Leading In The Time of COVID-19: Take The Lead Co-Founder Offers Virtual Solutions

Gloria Feldt, Co-founder and president of Take The Lead, adapts her trainings to virtual offerings and leads in new formats during crises.

The global workplace is experiencing fear, economic and cultural disruption arising from the COVID-19 or Coronavirus spread. Updates expand daily, affecting leaders, employees and entrepreneurs everywhere. Most workers are now working remotely.

“The global workplace is experiencing economic and cultural disruption arising from the #Covid-19 or Coronavirus spread. #Workplace #Leadership”

Cancellations from Coachella and South by Southwest to classes on university campuses, sporting events, professional conferences and political campaigns heighten awareness and also create chaos. Some cities such as Dallas and New York have been declared to be in states of emergency.

This is where calm and decisive leadership is key.

“The best leaders ‘take the lead,’ if I may coin a phrase,” says Gloria Feldt, co-founder and president of Take The Lead, with the mission of gender parity in leadership across all sectors by 2025.

““The best leaders ‘take the lead,’ if I may coin a phrase,” says @GloriaFeldt, co-founder and president of @takeleadwomen, with the mission of #GenderParity in leadership across all sectors by 2025.”

While caution and empathy are key here, action is paramount.

“While caution and empathy are key here, action is paramount. #CO_VID19 ”

“They don’t let the crisis and chaos lead them. They take action because they understand that those are the times when innovation can be developed and new ideas can be implemented, because people are searching for solutions. They see the opportunities to advance themselves and solve problems, as I noted back in 2011 at the time of the last financial crisis,” says Feldt, at the helm of an organization primed to lead virtually and digitally.

While this global pandemic is different and its potential unknown, as a leader, heeding caveats about health and safety concerns and implementing best practices to keep every worker safe is foremost a top priority.

“As a #leader, heeding caveats about health and safety concerns and implementing best practices to keep every worker safe is foremost a top priority. #Covid-19”

“Nearly 1,000 people in 36 states and Washington, D.C., have tested positive for the coronavirus, with the number of known cases growing rapidly,” the New York Times reports. Thirty-two people have died in the United States.

Safety + Health Magazine reports, “In response to the outbreak of COVID-19, OSHA has published a guidance document intended to help employers protect workers from exposure to the potentially deadly illness and prevent it from spreading.”

As millions of workers across the country—including hundreds of thousands of workers at Amazon and Google—work remotely from home, leading remote teams effectively is a challenge for leaders of any organization.

Feldt, who co-founded Take The Lead and its team of virtual partners six years ago, says, “Acknowledge the uncertainty. It’s real. Your team knows it and may be afraid. But realize that uncertainty will always be there and engage people in moving forward anyway. Taking action is always the best antidote to fear.”

“@GloriaFeldt says: “Realize that uncertainty will always be there and engage people in moving forward anyway. Taking action is always the best antidote to fear.” #Covid-19 ”

According to HR Drive, "Businesses can replace in-person meetings with video or telephone conferences and increase teleworking options," Nancy Messonnier, director of the Center for Disease Control’s DC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said in a conference call.

HR Drive reports, “As the situation evolves, organizations need to keep up with the news concerning the spread of COVID-19, as well as how government officials and agencies respond to any developments,” Envoy Global Head of Global Immigration Stephanie Lewin said. “Employers will want to take action based on information from both the federal government and local authorities. They will need to pay attention to communications from the CDC and the World Health Organization.” 

Recently, conferences across the country including a major conference scheduled in Chicago for the end of March for 12,000 cardiologists, have all been cancelled, and work conferences including a conference on coronavirus have been halted. Large gatherings, performances and meetings are cancelled.

“A number of conferences, trade shows and events around the world have been canceled or postponed as attendees and organizers voice concerns about the new coronavirus. In Europe alone, at least 260 conferences have been canceled due to the coronavirus, said Sherrif Karamat, chief executive of PCMA, a trade association representing the business events industry. Most of those events were in Italy,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

“The direct economic loss from the cancellation from nine major tech conferences including Google I/O, Facebook’s F8 event, Mobile World Congress and now SXSW over coronavirus has already surpassed $1 billion, according to estimates the data intelligence company PredictHQ pulled for Recode. That number doesn’t even include what event organizers like Facebook itself would have made from the event. The figure just covers the losses to airlines, hotels, restaurants, and transportation providers that would normally make money from attendees’ purchases,” Vox reports.

“Some $480 million — the biggest loss — came from the cancellation of Mobile World Congress, which was supposed to host more than 100,000 attendees in Barcelona last month,” according to Vox.

