Business Strategy

We’ve seen how tech-oriented companies have thrived in the pandemic, from Amwell in telemedicine to Zoom in tele-everything. But what about the rest of the economy? One fast-growing pizza chain shows that Covid can create a Great Reboot for all kinds of industries. The story of this company – rooted in five key steps taken by leadership – holds lessons for all types of organizations seeking to use this moment as an opportunity for reinvention.

One way to ensure a balance between leadership teams and systems as organizations and brands pursue rapid growth is by implementing a “Monday meeting.” One particular type of meeting that can have the effect of reducing work and increasing the metabolism of a business.

During the late twentieth century, most leaders of global companies felt obliged to serve one master above others: investors. The game, they thought, was to maximize returns to shareholders, and they left it to governments and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to solve global warming, poverty, water scarcity, and other abiding societal problems.

You know what your customers are buying, but do you know what they’re really trying to get done? As business management legend Peter Drucker wrote over 50 years ago, “The customer rarely buys what the company thinks it sells him.” More recently, Harvard’s Clayton Christensen popularized the concept that people are trying to get jobs done, and oftentimes a very wide assortment of products and services – as well as doing nothing – compete to deliver on those jobs. If you don’t understand your real competition, how can you beat it?

In the context of coronavirus, here are ten ways businesses and brands can adjust to make the difference between success and failure in 2021.