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Covid-19

INSEAD thought leaders give their take on how to tackle and learn from the crisis.

Covid-19 is no longer a global health emergency but its impact on public health, the global economy and the future of work cannot be overstated. INSEAD's thought leaders — both faculty and their close collaborators in the practitioner and entrepreneurship communities — give their informed perspectives that could help us not just weather the crisis but emerge from it stronger than ever. 

INSEAD thought leaders give their take on how to tackle and learn from the crisis.

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Operations

How to Boost Health Product Supplies in Developing Regions

Prashant Yadav

Are development banks and philanthropic foundations using the right incentives to encourage global life sciences companies to cater to underserved markets?

Economics & Finance

Covid-19 Furloughs Helped Firms Thrive

M. Bennedsen, B. Larsen, I. Schmutte, D. Scur

Even keeping low-wage workers on the payroll yielded benefits after Covid-19 restrictions ended.

Responsibility

Unravelling the Link Between Socioeconomic Status and Obesity

P. Chandon, M. Langlois

A longitudinal study conducted during the Covid-19 pandemic suggests that stress plays a key role in explaining why obesity is more common among the poor than the rich.
1 comment

Operations

Are Our Supply Chains Ready for the Next Global Health Crisis?

Prashant Yadav

We need resilient healthcare supply chains to prepare for the next global health emergency. Here’s how to do it.

Operations

Putting Covid-19 Testing to the Test

Prashant Yadav

The pandemic has underscored the chronically poor testing capacity and calls for diagnostics strategies at the national level.

Leadership & Organisations

Three Steps to Optimising Your Firm’s Hybrid Work Strategy

Mark Mortensen

You need a strong process to reconcile the needs and wants of your various stakeholders.

Operations

Why Targeted Lockdowns Could Be Better for Everyone

D. F. Ciocan, D. Iancu, S. Zoumpoulis

Covid lockdowns may be with us for a long time to come, but they could be made sharper, less painful and possibly even more effective.

Leadership & Organisations

The Essence of Agility and Resilience After Covid

P. Zemsky, S. Hasija

Navigating unprecedented levels of uncertainty takes a careful combination of technology and talent.

Leadership & Organisations

The Complex Psychology of Covid-19 Compliance

Wilson Cyrus Lai

Three main psychological factors helped determine whether people responded to first-wave Covid restrictions with deference or defiance.

Leadership & Organisations

Without Psychological Safety, Hybrid Work Won’t Work

M. Mortensen, A. C. Edmondson

People managers have their work cut out for them.
1 comment

Strategy

Simple Rules for the Post-Pandemic World

Nathan Furr

Learning and using rules of thumb makes a difference both during crises and when opportunity knocks.

Leadership & Organisations

From Fear to Enlightenment: Building Resilience During Covid Year One

Lionel Frankfort

The four tools and strategies top leaders used most to convert stress and anxiety into positive energy.
1 comment

Economics & Finance

What It’s Like to Be a Gig Worker During a Pandemic

M. Stabile, A. Roulet

How precarious workers balance financial uncertainty, health risks and mental well-being in the age of Covid-19.

Leadership & Organisations

Prospects and Pitfalls for the Post-Pandemic Organisation

Phanish Puranam

Big changes are coming for organisations and organisation designs. Whether they will be for good or ill depends on how leaders confront three key possibilities uncovered by the pandemic.
1 comment

Leadership & Organisations

Teams in Evolution – and Revolution – After the Pandemic

H. Bresman, M. Mortensen

How sensemaking can help you cope with unplanned, constant changes in your team.

Economics & Finance

In Bad Times, Decentralised Firms Outperform Their Rivals

P. Aghion, I. Laporte

When there’s increased turbulence, delegating power improves sales and productivity, boosting a firm’s chance of survival.
2 comments

Strategy

The Post-Covid Future of “Everything as a Service”

Wolfgang Ulaga

The tough lessons of 2020 will provoke two major developments in B2B, having to do with technology and people.

Responsibility

Foundations for Gender Balance Can Be Built at Home

Z. Kinias, V. D. Rao

If we want a robust economic recovery and a fairer world, we must stem the tide of women fleeing the Covid-19 workforce.

Economics & Finance

Covid Cost-Cutting May Backfire in the Long Run

Oliver Binz

Macroeconomic uncertainty makes firms more profitable in the short-term, but the bill comes due later.

Leadership & Organisations

How Ready Are You for the Work-from-Anywhere Era?

Benjamin Kessler

Advice from academics and practitioners who are well-versed in the remote working paradigm.
1 comment

Strategy

Food Security in a Pandemic: Lessons From India’s Lockdown

W. W. Koo, X. Li

Portable food ration cards allow migrant populations to shelter in place, but implementation across state borders faces hurdles.

