Leading through Crisis and Reacting to Change

This month’s recommended reading: advice from seasoned business leaders, how finance is adjusting to WFH, leading with values, and more.

News and insights to keep you up to date and on track—advice from seasoned business leaders, how finance is adjusting to WFH, leading with values, and more.

The Founder’s Field Guide for Navigating This Crisis — Advice from Recession-Era Leaders, Investors and CEOs Currently at the Helm

First Round Review | @firstround

Bookmark this carefully curated, eight-part survival guide, packed with helpful advice from seasoned business leaders.

“Doing nothing is a decision. It’s the same as actively choosing to stay on the same path. And most founders don’t realize that. If the winds are changing, a smart sailor will adjust their sails.”

CFOs Respond Rapidly to Pandemic

Vincent Ryan for CFO | @cfo

This in-depth survey of CFOs reveals what they’re most worried about and the plans they’re putting in place to mitigate those concerns. Top of mind: employee health and conserving cash.

“Half (50%) of the finance executives indicated that their organization was ‘scaling back or delaying investments,’ 47% working on improving their liquidity position, and nearly 20% shutting down or idling some operations.”

Preparing Your Business for a Post-Pandemic World

Carsten Lund Pedersen and Thomas Ritter for Harvard Business Review | @HarvardBiz

Applying Mintzberg’s famous 5 Ps can help your business bounce back from this crisis. These questions will help you gain clarity on your position, plan, perspective, projects, and preparedness.

“The question is what you must do to get through the crisis and go back to business when it ends. The lack of a plan only exacerbates disorientation in an already confusing situation. When drawing up the steps you intend to take, think broadly and deeply, and take a long view.”

Leaders Eat on Camera: Advice from 10 Years of Leading Remote Teams

Greg Storey for OpenView | @OpenViewVenture

An expert in remote team leadership shares what he’s learned about supporting your team’s wellness, workflow, and culture from afar. And, yes, eating on Zoom calls is fine.

“Most of us have experience working remotely for a day or two here and there. The one-offs are easy enough to do, but it’s the extended remote work that will have an impact on your team’s ability to interact with others, collaborate with parts of the business, and possibly your team’s culture (something that when damaged can take a lot to recover).”

Finance Teams Adapt to Closing the Books Remotely Amid Coronavirus

The Daily Breaking News-TDBN | @TDBN_

A challenge for many teams even under ideal conditions, the quarterly close is presenting new obstacles for auditing, accuracy, and timely results.

“To be able to close the month with no one sitting in the same room—if you can’t do that, you could really slow down the growth of the company.”

Uncertainty Tests Your Values: Five Stories From Times of Crisis

Nancy Duarte for Duarte | @Duarte

Successful leaders look back on the past 30 years and share what they’ve learned from past crises to help companies today.

“Crisis requires we become decisive about problems we’ve never faced. Good leaders get extra brave, extra calm, and extra clear in moments like this one.”

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