Humanistic Crisis Management : Lessons Learned From COVID-19

This book aims at catalyzing our learning from the COVID-19 crisis. Numerous studies have emerged confirming that during the COVID-19 pandemic, crisis management has been far from holistic. Progress previously made towards sustainability has in many cases been reversed and global inequality has grown. This volume scrutinizes the crucial role of businesses in the lived experience of the COVID-19 pandemic and calls for a new goal system in business, establishing human dignity as the ultimate outcome of sound business. Part of the Humanism in Business Series, this book brings together a group of international experts to consolidate the lessons to be learnt from the pandemic and how it was handled. It explores the foundations of the crisis, before focusing on selected sectors and regions for analysis and, finally, drawing conclusions according to the principles of humanistic crisis management. It will be of great interest to scholars and students of business ethics, as well as policy-makers, professionals and all those who practice humanistic management. Wolfgang Amann is Professor of Strategy and Leadership and Academic Director at HEC Paris, Qatar. He has been designing, directing and teaching in high-end executive education programs worldwide for more than two decades. Agata StachowiczStanusch is Professor of Management at Canadian University Dubai, UAE. She is the Chair of Research of the UN PRME Middle East Chapter. Shiv K Tripathi is Vice Chancellor at Atmiya University, India. He is also Humanistic Management Network India Chapter Lead. Shiban Khan is Assistant Professor at the University of Doha for Science and Technology, Qatar. She specialises in strategic management, with special focus on HR management, multicultural management and corporate sustainability. Ernst von Kimakowitz is co-founder and Director of the Humanistic Management Network, founder of the Humanistic Management Center and a senior research fellow at the University of Lucerne, Switzerland Acknowledgments Contents Notes on Contributors List of Figures List of Tables Part I: Foundations and Stakeholders 1: Introduction to the Learning Journey 1.1 COVID-19 as a Moment of Truth and a Learning Opportunity 1.1.1 Overview of the Chapters References 2: The Need to Reconceptualize Humanistic Management in Light of Covid-19 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Freedom of Choice for a Dilemma to Exist 2.3 Sources of a Person’s Dignity 2.4 What Kind of Crisis Is Covid-19? 2.5 Why Reform Is Needed and Not Just Crisis Management 2.6 The Notion of Horizon 2.7 Conversion 2.8 A Hope for Building Humanistic Management References 3: Economic and Psychological Consequences of the COVID-19 Crisis for Working Mothers 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Psychological Consequences Experienced Globally by Working Mothers 3.3 Current Benchmark Practices and Proposed Future Recommendations 3.4 Recommendations for Future Research References 4: COVID-19’s Media Crisis and the Passing Loss of Care for the Elderly in China 4.1 Care for the Elderly in Rural Areas in China: Impact of Extreme Vulnerability 4.2 Health Promotion as an Effective Health Communication Tool 4.3 Public Communication Mechanism Generating Effectiveness of China’s Rural Elderly Norm in China 4.4 Legal and Social Solutions for China 4.5 Conclusion References 5: Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Entrepreneurs in the Informal Sector in Developing Economies 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Literature Review 5.3 Methodology 5.4 Discussion 5.5 Conclusion References Part II: Selected Sectors and Regions 6: COVID-19 Pandemic, Nonprofit Organizations, and Virtue: Flourishing during the Crisis 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Theoretical Background 6.3 Research Design 6.4 Findings 6.4.1 Leader’s Values and Character 6.4.2 Vision and Exercise of Power 6.4.3 Corporate Control Systems 6.4.4 Internal Network of Influence 6.4.5 Organizational Culture 6.4.6 Internal and Competitive Pressures 6.4.7 External Influences 6.5 Implications and Conclusions References 7: Promotion of Public Health or Digital Dictatorship? The Use of Digital Technologies for Crisis Management during COVID-19 and their Impact on Civil and Political Rights 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Civil and Political Rights in the Digital Age 7.3 Governance Challenges 7.3.1 Limited Trust in State Authorities 7.3.2 Ambiguous or Unknown Consequences 7.3.3 An Ineffective Compromise 7.3.4 Irreversible Tech Dependence 7.3.5 The Acceptance of a New Normal 7.4 Conclusions References 8: COVID-19 Reportage in Nigeria: Digital Media Ethics, Viral Lies, and Lessons Learned 8.1 Introduction 8.2 Conceptual Framework 8.2.1 Digital Media 8.2.2 Ethics 8.2.3 Ethics of Digital Media 8.2.4 Ethical Issues in Digital Media Reportage