Young leaders and the potential for new-age business application in the time of COVID-19

A metamorphosis of sorts, the global economy has been witness to bubbles, booms, and recessions through decades. Perhaps that's how monumental change comes about, and so does development. COVID-19 is one similar opportunity. What stands out this time, though, is that the whole world has been affected, and everyone - the governments, scientists, academia, and businesses, are together putting in efforts to salvage the situation. There's a great effort going into rebuilding a new world, and that's where the real opportunity lies. 

In a matter of just six months, there is a fantastic change that has already come about across all sectors. Technology now leads the way, and rightfully so. With our daily lives disrupted, there will emerge a new normal, and it certainly will be more evolved and advanced.

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The youth of today - professionals as well as entrepreneurs, will need to pivot this monumental change, and hence the skills that our future leaders need, also need to change. A simple question which was asked in interviews over years, "where do you see yourself in 10 years from now?" seems to have become totally irrelevant. Success today comes from exponential growth over a short period, and that requires flexibility, agility, and, most importantly - the ability to think and execute like an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurship in the new world is not limited to founding businesses, but it's expanded to being part of a larger business and taking ownership of its operations and its P&L. Co-creation and interpersonal skills have today become critical. 

Innovation comes from Adversity

India has been at the forefront of the global entrepreneurial and innovation scene for quite some time now. Young leaders and thinkers are building start-ups that are not only gaining popularity in our own country but taking over the global space. Indian businesses including Zomato, OYO, Swiggy, Ola and Make My Trip have managed to scale up really fast and also secured billions in funding from international investors. All of these startups identified a particular customer challenge, they built solutions that could be scaled up fast, and they succeeded. Needless to say, the journey hasn't been easy for any founder, or for the team who helped propel these businesses to success. 

Lockdowns and disruptions because of COVID-19 have led to industries seeing a massive decline in revenues. Sectors hit the hardest are the ones that depended on human interaction – airlines, travel, hospitality, retail, F&B and many more. "One person's loss is another person's gain", and that's how economies work. Look at one particular example; while retailers initially took a big hit with the closedown of physical stores during the lockdown, online sales skyrocketed. What happens to the businesses that can't move their model online? They think outside the box. Most recently, images of the first' socially distanced' music festival went viral – and the response to it was overwhelmingly positive. In fact, a majority of feedback was that people prefer the new model – as they never enjoyed the previous overcrowded, stuffy model. Still, there was no reason for organizers to do anything about it. Now, faced with doing nothing and facing bankruptcy or completely reshaping traditional gig rules, festival promoters have come up with a new model that will attract even more customers than before. Talk about a win for post-COVID innovation.

Post-COVID New World Skills

With more distance between us, the interactions we do have a need to become more meaningful. As we've already seen across airports, restaurants and even schools – there's more distance between us now - or a barrier of technology. The way we order at restaurants, the way we check-in to our flights, the way we pay for things – this new technological bridge between person and interaction opens up avenues to introduce more 'friendly' technology that not only helps automate more processes but still feels human, genuine and gratifying. Good technology is about enhancing the human experience – not removing it entirely. In the age of technology, humans will continue to reign supreme. 

Linkedin, the world's #1 professional network, identifies soft skills and interpersonal abilities to be among the most in-demand in 2020 and beyond. With all customer interactions now having to evolve and to add a layer of technology, professionals need to have a strong understanding of 'customer journeys', which requires them to deep-dive into logic, analytics, and customer behavior. All of this calls for learning, a new 'real-world' learning. 

We're in for some creative new changes to our daily lives  - let's enjoy the ride. 

KUNAL VASUDEVA

Chief Operating Officer Indian School of Hospitality

Immersive project architect hospitality education expert high network enabler aviation services specialist

With over 25 years of work experience, Kunal has been at the forefront of some of India’s leading hospitality and hospitality education ventures.

An immersive specialist, Kunal identified opportunities, implemented plans for accelerated growth and has led the overarching strategy and execution of business on behalf of premier education brands including the

Kingfisher Training Academy, The Chopras and the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne network of certified schools in India.

Kunal is passionate about creating a wholesome work environment across all cadres and fostering the growth and aspirations of his teams. Kunal’s top work ethos is to be a team player who leads by example and promotes a work culture of equality, inclusivity and individuality.

Kunal specializes in developing high performance cultures and a result-oriented workforce.

As a result, with his years of experience in leading education businesses across start up, turnaround and growth stages, Kunal has a proven track record of building high performing, dynamic teams that boost business and generate exponential revenue growth.

Now at the helm of the Indian School of Hospitality, Kunal is the driving force behind the country’s fastest growing premier hospitality college. Bringing together his expertise in education and business leadership, Kunal is at the heart of a multi-cultural and passionate team that is working towards reimagining the higher education landscape and creating progress, forward thinking professionals for tomorrow’s industries.

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