvancedtechnologiestoenableourorganizationtocreatenewbusinessmodelsandmarketopportunities

Diversifyrevenuestreams(e.g.,createnewproducts1services)

Provideemployeeswithflexibleworkingoptionstosupportwork/lifebalance

Investinnewtechnologiesandsystemsthatsupportremoteworking

Diversifyoursupplychainacrossmultiplevendors'partners

Source:DeloitteGlobalanalysis.

APLAYBOOKFORDISRUPTION—ANDFORTHEFUTURE

Whilefeworganizationsmayhavethoughttopreparefbrapandemic,manyofthestrategicactionslistedinFigure1canalsohelporganizationsplanfbrandnavigateotherkindsofdisruptions,suchasincreasedcompetitionandtechnologicalupheavalfromIndustry4.0.Justassportsteamsdesignplaybooksforeachgametailoredtotheiropponents,resilientorganizationsshouldprepareplaybooksthatanticipatepotentialevents.

HSBC,forexample,hadalreadybeenwell-steepedinitsdigitaltransformationbeforethepandemic.

AsHSBCCanadaCEOLindaSeymourexplained:aExternally,ourcustomerssawnodisruptiontoourservicesduringthepandemicbecauseofourdigitalinvestmentsovertheyears.Andfromaninternalperspective,weinvestedinprocessesandtechnologyinadvancethatallowedustoeasilytransition95%ofourofficebasedstafftohomeworkingin2020.”SumitomoCorporationalsoengagedindigitaltransformationbefore2020,adecisionthatCFO,MasaruShiomi,saidwillhelpfuelgrowthforthecompanythroughoutandbeyondthepandemic.

Scenarioplanningiskeytoplanningahead:Itnotonlyhelpsleadersplanfordisruption,butalsohelpsthemanticipateandprepareforwhatorganizationswillneedtosurviveandthriveinthefuture.ForPowerCorporationofCanada,regularstresstestscompelledthemtothinkaboutwhattheworldmightlooklikeinfivetosevenyearsandlonger,informingnotonlytheirtechnologyanddigitizationefforts,butalsotheirM&Astrategyandtalentinvestments.

2020'sdisruptionspromptedmanyorganizationstoinvestinpreparednessandresilience

Hasyourorganizationimplementedthefollowingstrategicactivitiestomakeitmoreresilientandpreparedfordisruptiveevents?

■Donepriorto2020 ■Donein2020orinprogress

Putaprocessinplacetoassesswhethercashreservescanwithstandunexpectedmarketevents

26% 35%

Focusonbuildinggreatertransparencyandsecurityacrossoursupplychain

21% 33%

wemovesnoswiimnorgamzauonanatocusonmorecross-TunctionaiconaDoration

21% 32%

Diversifysupplychainacrossmultiplevendorsandpartners

17% 33%

uiversnyrevenuestreams

17% 29%

Source:DeloitteGlobalanalysis.

Leaderswhoactedpriorto2020wereintheminorityofthosewesurveyed,pointingtoleaders,frequentstruggletomovebeyondshort-termthinking.Yet,wearebeginningtoseeashift.Theeventsofthepastyearhavepromptedmorecompaniestoact.Forexample,whileonlyaroundaquarteroftheCXOswesurveyedsaidthattheyhadputaprocessinplacetostresstesttheircashreservesbefore2020,35%begantoimplementthisprocessin2020.Similarly,thenumberoforganizationsfocusingonbuildinggreatertransparencyandsecurityacrosstheirsupplychainssignificantlyincreasedin2020(Figure2).

RECOMMENDATIONSFORBUSINESSLEADERS

Anessentialstartingpointfordevelopingamindsetandcultureofpreparednessistocreatecomprehensivecrisisresponsescenariosandplaybooksthatmapoutpotentialrisks,bothinternalandexternal.

Theseplaybooksshouldanalyzetheorganization'sbiggestrisksandprovidestandardoperatingprocedurestofollowifacrisisoccurs.Whileplaybooksmaynotbeabletoanticipateeverypossiblescenario,acomprehensive,regularlyupdatedanalysisshouldprovideenoughofastartingpointtoputCXOsonbetterfootingshouldtheunexpectedoccur.Hostingregularcrisissimulationswithkeydecision-makersacrossfunctionsanddepartmentswillalsoadvanceanorganization'spreparedness.

