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A LOOK INTO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND ITS EFFECT ON BUSINESSES AND ORGANIZATIONS AROUND THE WORLD AS SEEN IN ONE COMPANY.  


The Covid-19 Pandemic has been driving us all crazy for the last 11 months.  Whether you have lost your job, your company/organization, perhaps you have come down with this terrible disease, or you are one of the healthcare providers who are trying to help, it has been one hell of a year.  

In any event, those who are trying to keep their businesses afloat during this tragic time are facing monumental situations they never could have possibly imagined, planned for or learned how to deal with.  So in doing my normal daily reading, I came across the following article from the Wall Street Journal.

The article is entitled "You Have to Take Jumps."  It was written by Thomas Gryta and appeared December 5, 2020 in The WSJ.  This article details in great depth how an iconic company,  Emerson Electric, Co., and its CEO David Farr dealt with all of the problems and issues their global company had to deal with.  Emerson has 90,000 employees world-wide.  It started in the 19th century when it made the first electric fans that were sold in the USA.  Built up over the years, it now has over 200 manufacturing sites, with two-thirds of them outside the USA and to its shareholders, it is a business worth $45 billion USD.    

This is all about how they dealt with the pandemic and it's effect on this business.  Two quotes from the article remain in my mind:

-----"We have customers to serve and we can't frickin' do it if nobody is here."

-----"As soon as you hear someone say 'the new normal,' plug your ears and say bulls---."

While none of us could ever be in Farr's shoes, it is an illuminating article to read about how they did their best to overcome the effects of the pandemic on their company.  I may not be able to condone all of the actions and methods Farr used but he did what he felt was best to keep the company afloat and his people working, while keeping them as safe and healthy as he could.  We all have different leadership styles and in times of crisis you may have to act precipitously.  I hope you will take a few moments to read this important article.  Thanks to Thomas Gryta and the WSJ for this thought-provoking article.


https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-covid-crisis-taught-david-farr-the-power-and-limits-of-leadership-11607094974?page=1 


Bob Jacobson

12/10/2020

 

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