Photo by By Kate Kultsevych

The Culture Lab

What Can COVID-19 Teach You About Your Company Culture?

CEOs share how their companies were able to navigate the pandemic and turn crisis into opportunity.

American novelist, James Lane Allen, said:

“Adversity doesn’t build character, it reveals it.”

One of the few upsides to the COVID-19 pandemic is that it provides endless opportunities to stress test your company’s character. The challenges that you and your team face right now put up a mirror to your culture, highlighting its strengths but also laying bare its fault lines and vulnerabilities.

I studied organizations and teams that were hit the hardest during the pandemic to glean insights into the systems and cultures that enabled some of them to pivot, strengthen their business, and increase employee engagement while others struggle to survive or shutter.

Take Encore: It’s the UK’s largest musician booking platform and a perfect example of how culture helps a company recover from the pandemic’s devastating impact.

Founded by two musicians and computer scientists, the company used cutting edge technology to connect people with the perfect musicians for their events. It…