Continued from Page 5 Use creative and innovative thinking to underpin actions that are required to generate new solutions Focus on technology as the primary tool for remote working not as an end in itself Ensure that appropriate broad-based arrangements are put in place for Remote Working Be a Manager as well as a Leader: Make the necessary plans; be quick but thorough Review and revise budgets Establish new priorities; align new priorities with job responsibilities, skills, processes and systems Set new timetables and deadlines Authenticate any new rules and procedures Ensure that all relevant records are still being kept Ensure that reports are prepared and submitted on time Ensure that entitlements are preserved and applicable benefits provided Set an example for Leadership by being a good example of leadership Communicate by following the Seven Cs of Communication. Be: Correct; Clear; Complete; Concrete; Concise; Courteous and Considerate It is important that all public sector Leaders/ Managers, keep as clear a mind as they can during the current crisis. The crisis will be demanding and stressful. There will be big demands on you from the other dimensions of your life. You might be working selflessly and competently with great dedication to tasks but you are still only one person (still very human) and especially in this COVID-19 crisis, you can be overcome by anxiety and stress. It is important that you protect your health and physical fitness as best you can. You should be particularly mindful of any pre-existing medical conditions that could make you more vulnerable to the virus; and work hard to protect yourself. The human dimension to this crisis means that you could be called upon to be Comforter-in-Chief; Advisor-in-Chief; Referee-in-Chief and Chief Spokesperson during the crisis. Those roles should be considered integral to your day-to-day responsibilities and not an adjunct to them. LESSONS WE SHOULD LEARN There are many lessons that we can all learn from the COVID-19 crisis. We should learn them and apply them as the crisis continues to unfold and there will be opportunities to put the lessons into practice. 1. Crises can arise from a variety of hazards and threats; (not just hurricanes in the case of the Caribbean) 2. A crisis can unfold at anytime and may give very little warning of its potential lethal effects 3. We can be negatively impacted in a pandemic by what previously was our normal life - public transport, church, school, office work, shopping, sports, entertainment, recreation 4. Business Continuity Planning (BCP) is integral to organisational success and survival 5. In crises, we should learn as we go and adapt to the new realities 6. We live in an interconnected world – this pandemic did not originate in the Caribbean 7. Technology (no matter how sophisticated) is a tool; it is not a replacement for your team 8. Creative thinking is required to solve problems for which there are no existing textbooks 9. Many (not all) modern jobs can be performed remotely 10.The COVID-19 pandemic may have a pervasive, long-term effect on the work of the public sector – numbers, policies, structures, strategies, skills, planning procedures, processes, and such. CARICAD entreats all public sector Leaders/Managers to embrace these and all other lessons, internalise them and apply them as best you can in the months and years ahead. 7
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