By Elias Moses
Are established business rules turning out to be obsolete with the emergence of the New Normal? Is return no more an option?
With Covid-19, the business rules once established as Gospels of business practices will no longer hold on to their position as numero uno. The business rules may play a swift game and make a complete make-over,once the next-normal or the new normal begins its Modus Operandi.
Way back in the early 90’s, on the last day of college,a professor of the highestacademic qualification and dedication, gave us this one piece of advice and called it as one of the golden rules of management.
“Keep the rule and the rule keeps you”.
I recall it till date at adverse moments of life and business consulting.
It is true, if we keep to the rules of the company, the company honours us immensely. But the irony is that these rules have never evolved with time;and most of the time, these rules of the past have come down like the Codes of Hammurabi and demanded our undue adherence.
Citizens and Employees followed them with no basic inquisitiveness to ask, ‘why am I doing what I am doing.’
Such a behaviour was often discouraged and seen as rebellious or disobedient.
The end result, businesses changed with time but their rules remained static. Till date, this ‘New wine into old wine-skin’ frame-work somehow worked.
Not anymore…
Redefining business Rules
Business rules are often summed up as directives that define and direct business activities.These rules are often taught in schools of business or in established firms as codes of unparalleled acceptance from history.
They helped organisations and firms to leverage opportunities, comply with state guidelines and compliances, and above all ensure on business stability and sustainability.
The question to be asked is, “Can these accepted rules of business provide their alternatives to manage continuity or contingent plans during adverse times?”
For businesses to navigate into the new normal, the Rules of the past may no longer apply.
‘Resolve, Resilience, Return, Reimagination and Reforms,’ have to be the foundations on which the new rules of business must be established,” say Sneader and Singhal from Mckinsey.
Established and Organised Sectors’ plight
Everything in life is in flux, is an age old saying. Everything in life is changing except
change itself. It is paradoxical but true.
change itself. It is paradoxical but true.
With the change of times in the last two decades, new organized forms of businesses in Service and Manufacturing have emerged in India. We undertook many such businesses but remained static and mum to the changed rules that accompanied them, and above all seldom adhered to a behavioural Change expectancy, demanded by them organizationally and Personally.
As a result, we never allowed business sustainability and progressiveness a reality on a large scale.
Can we proudly say that we have built world-class organizational structures in the last two decades?
We have changed our business structures and models, but not our social and human behaviours towards them. Most of the times, the changes exhibited and exercised were merely peripheral and partial; the average results from annual reports and performance appraisals of companies are a witness to this fact.
We have changed our business structures and models, but not our social and human behaviours towards them. Most of the times, the changes exhibited and exercised were merely peripheral and partial; the average results from annual reports and performance appraisals of companies are a witness to this fact.
Now with the sudden emergence of the New Normal, will the peripheral or cosmetic application ofhuman and organisational behaviours, towards present management practises,help us succeed the turbulent times of Covid and post Covid-19?
Big and established organisations come with Business Continuity Plans (BCP) but how often have they trained their employees to adapt to the changes?
Do the behaviours of the employees adapt to the changes? Have they been measured? Do they
yield optimum productivity in adverse situations? Have we built alternative infrastructure to implement BCP during moments of crisis such as Covid-19?
yield optimum productivity in adverse situations? Have we built alternative infrastructure to implement BCP during moments of crisis such as Covid-19?
Working from Home (WFH) is an option. Do established and organised sectors have WFH policies that govern them? They are thinking of doing it, as what the reports from News Papers say (The Times of India, April 28, 2020). They should have been done long back.
The hundreds of funny mimes shooting up in YouTube are a clear cut example of the Playfulness and lack of seriousness of our workforce towards changing work patterns and paradigms during this Covid-19.
Family Run business’ plight
Given this above criteria, I have always raised a question in mind,
Why do most offamily run businesses in India for decades have not made it big with time or built up continuity plan?
With all the ‘ifs and buts’ that exist between members of the family; We have to ask the question, Is it because of our adherence to ‘tribal knowledge’ or ‘personality cult knowledge,’ which is often undocumented information, processes and policies existing merely in minds, or partly/partially documented, and passed on as traditions; and not as rules from one generation to next.
