Leadership competencies and the essential role of human resource development in times of crisis: a response to Covid-19 pandemic

TLDR

The study examines the leadership competencies required during and after crises and the evolving role of HRD practitioners in supporting organizations amid COVID‑19. The authors synthesize literature and case studies to identify key competency themes and best‑practice examples for crisis leadership, and reflect on post‑crisis HRD roles. The analysis reveals essential leadership competencies for crisis periods, showcases best‑practice cases, and proposes expanded HRD responsibilities following a global crisis.

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to investigate the roles of domestic and global leaders and organizations to COVID-19 and to consider the new role(s) of Human Resource Development (HRD) based on the ramifications of pandemics in general, and COVID-19 in particular. The research questions guiding this work are: What are the leadership competencies required during and post times of crisis? And What roles do human resource development practitioners envision to support their organizations during and post times of crisis? In this manuscript, we provide several themes, based on the literature and case studies from international and domestic contexts, that we see as essential competencies for leadership practices in response to a global crisis. We explored leadership competencies required in the time of crises, followed by exploring cases of best practices of leadership in different contexts, followed by reflections on new roles for HRD researchers and practitioners post a global crisis.