The enormous loss of business revenue from in-person conferences and gathering is added to the loss of networking, collaborations, business connections and new knowledge shared on innovations and new practices. But new shifts to digital group engagement can help minimize spread of the virus as well as spread of economic loss.

“New shifts to digital group engagement can help minimize spread of the #virus as well as spread of economic loss. #Leadership”

“In an effort to protect their employees and help avoid the spread of the virus, companies have quickly enacted new policies,” Jack Kelly writes in Forbes.

“These steps include endorsing video interviews, working from home, halting in-person meetings, canceling conferences, cutting down on flying out to meet clients, becoming more attune to the supply chain and what countries they conduct business with. It's a radical new way of thinking about how the workplace should operate. It shows that there is not an absolute need to have everyone congregated together in one place. With the advancements in technology it's possible to have large numbers, if not all, employees working remotely,” Kelly writes.

Shifting workers from a central workplace to working remotely from home is disruptive, but in most all situations, productivity must continue without interruption. Similarly, essential training for workers and leadership instruction –some that had been on the books for several months needs to proceed- but in a different, accessible digital format.

“Shifting workers from a central workplace to working remotely from home is disruptive, but in most all situations, productivity must continue without interruption. #Covid-19”

Organization leaders need to adapt quickly in order not to let the threats of the pandemic lead to a financial crisis for an organization and further harm caused to workers.  

“Organization leaders need to adapt quickly in order not to let the threats of the pandemic lead to a financial crisis for an organization and further harm caused to workers.”

Read more in Take The Lead on virtual offerings

“I just had this exact conversation with a large global company I’ve  done several in-person workshops  for on the  ‘3 Powers  of  Leadership Intention,’” says Feldt. “ And while the director of their women’s program hadn’t  planned to make the pivot to online training, we both agreed that the benefits include being able to make the leadership  training accessible to greater numbers of busy people in multiple locations at once within the same budget of one in-person workshop.”

Feldt says a swift and nimble shift to online training and learnings may be what organizations need to do.

“@GloriaFeldt says a swift and nimble shift to online training and learnings may be what organizations need to do. #Covid-19”

“But beyond the preventative safety measures, convenience and cost savings, Take The Lead’s online offerings help leaders gain the skills they need to thrive rather than merely survive in times of crisis and chaos,” Feldt says.

“We give leaders a positive mindset as well as practical tools they’ll need to implement Power Tool #5—Carpe the chaos. In fact, they decided to make the first of a series of three online workshops focus on that Power Tool,” Feldt says. 

Amidst the cancellations and delays, many major conferences are switching to online, including a world summit for Salesforce in Sydney that is now solely virtual, according to ZDNet.

Industry leaders and entrepreneurs are bracing themselves and shape shifting for the practical implications personally, professionally and globally presented by COVID-19 as it is swiftly expanding worldwide. The impact of the virus cannot be ignored or minimized.   

Still, healthy workers continue to work and leaders continue to create contingency plans for their organizations.  

“The impact of #Covid-19 cannot be ignored or minimized. Still, healthy workers continue to work and #leaders continue to create contingency plans for their organizations.  ”

Feldt offers, “We can provide webinars and short workshops immediately, and we will work with them to custom build out robust solutions to their leadership development needs that provide the same results as our in-person trainings.”

Read more in Take The Lead on 50 Women Can Change The World

She adds, “This time of uncertainty might also be the perfect time to incorporate coaching services  for employees,  and  we  can provide  that too through our certified leadership ambassadors.”

 Continuing to work and thrive is essential during this crisis, as always.

“I’ve been teaching the full 9 Leadership Power Tools course online at Arizona State University for almost a decade and as a Take The Lead offering several times, so I have learned a great deal about what works best  to engage participants of all ages in the  digital space,” Feldt says.

“I’ve also delivered a number of webinars on various of the 9 Leadership Power Tool topics such as ‘How to Carpe the Chaos and Thrive.’ To be sure, we will  want  to update and our various course offerings to make them even more engaging. And I believe an essential ingredient of virtual education is to have a digital meeting place where course participants can stay in  touch with and support each other,” Feldt says. 

Remaining calm and decisive, as well as adaptable during COVID-19 is key, Feldt says.

“Remaining calm and decisive, as well as adaptable during #COVID-19 is key, @GloriaFeldt says. #WomenLeaders”

“Projecting a sense of calm and using your position to influence others falls squarely in the leadership camp, and true leaders can help their teams remain focused and productive even in the face of uncertainty,” Patrick Gray writes in Tech Republic.

“Being calm should not be confused with being passive, blissfully ignoring the events around you,” Gray writes. “Encourage your team to analyze potential outcomes of the crisis and the tools available to them to mitigate various outcomes ,and encourage considered action to put those mitigation plans into place.”