Today’s Risks and Challenges Can Become Tomorrow’s Opportunities

We live and work in an entirely New World.

Change, adoption, and transformation should be driven by management teams, yet organisations are being driven by it. A change in thinking leads to a change in perspective and from here, you take control.

Businesses have had to manage both economic and health crises, which have driven:

new employee and customer engagement protocols,
remote working on an unprecedented scale,
the re-engineering of supply chains,
mass bankruptcies,
consolidations,
creative partnerships,
and strategic alignments.

Disruption Is everywhere and moving much faster than ever.

The difference between winning and losing has become very small as industries face disruption from all sides. The three critical drivers of risk businesses need to be most aware of are:

+ political,

+ technological

+ societal

POLITICAL RISKS

+ Regulation Restrictions
+ Border Control
+ Lockdown
+ Access to international talent & investment
+ Merger & Acquisition Opportunites

Governments are increasingly shifting towards protectionism in order to create more self-sufficient and self-sustaining economies.

[ Protectionism is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ]

Border closures, lockdowns, and export restrictions are choking extended supply chains. It is worth keeping an eye on shifts in domestic policies focussing on national security and self-sufficiency. These policies could limit access to foreign talent and investment, and future merger and acquisition opportunities can be heavily affected.

TECHNOLOGICAL RISKS

+ Decreased Brand Competitiveness
+ Decreased Brand Relevance
+ Being Run Down By Change
+ Cyber Exposure
+ Rushing Automation
+ Manual & Legacy Processes
+ Job Losses
+ Employee Confidence
+ Failing Customer Expectations
+ Unwillingness To Respond & Make Decisions

Technological drivers are also accelerating and disrupting the business landscape. The pandemic has brought about an abrupt tech revolution for both large and small organisations which is levelling out the playing fields.

Rapid digitalization transformed social and work interactions overnight and exponentially increased companies’ cyber exposures. Work from home is creating more complex and potentially less-secure networks.

This monumental shift in how we live and work could create potential catastrophic risks and consequences over the long run. The rush towards automation, in response to the need for efficiency and reduced on-site labour, may expose businesses to unforeseen financial and ethical risks – particularly with more socially advocating consumers and workforces concerned about job losses. The willingness to take their talents elsewhere is rising at an alarming rate.

SOCIETAL

+ Outdated Practices & Policies
+ Decreased Stakeholder Trust
+ Decreased Job Security
+ Reputational Risk

Societal drivers are also creating real pressure across most industries. Businesses are facing enhanced societal scrutiny of their practices, particularly in relation to environmental, social, and governance aspects of business performance (ESG),  and climate change.

More than ever, consumers, employees, and investors expect firms to reflect their values which are driving stakeholder decisions, including clients and consumers. This became apparent as the pandemic’s long-term health, social and economic impacts were realised.

Global social justice movements such as Black Lives Matter (BLM) also played a big role in business reputational risk management. For example, at the height of the BLM protests, thousands of businesses stopped advertising on social media platforms due to the revenue and reputation risks that emerged. A lack of focus on employee diversity, job security, and fair play is an oversight that can devastate any organisation.

It’s all about how you respond.

Today’s Risks and Challenges Can Become Tomorrow’s Opportunities.

The challenges will keep evolving & change will remain the biggest threat. Overcoming these risks come down to how business management teams respond. It is time for CEO’s to make bold decisions and work with external teams that specialise in managing change and creating ever-evolving work environments capable of weathering the storms of change.

Let’s have a video call about risk in your world of work – contact us at | hello@digital-hq.com