Inaddition,organizationscanstrengthentheirresiliencetoriskeventsthroughactionsthat,whilenotgearedtowardpreparingforanyspecificcrisis,broadentheiroverallrangeofavailableoptions.Examplesofsuchactionsincludediversifyingsupplychainsandrevenuestreams,investinginworkerreskillingandmobility,andincreasingtheuseoftechnologytoenablenewbusinessmodels.

Adaptable

“Wehadtoadaptquickly.Thingswewereplanningtodooverthenextfiveyears,wehadtoadvancetheminamatterofmonths.Thepandemic,aswellasclientexpectations,madecapabilitieslikecommunicatingelectronically,whichwe'vebeenworkingonformanyyears,imperatives."

—GregTretiak,executivevicepresidentandCFO,PowerCorporationofCanada

Adaptabilitymaybethemostobviousofthefiveresiliencecharacteristics,butitalsomaybethemostdifficulttoachieve.Noteveryorganizationcaneasilytakebigactionsquickly,suchaspivotingtowardnewrevenuestreamsorswiftlyredeployingworkerstomoreurgentjobsandtaskswhentheirprimaryrolesbecometemporarilyunavailableornotneeded.

Whenthepandemicreacheditsfirstpeakinearly2020,themediafocusedonstorieslikedistilleriesforegoingproductionoftheirregularproductstoinsteadmakehandsanitizer,orapparelandautomanufacturersshiftingtheiroutputtomasksandventilators.But,thesekindsoftransitionsarerareandwhiletheymayhavemetshort-termneeds,theywerenotnecessarilyintendedtoreadyorganizationsforthefuturebusinesslandscape.They*readmirable,butnotnecessarilyadaptivebeyondtheiraimtoaddresstheimmediatesituation.

Longer-termadaptabilityconsidersbothwhat'snecessaryinacurrentcrisisandwhatmaybenecessarytodealwithfuturedisruptions.

Forinstance,itcouldmeanimplementingthetechnologyandprocessestohandleincreasedonlineorderswhenphysicallocationscannotservecustomers,ordevelopingtransferableskillsamongemployeessothatthosewhosejobsareendangeredcanassumedifferentduties.

ANADAPTABLEWORKFORCEBEGETSARESILIENTCULTURE

Leadersrecognizetheimportanceofhavingversatileemployees,especiallyafterayearlike2020.Infact,uflexibilityandadaptability"was,byfar,theworkforcetraitCXOssaidwasmostimportanttotheirorganizations'futures.Fifty-fourpercentselecteditasoneofthetop-threemostcriticalworkforcetraits—significantlymorethanthosewhoidentified“expertiseandproficiencyintherolesforwhichemployeeswerehired"or"[having]valuesthatalignwithourorganization"(Figure3).AsYETI'sCastroconfirms,"Tosucceedinthisenvironment,organizationsneedpeoplewhoareagile,comfortablewithambiguity,andabletomoveandchangeonadime."

Thewayscompaniesdeveloptheirpeople,notsurprisingly,haveahugeimpactontheirabilitytoadaptquicklytocircumstances.WeaskedCXOswhethertheyhadalreadyimplementedorwereplanningtoputinplaceanumberofactionsorprogramstomaketheirworkforcesmoreadaptable-includingimplementingprocessestoeasilyredeployworkerstootherrolesorprojects,maintainingtrainingorrotationalprogramstoenablereskilling,andprovidingworkerswithflexibleworkoptions.

"Flexibility/adaptability"wasrankedthemostcriticalworkforcetraitforanorganization'sfuture'

Giventheeventsof2020andplanningforthefuture,whichofthefollowingworkforcetraitshavebecomemostcriticaltoyourorganization?(Selecttop3)

"Flexibility/adaptability"

54%

Technological

40%

Valuesthatalignwiththoseofourorganization

Expertiseandproficiencyinrolesforwhichemployeeswerehired

Couragetochallengethestatusquo

Inclusiveness

18%

Source:DeloitteGlobalanalysis.

Ourfindingspointtoarelationshipbetweendevelopingworkforceadaptabilityandhavingaresilientculture.Nearlythreeoutoffourrespondentsfromorganizationsthathadalreadyimplementedtheseactionssaidtheirorganizationsaredoingagoodjobofcultivatingresilientcultures(Figure4).Ontheotherhand,amongCXOsatorganizationsthatdidn'thavesuchprogramsinplace,onlyabouthalfclaimedtheyhadresilientcultures.

