In 2020 as we entered lockdown, Brand Genetics explored the concept of Post-Traumatic Growth (PTG) – a psychologically validated framework explaining why some people experience a positive transformation following trauma. Earlier this year, we wrote about the Waves of Covid – showing how different sectors are at different stages of acceleration out of the pandemic.

As we started to leave the third lockdown, we joined forces to merge the two perspectives – and looked at what needs to happen now from both a leadership and consumer angle.

Businesses are under enormous pressure to reignite growth – and to do so in the context of a massive change in society’s expectations of them.

They are facing 3 challenges if they are to pull this off:

1. Purpose – how can we make the required step-change in social impact and the critical step-change in commercial growth one and the same?
2. Leaders – how do we quickly and effectively repair the customer and colleague relationships that are key to moving forward at pace?
3. Frontline Teams – how do we help our people find the courage needed to bring new levels of innovation and agility?

Purpose

The last 12 months have created far higher expectations around the role businesses play in society: If before COVID, businesses could get away with their purpose and their commercial strategy living in tension – they will never be able to do so again.

• As an example, Co-op has recently come under fire for paying bonuses to top management despite withholding £65 million in taxpayer-funded business rates relief it received to help it trade through Covid-19. This feels so contrary to their purpose – to create a fairer society for all – that they’ve not only tarnished their reputation but suffered financial repercussions too.

A strong purpose must make societal progress and business growth one and the same: Purpose cannot just be a campaign for good, it has to be a specific mission to make a positive difference that requires the business to move into new profit pools to deliver it. To do this, colleagues need to see and feel purpose in their everyday. Don't tell them about the impact of their work, let them experience how meaningful it is firsthand. Co-op’s purpose though laudable has no clear link to the business they are in – and therefore fulfilling it feels separate to what it will take to be successful.

The key takeaway from the discussion: Now is the time to revisit your purpose and ensure it not only makes commercial growth inevitable – but is hard-wired into strategy, performance management, and business planning. Be a purpose-driven business – not a business with a purpose statement.

Leadership

Remote working has created a wedge between leaders and their colleagues and customers: Most interactions have become transactional, leading to relationships being more frayed than ever. Without coffee corner chitchat, work relationships have decayed and become little more than task-oriented conversations. Customer relationships have across most industries (though not all) been subject to deep frustration and in some cases have ceased to exist during lockdown.

Empathy is the key: and nothing creates empathy like frequency of contact and curiosity. To grow their businesses leaders are going to need to invest in the time to relate to the people they work with and for. Only by spending time with people and asking a few simple open questions will leaders know where the potential accelerators and blockers to growth will lie.

• For example, the recent controversy around the proposed European Super League highlights the impact of an empathy void. The owners of the 12 football clubs had completely lost touch with the wants and desires of their fans, the customers. They now face a massive job repairing the damaged relationships and restoring trust with fans, players, and staff over the next few years.

The key takeaway from the discussion: You’ll have to be deliberate about creating a frequent connection with colleagues to strengthen relationships. One client we know is putting on a series of rounders and hot dogs evenings over the summer as people return to the office. Build moments of connection into your new business rhythm and ask customers & colleagues what they’re excited about, and what’s worrying them.

Frontline Teams

Many businesses saw unprecedented levels of innovation and agility as their teams pulled together and responded to the first lockdown and the need to keep businesses operating and customers served. But as we entered the third lockdown, this Covid dividend started to evaporate rapidly. As we emerge and try to grow again we need that ingenuity like never before – but our people are too busy managing for physical and mental health – existing in the second level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (safety). How do we get them to take more risks when safety is all that is on their minds?

The key is courage – but we can’t just ask our people to be more courageous: We need to give them practical toolkits and processes to help them be courageous. Simple canvases that take them step by step to answer questions like ‘which are the moments that matter in my work’, ‘what needs to be better if we are to serve our colleagues/customers better’, and ‘what ideas do we have to make this a little better’. And don’t make this ask of individuals, but of teams. It’s far easier to be brave and creative together.

The key takeaway from the discussion: Get teams to sit down together to think about what could be better. And equip them with a simple toolkit so being innovative and/or agile feels less threatening.

We started the debate by exploring what it will take to accelerate out of the pandemic. And concluded that perhaps the most critical next step is first to take the time to pause, reflect and reset our horizons. Go slow to go fast.