COVID Guidance for Christian Executives: April 23, 2020

Now is the time to build. 

The stakes are high. Unemployment drives mortality rates and disease. For every COVID-19 casualty as a nation, we are losing 550+ jobs and spending $30M. We are buying lives today with lives tomorrow each day that we continue to restrict business operations. These side effects follow the shared inflection point that changed the way we were doing business and delivering results. Looking ahead, there will be a tipping point when federal officials and the US Department of Treasury will be less energized to solve and fund relief. 

We have a tremendous responsibility as we make rapid decisions. What we do and how we lead today—with adaptations and innovations—will facilitate recovery and enduring economies for the months and years to come. We must build the right solutions, companies, communities, and environments to flourish in the post-recovery world. 

The same factors that are creating challenges are also creating unparalleled opportunities for an abundant future. Companies that are weathering the environmental changes and thriving right now are those that are finding a surge of clarity as they return to their purpose. 

Watch the video below to hear C12 Group CEO Mike Sharrow illustrate three growth strategies—including the “Tulip Tunnel of Uncertainty”—for you to evaluate your trajectory and strategize your post-shutdown plans.

Video chapters available to help you navigate to each COVID-19 diagram.

Resources & Guidance for COVID-19

Resources to Act

• Tulip Tunnel of Uncertainty – A diagram for leaders to evaluate company trajectory
• Planning Scenarios for Resilient Leaders – Multiple models and sector-specific considerations for what recovery scenarios might mean for your business by Deloitte
• 12-Step Pre-Recovery Checklist for CEOs – A proactive action process for CEOs facing post-COVID-19 worlds outlined by the nation’s leading CMO firm Chief Outsiders
• Avoid this Temptation in Economic Downturns – What if erring for altruistic entrepreneurialism is killing the future? Sustainable Pricing & Positioning by Michael Hyatt & Co.
• Emotional Intelligence Training – Free EI/RW Courses for Teams by Relational Wisdom 360
• Dynamic Dashboards – A free 90-day ITR Economics Trends subscription to stay informed of economic indicators and outlook through Q2
• Share the Stimulus – A movement to catalyze local impact collaboration by calling communities to a higher vision of stimulus spending than consumer goods alone
• Managing Through Crisis – Free courses and insights from Harvard Business School
• The Power and Potential of Design in a Global Crisis – Tools, actions, and inspiration for navigating a changing world from IDEO, the Human Design Lab
• Leading Through a Crisis  – Courses and coaching from the Global Leadership Network
• Assessing Market Position: Necessary Steps  – C12 curriculum excerpt (September 2019)
• Pricing on Purpose – Free e-book on assessing customer value and product pricing in light of market position
• Credit and Collections – C12 curriculum excerpt (May 2012)

Government Resources:

• FFCRA and CARES Act Program Comparison – A functional overview of five different federal liquidity relief programs
• What Government Contractors Need To Know – Insights into how a recent flurry of regulatory pivots changes the landscape for 2020
• Paycheck Protection Planner – Situational resources assembled topically
• Legal Risks of Paycheck Protection Loan Program – The fine print and undefined elements of multi-trillion dollar programs to watch out for
• Stimulus v3.5 – Additional $484B in relief programs passed by Senate

Insight & Analysis:

• Time to Build  – A call by Marc Andreessen for a resurgence of builders and entrepreneurialism to facilitate breakthrough
• Companies Radically Shaped by the Faith of Their Owners – Five examples of leaders who lead in business according to authentic faith
• The Rise of the AI-Powered Company – How AI/ML will drive new realities in the postcrisis world
• Five Questions for CEOs – Leading recovery strategies by leveraging digital transformation
• Innovating From Necessity – The imperative to build towards sustainable growth after shut-down
• Changing Futures – Trends that will shape workplaces, customers, environments, and delivery models
• Decision Fatigue – Neuroscience series by Neurosequential Network Stress & Trauma

Perspective Pieces:

• COVID-19 Executive Briefing Series 1-4 – Access to all Executive Briefings and resources
• The No. 1 Mistake Leaders Make in Crisis – The need for vision is compounded in crisis
• Pause the Treadmill – What is God possibly shouting at you in this upheaval? Francis Chan suggests it’s massive
• Face2Face Masks – Venture capitalists in Colorado create a humanitarian BOGO around PPE
• Smell Like Sheep – How a mining company leaned into the COVID-19 crisis with four new ways to care for their employees
• Christianity in Business Podcast – Houston Baptist University explores ways Christians in business are seizing unique impact plays
• Feeding Front Line Healthcare Workers – Dallas news coverage (7740dallas & NBCDFW) of local and replicable initiative to leverage funds to sustain jobs and show love
• Why Employers Should Promote Religious Diversity – The need and receptivity for gospel-driven care in the workplace
• Perspective. Encouragement. Perseverance. – Talk by Jeff Kemp on how Jesus calls us to be optometrists as leaders in a blitz like crisis
• Worry is Not Our Friend – Podcast with timely words from Todd Wagner via Faith Driven Entrepreneur
• The Motive of Faith Driven Entrepreneurs – Podcast by Patrick Lencioni about dialing in our why and how as a leader in this crisis
• ELO Network Webinar – How Should Christians Think, Act & Lead in the Corona Crisis by John Lennox

Knowledge is limited right now. By strategically surrounding ourselves with peers who bring unique pieces of the puzzle, we can build smart, faith-driven businesses together. 

Experience the rigor of a fully-integrated peer group.