of COVID-19 8.3 Theoretical Perspectives 8.3.1 Agenda-Setting Theory 8.3.2 Media Dependency Theory 8.4 Methodology 8.5 Empirical Results 8.5.1 Reportage of Coronavirus Pandemic on Digital Media Platforms in Nigeria 8.6 Discussion 8.7 Lessons for Digital Media Practitioners in Nigeria References 9: The COVID-19 Pandemic in Africa: Losers and Gainers 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Stylized Facts on COVID-19 in Africa 9.3 Economic Impact of COVID-19 in Africa 9.3.1 The Toll of COVID-19 on Households in Africa 9.4 Emerging Pattern: The Losers and Gainers of COVID-19 in Africa 9.5 Conclusion References 10: Re-imagining Social Impact for Economics in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lessons from COVID-19 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Social Impact in Sub-Saharan Africa—History, Challenges, and Prospects 10.3 Building Successful Societies: The Tools for Social Development 10.3.1 For-Profit Purpose Businesses: A Case of Shared Value 10.3.2 Corporate Social Responsibility 10.3.3 Academic Social Responsibility 10.3.4 Positive Organizational Scholarship 10.4 Lessons from COVID-19 10.5 Conclusion References 11: Paradoxical Chinese Government Leadership in Handling the COVID-19 Crisis 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Literature Review 11.2.1 Paradox 11.2.2 Paradoxical Leader Behaviors 11.3 Research Method 11.3.1 Data 11.3.2 Data Analyses 11.4 Findings 11.4.1 Effects of Chinese Government Paradoxical Leadership 11.4.2 The Main Paradoxes in Pandemic Prevention and Control 11.4.3 Chinese Government Leaders’ Paradoxical Behaviors 11.5 Discussion 11.5.1 Theoretical Contributions 11.6 Implications for Other Countries 11.7 Conclusion References Part III: Levers 12: Reflecting and Learning in Lockdown: Leadership Approaches to Crisis Management 12.1 Introduction 12.1.1 Brief Chronology of the Crisis in the UK 12.1.2 Our Approach to Our Enquiry and This Chapter 12.2 Methods 12.2.1 The Three Organizational Contexts 12.2.2 Data Analysis 12.2.3 The Researchers’ Thoughts About Their Data Collection Experience 12.3 Storytelling in Times of Crisis 12.3.1 Prioritizing What Is Important: Values, People, and Organizational Health 12.3.2 Innovating and Experimenting 12.3.3 Building Trust 12.3.4 Communicating and Consulting 12.3.5 Shared or Distributed Leadership 12.3.6 Blurring Personal and Professional Boundaries 12.3.7 Other Insights and Reflections: Learning in and Through a Crisis 12.4 Concluding Remarks 12.5 Post Scriptum References 13: Designing a Resilient Power Structure for Your Organization and Celebrating What Worked: An Eye-Opening Reflection on COVID-19 13.1 Introduction 13.2 A Wake-Up Call 13.3 Company Culture 13.3.1 Building a Resilient Company Culture 13.3.2 The Development of New Frontiers 13.4 Holding Back on an Action Plan 13.5 The Leader’s New Role 13.6 Picking up the Pieces and Helping Them Shine Again 13.7 Conclusion 14: Integrating Politics with Administrative Capabilities in Curbing the COVID-19 Pandemic in Nigeria: The Humanistic Perspective and Lessons 14.1 Introduction 14.2 Integrating Politics with Administrative Capabilities in Curbing COVID-19 14.3 Lessons on COVID-19 and on Governance and Administration in Nigeria 14.4 Conclusions References 15: Local Embeddedness, Community, and Generativity: Building New Management Models in Post-COVID-19 Era 15.1 Introduction 15.2 The Evolution of Management Models 15.3 The Community Cooperatives 15.4 Methodology 15.4.1 Research Context 15.4.2 Research Design and Sample 15.4.3 ComCO A 15.4.4 ComCO B 15.4.5 ComCO C 15.4.6 ComCO D 15.5 Results and Discussion 15.5.1 Local Embeddedness 15.5.2 Community 15.5.3 Generativity 15.5.4 The LCG Model 15.6 Conclusion References 16: The Role of Social Entrepreneurship in Community Recovery and Development in the Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Period 16.1 Introduction 16.2 Definition of Social Entrepreneurship 16.3 COVID-19 and Social Entrepreneurship in Nigeria 16.4 An Overview of Emerging Economies in Africa 16.5 A Review of Previous Pandemics and Their Impact on Africa’s Emerging Economies 16.6 History of Humanistic Management 16.7 Humanistic Management Theory 16.7.1 Guaranteed Human Dignity 16.7.2 Incorporation of Business Ethics in Decision Making 16.7.3 Continuous Involvement of Parties 16.7.4 Humanism 16.8 The Reinforcement of Humanism in Business Activities During the COVID-19 Pandemic 16.8.1 The Role of Humanism in Ensuring Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Recovery 16.9 Implications and Conclusion References 17: The Possibility of “Bouncing Beyond” Today’s Crises to a Flourishing World 17.1 Exposing Cracks in the System 17.2 Bounce Back—Or Bounce Beyond? 17.3 Emerging Bounce Beyond 17.4 Transformation and Transformation Catalysts References 18: Learning from the COVID-19 Crisis and Conclusions for Humanistic Crisis Management References Index