28. April 2020

As the days go by and monotony prevails for most, thinking about "the post-COVID-19 crisis" can help keep a positive and peaceful mindset. Recent news from China suggests a glimmer of hope for the rest of the world, even if - let's be clear – we’ll have to be patient.

Regain Confidence

The priority will clearly be to get the economy back on track, but there will be another daunting challenge: regaining confidence.

No more fear of gathering in small groups, going to public places, bumping into your neighbor on the bus ... In China, habits have changed while the return to ‘normal’ is very gradual. For example, in restaurants people are eating diagonally from each other, recommended distances in the streets are still being respected and wearing masks as well as taking your temperature as you enter a grocery store, remains essential. But if this can allow citizens to start going out again and, at a slow and steady pace, revive the economy, isn't that a lesser evil?

As the saying goes: slowly but surely. By continuing to respect our government's recommendations and paying particular attention to the most vulnerable in our society, we will restart the economic machine.

Maintain Creativity

One thing is certain: although the quarantine isn’t the most appealing to most, it will have atleast increased creative initiatives to stay in touch and to continue supporting those most affected by the crisis.

In addition to the hidden talents that are being revealed in this period of confinement, many entrepreneurs and artisans who can, have revised the management of their activities to stay afloat as much as possible. By facilitating delivery, take-out or even making their inventory available to online consumers, restaurants and shops are trying to avoid the worst, although the situation is obviously no less difficult.

We can rejoice in this creative response to the disaster, and it will be essential to maintain this state of mind after the storm has passed. Reinventing ways to make products and services available to as many people as possible at all times, making it possible to carry out more transactions digitally and acquiring the tools to be as flexible as possible are all subjects that companies of all sectors need to be thinking about now.

Prioritize

This may seem obvious: the post-crisis must be synonymous with prioritization. What can be saved first? What will reassure your employees, your customers, your suppliers? What will be your first communications? Start an action plan today with several possible scenarios.

The objective is multifaceted: to remain united in a totally disrupted ecosystem, to consider all possibilities, to pave the way for innovation and to position ourselves in survival mode in order to get back to business as best as possible.

Acceptance

Yes, the COVID-19 pandemic will be painful for everyone - some are already experiencing it more harshly than others. But it will inevitably result in a healthy reset of the world economy and its various markets.

Fewer interdependencies, the relocation of production and enhancement of the local market… We may take months or even years to recover, but the rules will have been revised and the cards shuffled to envision a healthier future. Finally, let us underline the positive effects of this forced shutdown of the economy: cleaner air, penguins strolling in an aquarium in Chicago, birds singing in Paris… And so, what if we accepted the situation to review and re-establish our ways of living, consuming and working?

Together, let’s contemplate an economy that doesn’t work against Nature but works for it. If the coronavirus crisis spares no one, the awareness it generates is just as universal. Tomorrow is not far away: let's think about it now to enjoy it longer!