industry

From volume to value: Making positive change during a global pandemic

While COVID-19 has been a huge disruptor globally, businesses are using this time to reshape their operations for the better

The business world has changed dramatically over the past year

COVID-19 has been a huge disruptive force and I think we’re all wondering what the long-term impact of the pandemic will be on our lives and society.

One of the issues being discussed is how COVID-19 will influence the sustainability agenda and the fight against climate change more specifically.

Some argue that COVID-19 will hinder this agenda moving forward, as we all will have to prioritise our resources to survive in the short term.

Others would contend that COVID-19 illustrates how vulnerable we all are and that the pandemic is just the warm-up to a change far more fundamental if we don’t take climate change and the loss of biodiversity seriously.

I belong to the latter group. I think something good will come out of this crisis.

A few weeks ago, Euromonitor published a report on the top 10 consumer trends in 2021. As one of the primary trends identified through this research, the consumer post-pandemic will expect companies to protect the health and interest of society and the planet in order to ‘Build Back Better’.

As such, we will all - in and outside of the attractions industry - have to rethink how we manage our businesses and how we create value.

The changing face of business

When I went to business school 25 years ago, the only thing that counted when managing a company was shareholder value. Business was all that mattered and gains were privatised, while losses were externalised.

Over the last few years, we’ve talked more about ‘shared value’. Here, business still comes first but negative impacts are justified by doing good elsewhere, for example by offsetting a company's carbon footprint or donating to charity.

In the future, the focus for managing a business will be on system value, with businesses in no way hindering the transition to a prosperous future for all. In fact, businesses will ideally accelerate the idea, which is a completely different mindset.

It’s easy to get lost in the mechanics of sustainability - the goals, programmes, standards and reporting - but sustainability is really about balancing value creation and stakeholders. It’s also about balancing the here and now with what comes after.

In that balancing act, we as companies and as an industry have an important role in reshaping the economy from volume to value and the global pandemic is acting as a strong accelerating force towards that change.