These unsung rules are framed as ‘our accepted way of doing things’. Will these approaches help us sail thru and succeed in the New Normal?
In the last two decades,these undocumented norms worked marginally for a period but proved to be inadequate, due to modern-day business complexities and market requirements.
Can this tribal knowledge or personality cult rules still take pride in meeting the business requirements of the New Normal?
The Unorganized Sectors’ plight
80-90% of the Indians work in Unorganised Sectors. This Unorganized Sector, the largest revenue generator of India with a GDP of more than 60%, is bearing the full brunt of the economic paralysis.
Most of our country’s SMEs come under this category.Withfactories shut down, activities suspended, labourers out-stationed; it is indeed a bitter pill to swallow and the worst to happen at the bottom of the pyramid.
With the Economic package of 1.7 lakh crore, The Govt can only multiply its economicrelief measures for the second orthird time.
An ultimate necessity though, but at what cost? life or livelihood.
Can this Unorganised sector with 80 -90 % of Indian Labour Force be eternallyleft on the edge of the wings with no obligation oradherence to any rule ofbusiness Post Covid19?
Going back to what we once were, could be catastrophic in the future.
This‘jugaad’ way of doing business at the Organised and Unorganized levelscan be catastrophic for the nation and companies and its utopian dream of being a 5 trillion dollar economy in 5 or even 10 years.
You may ask me a question, Why am I saying this?
Let me come to the point straight… with the paradigms of business taking their nose dive with covid-19, no business will be wanting to flatten its financial curve eternally, we would all wish to create a V curve sooner than later.To be winners and be back on the path of
prosperity, we can not make an about-turn, but can only think out of box.
prosperity, we can not make an about-turn, but can only think out of box.
In 1519, Captain Hernán Cortés landed in Veracruz to begin his great conquest. Upon arriving, he gave the order to his men to burn the ships, ‘return is never an option’ he said. Today Covid-19 has promptly thrust its sword by throwing us into a new horizon; ‘Return is never an option for humanity now.’
The Time has come for us to undo the past and embrace future the new with open minds and hands, just us Cortes did.
Return is never an option… Businesses have to quickly adapt to the New Rules of doing business.
propose the following three rules here-
Rule
1- Schematic and Systemic Thinking – at top and mid leadership levels for efficient and accurate decision making during adverse times
1- Schematic and Systemic Thinking – at top and mid leadership levels for efficient and accurate decision making during adverse times
Rule
2 – Organised and AutomatedProcesses and Policies – for Project Execution for Organised and Semi-organised sectors
2 – Organised and AutomatedProcesses and Policies – for Project Execution for Organised and Semi-organised sectors
Rule
3 -Comprehensive and Customised (localized) Approach in Performance and People Management
3 -Comprehensive and Customised (localized) Approach in Performance and People Management
Three
Priorities for Three Sectors in the New Normal
Priorities for Three Sectors in the New Normal
1.Semiorganise the Unorganised
2.Organize the Semi Organised
3.Acceleratethe Organised
The times are swift now. We are already forced to live in an era of robust and unprecedented change brought about, earlier by human ingenuity and leap, and now with covid-19, by human ignominy.
Charles Darwin’s theory of the survival of the fittest may get a new meaning and make over. It is ‘no more survival of the fittest, but survival of the quickest’.
New Business Rules require not merely structural changes but our mind-set and behavioural changes.Return is no
more an option for the Organised and Un-organized sectors.
more an option for the Organised and Un-organized sectors.
Let us be the quickest to survive the New Normal
(For more help and assistance to your businesses and organisations on Institutionalization of Change management processes, Execution of New Rules for New Businesses Post Covid-19, Creation of new business Paradigms for structural make-over and for all management consulting purposes, please reach out to the author of the blog)
Elias Moses is a Senior Business & Strategy Advisor, Researcher, Corporate and Leadership Trainer, Orator, Columnist and an Entrepreneur. He is also the Founder and Managing Director of a growing reality firm in south India. The author can be contacted@
email: elias@manovsis.com,linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/eliasmoses