The unprecedented crisis we are experiencing sees its share of misfortunes, bereavements, financial and social difficulties, and anxiety unfold every evening, all of which speak to us about women, men and children.

The humanization of the crisis

Because what we have all been talking about since the start of the epidemic is Human Beings: humans have finally returned to the center of all debates and attention:

• Governments have never been so generous to people overall
• Science has never been more prolific in protecting our health
• Businesses have never been more concerned about the protection and well-being of their employees

Beyond the current very real suffering, what we are experiencing is also a great opportunity for tangible, profound and irreversible changes, undoubtedly unique in history.

Ignorance as a catalyst for innovation

Because what unites all the actors in the political, economic, industrial and health world today is Ignorance. And the power of Ignorance is immense, because it shakes up our beliefs and forces us to innovate.

Faced with this total and immediate uncertainty, in all its parameters, all stakeholders in the ecosystem have no other solution than to co-create the future together, leaving ideology aside.

Emergence of a collective consciousness

In this sense, the crisis is only accelerating an awareness initiated by others:

• Young entrepreneurs or employees for whom the search for meaning is at the center of their life project
• The younger generations who are fighting for a sustainable world where everyone finds their place
• Leaders of a new kind for whom the mission of the company is to connect the meaning of the life of individuals and that of the company

Development of Human Excellence

Because that's what it's all about: creating an environment in businesses, communities, territories, where everyone can develop their autonomy and release their energy and their ability to think and do differently.

The leader gives the impetus but the strategy will be the result of co-creation in the service of the common good.

Post-crisis vision and strategies

So certainly the crisis is reshuffling the cards, many businesses will suffer and will have to reduce their costs. But this intense period of solidarity, anonymous heroes and creativity gives us a unique chance to see as many people as possible admit that reducing human costs only comes as a last resort because:

• Women and men are the company's main asset
• The levers of performance first and foremost involve Human Excellence, at the service of customers and the community
• Financial performance (Profit) is only the result, not the reason for being

The levers for the rebound can then primarily involve the redeployment of turnover and the reduction of non-wage costs, which are not essential to the recovery:

• Let's trust the Women and Men of the company by involving them in finding solutions to these priorities.
• Let's seize the opportunity to “completely reset” the social relationship in the company: dialogue, transparency, proximity
• And when the first rays of sunshine appear after the storm, it will surely be time to revisit, with them, the purpose and values of an inspiring company.

As Hubert Joly, president of Best Buy, said so well in a recent interview: “We don't win against each other but we win together.”