Leadership & Organisations

A Checklist for Boards in the New Normal

S. Shekshnia, V. Zagieva, M. Nazarova

Covid-19 has spurred corporate boards to improvise new practices while keeping those that have served them well. Here’s a run-down.

Leadership & Organisations

Deconstructing Learning, Reconstructing Education

Ilian Mihov

Covid-19 will change higher education for good – and, ultimately, for the better.
5 comments

Entrepreneurship

Reconceiving Innovation for Covid-19

Manuel Sosa

Covid-19 is an opportunity for businesses to build a new normal that is more human-centric, imaginative and agile.
2 comments

Leadership & Organisations

Pandemic or No, It’s Business as Usual for Boards

S. Shekshnia, V. Zagieva, M. Nazarova

For now, corporate boards prefer to keep the status quo – and the long view – in the face of Covid-19 upheaval.

Entrepreneurship

The Central Conundrum of Covid-19 Entrepreneurship

Vikas A. Aggarwal

A recently released report reveals how one entrepreneurial ecosystem is responding to the pandemic.

Responsibility

Can Zoom Be a Tool for Teaching Anti-Racism?

Z. Kinias, M. Akinola, E. Kelly, M. I. Norton

Leverage today’s technology to help correct systemic problems.

Strategy

Recession-Proofing the Subscription Economy

W. Ulaga, M. Mansard

Believe it or not, most subscription-based businesses are still seeing modest growth by exploiting four strategic manoeuvres.

Marketing

Beyond Covid-19: Remodelling the Future of Fashion

D. Dubois, D. Teo

The industry is set to become less cyclical, less vicarious and more transparent.
1 comment

Responsibility

A Post-Covid Social Contract

Karien van Gennip

How we can manifest “the next world” that serves us all.
1 comment

Leadership & Organisations

Why the World Needs Self-Reflective Leaders

Isabelle Laporte

The coronavirus crisis facilitates the rise of autocratic and narcissistic leaders just when we least need them.
3 comments

Leadership & Organisations

Three CEO Strategies to Guide Companies Through Crises

S. Shekshnia, M. Nazarova

We distil top executives’ experience for the ideas that work.

Strategy

How Social Impact Start-ups Are Solving Brazil’s Covid-19 Challenges

F. Salum, K. Coleta, F. Monteiro

The persistent problem of inequality in Latin America leaves citizens more vulnerable to the coronavirus. Innovative platforms move towards balancing the scales.
2 comments

Economics & Finance

Covid-19 Furloughs Are Getting the Job Done

M. Bennedsen, B. Larsen, I. Schmutte, D. Scur

Despite questions as to their cost and fairness, employment subsidies in the EU appear to be working as intended.

Leadership & Organisations

Networking in the New Reality

Lee Seok Hwai

Curiosity and reciprocity, plus some ingenuity, will help you build relationships in the age of Zoom.

Leadership & Organisations

How Resilient Leaders Think

Rachael Noyes

Can you encounter adverse circumstances and emerge stronger from them?

Leadership & Organisations

Covid-Era CEOs Are ‘Keen, Tough or Edgy’

S. Shekshnia, M. Nazarova

Not all CEOs are created equal, but everyone can come out of this crisis stronger.

Career

The Hidden Upside to Low-Power Negotiating

Alena Komaromi

Looking for work during a historic downturn needn’t cost you your dignity. Multiple research studies suggest strategies for turning a negotiation disadvantage into opportunity.

Strategy

Green Shoots for Businesses in China’s New Normal

Guoli Chen

After a historic economic contraction, opportunities beckon nimble-footed companies.

Leadership & Organisations

The Six Biggest Post-Lockdown Challenges for Organisations

Lee Seok Hwai

Businesses and other institutions will be judged on how well they adapt to the post-Covid reality.
1 comment

Strategy

How Covid-19 Raises the Digital Stakes Even Higher

Rachael Noyes

Now is the time for firms to invest in digital transformation.

Operations

Why Public Healthcare Systems Weren’t Prepared for the Pandemic

S. Bhattacharya, S. Hasija, L. Van Wassenhove

Healthcare resource sharing can be the difference between life and death. And it can be done without sacrificing agencies’ autonomy.
1 comment

Operations

Africa’s Drone Medical Delivery Service Saves Lives in Lockdown

Lee Seok Hwai

Could airborne despatch of medical supplies also be the answer to the needs of developed countries?

Operations

The Supply Side of Covid-19 Patient Management in Hospitals

S. Chick, A. Alban

A tool for hospital managers faced with scaling up their ICU capacity to handle Covid-19 cases.

Career

Shoring Up Executive Careers in a Pandemic

Lee Seok Hwai

The best time to plan for contingencies was yesterday. The next best time is now.