Sustaining Enterprise Operations and Productivity during the COVID-19 Pandemic: “Enterprise Effectiveness and Sustainability Model”

TLDR

The study draws on Crisis Management Teams, Stakeholder, and Distributed Cognition theories, combined with contemporary success case studies, to identify essential strategies for enterprises to survive and thrive during and after a crisis. The research aims to explore key factors that enable enterprise operational sustainability and resilience across crisis stages, conceptualizing an innovative approach that incorporates organizational characteristics, operations, digital transformation, and financial planning. The authors develop an Enterprise Effectiveness and Sustainability Model during Pandemic by integrating the aforementioned theories and applying them to organizational characteristics, operations, digital transformation, and financial planning. Enterprises that employ distributed leadership, an adaptive culture, decentralized decision‑making, ICT integration, balanced resource stockpiling, and financial contingency plans are better able to sustain operations during a pandemic.

Abstract

The research explores key factors impacting enterprise operational sustainability and the ability to transcend adversity during different stages of a crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study draws from the Theory of Crisis Management Teams, the Stakeholder Theory, and the Distributed Cognition Theory to build an “Enterprise Effectiveness and Sustainability Model during Pandemic.” Existing theoretical background joint with contemporary success case studies helped to identify the essential aspects and strategies enterprises should employ to survive and thrive during crisis and post-crisis. We have conceptualized an innovative approach to COVID-19 from the perspective of organizational characteristics, operations, digital transformation, and financial planning. The findings suggest that enterprises having distributed leadership, workforce and adaptive culture sustain business operations during a pandemic. Furthermore, resilient enterprises allow for more informed and decentralized decision-making. Prosperous organizations leverage Internet and Communication Technology (ICT) and integrate Intranet, social media, and online communication platforms into their daily business routines, as this helps to establish trust and build bonds with employees, stakeholders, and customers during and post-crisis. Finally, balancing between the stockpiling of resources and resiliency is crucial in anticipation of a crisis. Therefore, we conclude that enterprises with financial contingency plans sustain their business operations during a pandemic.