Collaborating around purpose breeds victory

If2020 has continued to teach us anything, it is that informed and purposeful leadership is essential in a time of crisis.

To adapt and get ahead, leaders need to focus on strategies that leverage emerging technologies and the inherent strengths of their workforce.

While in the May 2020, I editorialized how thinkers, despite suddenly feeling that planet earth had suddenly become a dangerous place to live in, there emerged some bold and innovative ones who refused to budge to the global scourge.

Well, in response to the coronavirus pandemic, thoughtful leaders and innovators jumped to fix the situation. Now the call is to peer the thoughts beyond COVID-19 – the global pandemic.

Solving Problem at the Heart

What these innovations have in common is that they solve problems, which indeed is always at the heart of innovation. Such innovations, largely driven by the intensely human desire to help, to connect with other people, and be part of the solution when things get hard is what keeps life going.

However, there is much more to the generative nature of a crisis that leads to innovation than simply an opportunity to solve problems. Crises present us with unique conditions that allow us to think and move more freely to create rapid, impactful change.

As leaders who are continuously learning, these conditions provide us with the opportunity to do our best to help, and for our teams to do their most innovative work in the service of our organizations.

Organisational Life

One of the key leadership challenges in day-to-day organisational life is inspiring engagement and generating energy toward the goals of the organization.

During a crisis like the one we continue to undergo, there can be a massive spike in energy present in the workforce. Leaders who can appropriately focus the energy of its workforce toward a clear purpose in resolving the crisis will typically find more than just a deep wellspring of energy and discretionary effort.

Some say that courage is defined when purpose overcomes fear. In this way, crisis can create the organisational courage to take actions in support of a purpose that would be unthinkable in times of calm.

Leaders often leverage consultants to get a fresh, outside perspective on their organizations to find opportunities to innovate. Interestingly, we stand to have more solutions during crises when we collaborate to put the spotlight on vulnerabilities we tend to ignore or are just plain unaware of. Since we can, let us collaborate!

HUMPHREY ODHIAMBO Managing Editor

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