Leaders must not only guard their teams first during a crisis, but also deal with stakeholders with respect and dignity. And apart from pursuing business goals, they should remain committed to our planet and the environment
Illustration: Sameer Pawar
Today we are standing at the crossroads of uncertainty. The Covid-19 pandemic has raged on to become the greatest global crisis; and we are confronted with the climate emergency impacting our planet, our children, the future generation and the entire human race. Propelled by the new landscape, which is dynamic and fluid, leaders have an important role to play today and in the future.
The â€future of leadership’ would rest in the hands of people who can navigate these tough times with wisdom, lessons from history, decisiveness and most importantly, empathy and compassion. An indomitable will that embraces responsibilities, that firmly believes that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken.
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Caring through the crisis
Like human beings, organisations have also witnessed radical shifts with equations between people, purpose, partnerships, planet and profits for businesses changing in the contours of a world shaped by the pandemic. In extraordinary times such as the present, it is only empathetic leadership that can carry forward teams as well as customers, consumers and communities. With their eyes fixed on the horizon, a leader must be able to endure the storm and anchor the organisation through the depths of the current adversities and volatilities.
(This story appears in the 21 May, 2021 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)