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Evan Osnos: Joe Biden still has the ability to surprise people
Joe Biden is well known as the kind of guy who will talk your ear off, whether you're a head of state or an Average Joe on the campaign trail. But Evan Osnos, New Yorker staff writer and author of "Joe Biden: The Life, The Run and What Matters Now," thinks that reputation may be outdated. "Here he is in his eighth decade when a lot of people are, frankly, in more of a broadcasting mode than a listening mode, he's actually become a more attentive listener." Despite one of the longest political careers in modern American history, there remains more to Joe Biden than may meet the eye. Osnos spoke with Ian Bremmer on GZERO World.
Watch the GZERO World episode: What you still may not know about Joe
HR Reset: Post-COVID Lessons for Growth
Kevin Sneader, global managing partner for McKinsey & Company, provides perspective on how corporate business leaders think in response to the coronavirus crisis:
What is the role of HR going into the next normal?
Well, this is a time of reset and one big reset that I see is around the role of HR. I think it's time for HR to shift from being a transactional partner around compensation, organization charts, and benefits to being a truly integral architect of change. Now, that's been happening for years in the best performing HR departments. It Involves rethinking talent requirements, capturing what was learned about individuals and organizations during the course of this pandemic, and even learning and growing in a world in which remote working has to be combined with working back in the office or the manufacturing facility. A world where incentives needs to be rethought. And where employee experiences need to reflect a very different reality. So, there's a big reset going on and I think that reset needs to embrace HR both in terms of what HR can do, the role of the CHR role, and indeed the way in which together HR becomes a true architect for change, just as it has done for many years, perhaps unnoticed, and not give enough credit by those who really should know better.
Ensuring access to technology for all is critical during a pandemic
Kevin Sneader, Global Managing Partner at McKinsey, shares his perspective on corporate business leadership on Business In 60 Seconds:
How can technology be a force for good?
Well, we've been living through a pandemic where in many ways, technology has come to the rescue. Imagine how society, business, and communities would have fared if technology had not been up to the challenge that we've all been facing. In health, artificial intelligence is accelerating the development of vaccines. Analytics are providing us new ways to set about all tasks that confront us in this next normal. Education, while remote schooling is far from perfect, but it has helped millions of children get an education when otherwise they would have not been able to gain one. And even in inclusion, technology has enabled flexibility for those desperately in need of it, when they cannot go to the office, they cannot go to the manufacturing facility. And in the environments case, emissions have been reduced by applying technology to bring people together, where airlines no longer travel. So, the challenge now, how to bridge the divide between those who have access to technology and those who do not. That is really the challenge and one to which I will return, because the answer to the question of can technology be a force for good has been resoundingly answered. The question now is how to ensure everyone has access to it.
Learnings from working post-COVID: economy, work-life, leadership
Kevin Sneader, Global Managing Partner at McKinsey, shares his perspective on corporate business leadership on Business In 60 Seconds:
What do we know now that we did not know four months ago when the coronavirus struck with vengeance?
I think there's a lot. First, we've learned about our economy. We know that we've now taken the elevator down and we're taking the stairs back up. We're seeing a return, as I observe what's happening across the world, but from a very low base. And the letter of choice is not an L, a V or a U, but I think it's a big question mark.
Secondly, we've learned about what we like in the workplace and what we do not. Indeed, much that has proven attractive about remote working has stuck. Time with family. The ability to source expertise wherever it may be located. But there's much that's not. After all, as many have said to me, there's a fine line between sleeping at the office and working from home.
Third, we've learned about leadership. As one CEO suggested, all the traditional stuff does matter. Being a good listener. Being aware of the details, able to see the big picture. But perhaps the most valuable capability is one that's not often associated with CEOs, it's being able to show some love, to show some love. We've learned that first and foremost, this is a humanitarian crisis and one where empathy and understanding have really proven to be the leadership qualities that matter.
What should leaders do now to prepare their business to return?
Kevin Sneader, global managing partner for McKinsey & Company, provides perspective on how corporate business leaders think in response to the global coronavirus crisis:
What do I need to do now to prepare my business for return?
Well, the first is adapt. Adapt to the next normal, a very different future than the one originally envisaged. And to do that, you should have in place a plan ahead team, a second group of colleagues who can look ahead to how you want the business to evolve. The second is accelerate. Accelerate the shifts that you now know are needed to be successful in the next normal. And that means taking a hard look at, for example, the balance between remote working and working from an office. As you've now learned, what can be done well remotely and what cannot. Thirdly, craft. Craft the plans for a return. There needs to be detail. You need to think through what it means to work together in an environment that now has to be coronavirus proof. And that's going to be quite different than the past. And fourth, timing. When? When to go back? Who goes back when? And in what sequence? All of that requires careful thought and diligence. And that's why at the heart of this is to have one group of colleagues who are working very hard on the here and now and the detail planning, and another group who are looking ahead to adapt and accelerate.