Workforceadaptabilityisonedriverofaresilientculture

PercentageofCXOswhosaidtheyhavecultivatedresilientculturesindicatingwhethertheirorganizationshaveimplementedthefollowingflexibleworkforceactions

■Donepriorto2020 ■Havenoplanstodo

Implementprocessestoeasilyredeployworkerswhenneeded

programtoreskillworkers

73%

44%

Provideworkerswithflexible

workoptions

Source:DeloitteGlobalanalysis.

BUILDINGADAPTABILITYINTOCORESTRATEGIESANDOPERATIONS

Organizationscanalsobuildadaptabilityintootherareasoftheirbusinesses.Forinstance,theycandiversifytheiroperations,includingtheirrevenuestreamsandsupplychains,tohedgetheirbetsincaseofdisruption.Theycouldalsoembedadvancedtechnologiesintotheircorestrategiestobecomemoreagile.AsCarolineTose,COO,HSBCCanadasaid:"Wehadatransformationplaninplace,butwhenthepandemichit,weputsomeofitonholdandfast-trackedotherpartsofit,especiallyinthedigitalspace.Welookedacrossallourbusinessesandfunctionstoseewherewecouldbesmarter/

Aswithpreparedness,it'simportanttoactearly,whichleadstogreateradaptabilityinfaceofacrisis.SeventyfivepercentofsurveyedCXOsatorganizationsthatdiversifiedtheirrevenuestreamspriorto2020agreedtheirorganizationscouldquicklyadaptandpivotinresponsetodisruptiveevents.Likewise,78%ofCXOsfromorganizationsthatdiversifiedtheirsupplychainspriorto2020saidtheyweredoingwellatadaptingtodisruptiveevents.Ontheotherhand,amongCXOswhoplannedtodelaydiversifyingtheirsupplychainsforonetofiveyears,onlyabouthalfsaidtheirorganizationsweredoingwellatadapting.

Thestoryissimilarwithregardtotechnology.Seventy-sixpercentofCXOswhosaidtheirorganizationshaddoneverywellatembeddingadvancedtechnologiesintocorebusinessstrategiestobecomemoreagilealsosaidtheyareweatheringtheeventsof2020betterthantheirpeers.

ADVANCEDTECHNOLOGIESAIDADAPTABILITYINMULTIPLEWAYS

Embeddingadvancedtechnologies—cloud,robotics,analytics,Alandcognitivetechnologies,nanotechnologies,quantumcomputing,blockchain,sensors,andloT一intocoreoperationscanprovideorganizationswithanumberofbenefits,asourpastreadinessreports2haveshown.Theseinvestmentscanincreaserevenueandreducecosts,buildsecurityandtransparencyintosupplychains,alloworganizationstobetterpredictsupplyanddemandandtracksystemperformance,andmuchmore-allofwhichcanincreaseanorganization'sadaptability.

RECOMMENDATIONSFORBUSINESSLEADERS

Insteadofhiringtalentforspecificskillsets,organizationsshouldpivottohiringforspecificmindsets,oneofwhichshouldbeadaptability.ThismaymeanhavingHRrethinktraditionaljobdescriptionsandapplicationrequirements,whichwouldlikelywidenthepoolofapplicantsandincreasediversity.Organizationsshouldalsoconsiderdevelopingtrainingorrotationalprogramsorbuildingtalentmarketplaceplatforms3thatallowworkerstolearnnewskillsandcapabilities,whichcanimproveorganizations)abilitiestoeasilyredeployworkersdependingonbusinessneedsandworkerinterests.

Otheractionsorganizationscantaketoimproveadaptability,suchasdiversifyingoperationsandleveragingadvancedtechnologies,parallelthosediscussedinthecontextofpreparedness.Keytobeingpreparedandadaptableistakingsuchstepsproactivelyratherthanwaitinguntilacrisishits.

Collaborative

"Collaborationiskeyinthisnewworld.Thepeoplewhowillsucceedinthefuturearethosewhoarefocused,notjustontheirownjobsandagendas,butonthebigger-picturegoals,aswell.Theyareabletolisten,collaborate,andunderstandwhatothersaretryingtoaccomplish.It'saboutworkingtogethertoachievemutualgoalswhich,inturn,benefitseveryone."

