COVID Guidance for Christian Executives: April 9, 2020

Who will we be when “this is done”?

It’s been three months since the first case of COVID-19 was recorded in the US. Likely, many of you have felt the mounting exhaustion as you’ve been crunching to save cash or struggling to stabilize turbulence. But the “time-is-short, can’t-afford-to-wait” high-stakes urgency many of us are experiencing also can yield a byproduct of improved business health and performance. 

The marketplace will enter Q3 with a desperate need for leadership, innovation, smart decision-making, and job creation. Leaders of our past—during the Great Depression and World War II—shaped the brands, technology, and mindsets we enjoy today. How will leaders of 2020—you—shape our future during this defining moment in history? 

You’re likely familiar with the verse in Romans often recited in times of confusion and grief: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good.” What if COVID-19 is an anvil upon which God is forging a new generation of leaders, businesses, and models to bring gospel transformation? 

Best practices being forged in crucibles of necessity now can become the strategic footholds for us to advance into the new day emerging. We have the opportunity to look back on this era proud of how we persevered through the adversity, not in our own strength but leaning on the Lord’s and on the power of peers. 

This week, Mike Sharrow, CEO of The C12 Group, shares inspiring stories of leaders harnessing the same entrepreneurial spirit of risktaking and innovation that fuels business success to birth incredible and compassionate gospel wins.

Resources & Guidance for COVID-19

Resources to Act

• Executive Courses for Crisis Management – Five webinars on planning and pivoting by Harvard Business School
• Fives frames for forward planning – A recent McKinsey report with framework for moving from defense to offense
• Agile EOS: How To Set Priorities In A Crisis – How do you adapt from a steady-state to dynamic planning and execution cadence with your team?
• Providing financial relief – Leverage donor-advised funds to fuel employee assistance funds
• HR Resources for Employers – FMLA, FFCRA, CARES, Communication and Templates
• Be a Neighbor – A C12 Member helping hundreds of other companies mobilize teams to serve in this time
• Inspirational Leadership in Challenging Times – Free toolkit for leaders on how to encourage and inspire during crisis
• Marketing Demystified – C12 curriculum excerpt (February 2017)
• COVID-19 Executive Briefing Series 3 – Access last week’s resources

Government Resources:

• Clarity for Faith-Driven Organizations – FAQ and specific guidance by US SBA, CARES Act for Christian Organizations on Separation Between Church & State, and implications for local churches
• Breaking Down CARES – Helpful highlights from charitable giving, taxes, to liquidity mechanisms
• CARES Programs, Rebates, and Roadmaps – Webinar with Q&A
• Tax policy updates – A taxpayer guide with considerations for personal and corporate taxes deriving from recent stimulus acts

Insight & Analysis:

• Planning for Economic Recovery – After we flatten the public health curve, we must plan for the reboot of businesses.
• Capital Markets & Exit Planning – What are implications of COVID-19 on capital markets? How should we think, and what are people seeing?
• Charitable Giving – 2020 will see both unprecedented needs among the social sector and uncommon tax opportunities.
• Pivot for the New Reality – List of sector-specific brainstormed pivot concepts for post-COVID-19
• Six CFO Imperatives – Focus areas for the next 90 days to protect companies and workforces in a period of rapid economic deceleration and uncertainty
• Industries After COVID-19 – Actions and insights for 14 sectors to guide crisis response for likely realities
• Important Advice on Managing Remote Employees – Podcast of a C12 Member with mostly virtual teams and a flourishing culture
• Live Insights on Growth & Exit Capital Plays – A series of free webinars by the 3Ten Coalition with industry leaders on topics confronting business owners

Perspective Pieces:

• Leading Through Change – Strategies for change management and to radiate Christ 
• Three Steps Forward for Every Christian – Orienting our thinking as believers and responding accordingly
• Some Good News with John Krasinski Ep. 1 – C12 Member InspireMore featured on this now-viral relief
• 7-7-40 Plan – Entrepreneurs in DFW partnered with their church, seven restaurants, and seven hospitals to provide relief, sustain jobs, and create a triple play on charitable impact dollars.
• Coronavirus Revival – A biblical look at what God is doing and what Christians are to do provided by Richard Blackaby
• From Furniture Store to PPE Workforce Ministry – Two entrepreneurs in Austin, TX, seized raw material capacity to solve PPE shortages for community hospitals, provide jobs for ex-cons, create work-at-home kits, foster church-business partnerships, and give glory to God, all in a matter of days.
• What will rule over you this Easter? – A video devotional from Michael Ramsden, President of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, describing the crown of Christ as far more powerful than any virus which appears to bear a crown
• HopeCast – A podcast of faith in the face of crisis
• Two critical mindsets from Billy Graham – Life is Short and What is Not Shaken
• Facing the Blitz – Lessons from a former NFL quarterback for times of adversity
• The Motive of Faith Driven Entrepreneurs – Podcast with Patrick Lencioni about faith, leadership, doing the right hard things, and COVID-19

The greatest challenge of our day is not surviving a virus or even restoring economies. We have a greater calling and battle that is not quarantined. 

Let’s forge something better, together.