Only talented workers will help your company survive a good future

From the onset of Covid-19, we must note the instant intervention leaders deployed to stay afloat. This reminds me of the years we have had table and boardroom discussions on some of the emerging ways of working that include flexi arrangements or remote working.

I saw leaders, especially talent managers stepping into dark spaces with almost zero experience, inadequate policy space and operating procedures. Not even the Employment Act of 2007 anticipated such a situation. Employees and employers paused to answer on continuity and sustainability.

Some companies survived the turbulence and others went under, which begs us to answer a question on what separated company (x) that survived and company (y) that had to go under.

Policies, systems, and resources (financial, installations, and people) are stationed for posterity, it is easier to react to a pandemic from a point of policy, system, and resource than a knee-jerk reaction based on the heat of the moment.

If we are to face another pandemic, then this calls on us to see the kind of thinking we should cloud ourselves with, the skillset, mindset, and toolset that will land us safely to the other side. Most companies hiring now are intentional about understanding how you positioned policies, systems, and even resources during Covid-19. That’s the hiring question nowadays.

The Covid pandemic has shown us that talent remains the only resource that organisations can bank on to deliver in another pandemic and through training, simulations and designed challenges we can prepare minds for a systematic reaction to any challenge that threatens the existence of companies.

Companies are faced with many challenges and most might not come in the form and shape of Covid but our struggle for existence both in season and out of season calls on us to future-proof our systems, policies and learning capacity.

Companies are now attracting talents and developing for the future. Employers require more skills than before and they also value proposition is more enhanced post-Covid than pre-Covid.

If you don’t realign around your shoe, then attracting and retaining will be a challenge and for the employees if you are not preparing for the future then there is a high chance the system will churn you out ahead of another pandemic in whichever form and shape.

Mr Siele is the Group Human Resources Manager - Shared Services