——RahimHirji,chiefriskofficer,Manulife

Collaborationisanimportantelementofresilienceforatleasttworeasons.First,collaborationisimportantindecision-makingandcommunication:Whenpeopleworktogether,moreperspectivescanbesurfacedinthedecision-makingprocess,andinformationcanbedisseminatedmorequickly.Andsecond,collaborationcanhelpanorganizationmarshalresourcesfromdifferentareastoprovidebusinesscontinuity.Forinstance,whenawell-connectedcompanyfeelsstressinonearea—say,supplychain—thesalesdepartmentcananticipateandreacttotheeventualeffectthatwillhaveoncustomerfulfillment.Siloedorganizationsmaystruggletomakethoseadjustments,makingthemlessabletoreacttodisruptiveevents.

COLLABORATIONWITHINANDOUTSIDETHEORGANIZATION

TheCXOswesurveyednotedtheimportanceofcollaborationwithintheirorganizations.Infact,“removingsiloswithinourorganizationandfocusingmoreoncross-functionalcollaboration,,wasatopstrategicactionthatCXOswerefocusedonbothbeforeandduring2020.Ourresearchalsovalidatedthatcollaborationimprovedresilience.Two-thirdsofsurveyedCXOswhosaidtheircompaniesremovedsilosintheirorganizationsbeforethepandemicreportedweatheringtheeventsof2020betterthantheirpeers.Thiswasmorethan20percentagepointsgreaterthantheproportionofCXOs(45%)whoseorganizationswereonlyplanningtoimplementgreatercollaborationinthenextonetofiveyears.

Collaborationcanincreaseresiliencebothbyhelpingorganizationsmakedecisionsandcommunicatemoreeffectively,andbyfosteringasenseoftrustamongemployees.Whenthepandemichit,manyCXOsrealizedtheyneededtospeeddecision-makingandimprovecommunicationwithintheirorganizations.Todothis,companiessuchasManulifeandYETIbeganholdingdailymeetingsamongtheirseniormanagementteams,whichenabledquickissueescalationandremediation,aswellasimprovedcommunicationandproblem-solving.Butthebiggerpayoffmayhavebeenintheareaoftrust.AccordingtoYETIsCastro,uThecollaborationandtrustbuiltamongtheleadershipteamtrickleddownthroughouttheorganization,leadingtoamoreresilientworkforce?

Aswediscussedinlastyear'sreport,it'salsocriticalfororganizationstocollaboratewithotherswithinandbeyondtheirownindustriesratherthantacklebigchallenges—orbigdisruptions—alone.4Forinstance,PowerCorporationofCanada,aninternationalmanagementandholdingcompanythatfocusesonfinancialservicesinNorthAmerica,Europe,andAsia,regularlyconductsstresstests(includingapandemic-relatedexercise)anddevelopscorrespondingremediationplans.

Goingthroughtheseexercisespriorto2020notonlyallowedtheinsurancebusinesstoanticipateascenariothatbecameveryrealin2020,butalsomeantthatitcouldsharetheselessonswiththeothercompaniesunderPowerCorp'smanagement,buildingresilienceacrossthegroup.

TECHNOLOGYTHATENABLESCOLLABORATION

Peopleneedtheri曲ttechnologiestohelpthemworktogether,evenwhentheyrephysicallytogether.

Itbecomesmuchmorecomplicatedwhenthe/renot.Theconceptof“siloing"gainedadifferentmeaningin2020asmanyorganizationswereforcedtoshuttertheiroffices,leavingemployeesscatteredandisolated.

Hiecohesivenesscreatedintheofficeenvironmenttookaserioushit,acceleratingtheneedfortechnologiesthatcouldtiytoreplicatecollaborativeworkprocesses.

Just22%ofCXOsinoursurveysaidtheirorganizationshadthetechnologies(suchascloud-basedtoolsandplatforms,teleconferencingcapabilities,andcybersecuritycontrols)theyneededtofacilitateremoteworkingbeforethepandemic.Forty-twopercentsaidthattheydidnothavesuchtechnologiesbeforethepandemic,butdevelopedthemoutofnecessityduringtheyear,whileanother23%plannedtoinvestinthesetechnologiesinthesixto12monthsaftertheyweresurveyed.Only3%saidtheyhadnoplanstoinvestinremote-workingtechnologies,whichisnoteworthyconsideringhowmanyjobsthroughoutsociet