Consulting: In what areas are you currently seeing organizations focusing their transformation efforts?
Keel: The past year has been like none other, leaving businesses to figure out how to map out the road ahead in uncharted territory. The uncertainty of the pandemic, as well as the social distancing requirements, has led organizations to double down on driving meaningful transformation, including digital and agile transformation. HR transformation is another focus area as organizations navigate how to drive people-centric change through new ways of working. We're also seeing a heavy focus on supply chain transformation, following the disruption that the pandemic brought on a global scale, as well as cost take out transformation. Business leaders are seeing transformation as critical for future success post-pandemic.
Consulting: Talk a bit about how helping clients through large-scale transformations is especially challenging in the age of social distancing?
Keel: Early in the pandemic, it seemed like an impossible task to navigate clients through large-scale transformations in a virtual environment. But we adapted quickly with a new way of life and leaned into the challenge, quickly pivoting to remote and virtual work with leaders remaining heavily involved in client directives and projects. Over time and through adopting new ways of working, both our clients and our people have mastered great techniques to work through difficult transformations. The biggest challenge continues to be finding ways to virtually create "non-scheduled" time that is fundamental to building both a team and the relationships that help them take shape. It takes a lot longer to build client/team relationships in this new norm.
Consulting: What force (or forces) are driving most organizational changes you're seeing with clients?
Keel: Since the onset of the pandemic, we've seen an increased demand from clients for organizational transformation. Within these projects, I see two themes of transformation. The first is shifting clients to more agile ways of working by transforming their operating models and organization structures. The second is focused on efficiency transformations through cost-cutting. Clients are removing layers in their organizations, transforming the operating model and organization structures, and driving efficiencies, ensuring managers have true spans of control.
Consulting: What are some of the biggest consulting opportunities you're seeing around change, growth, and transformation?
Keel: There are big opportunities around the workforce part of an organization's transformation. Organizations must put people at the center of change and create cultures that support continuous change and transformation. Many companies think about the customer experience, technology and processes, but business leaders aren't focusing enough time and effort on the people required to do the transformation. North Highland's approach centers on tying the workforce to the process and technology needs by focusing on leadership development, organizational strategy and design, culture, and ways of working needed to transform the organization. These have been the biggest opportunities to transform the unmet needs of our clients.
Consulting: What industries are you seeing the most opportunities in as sectors look to bounce back from the pandemic?
Keel: The hospitality and travel sectors were incredibly hard hit, but we believe these industries must take bold steps forward to as it will still be some time before we return to pre-pandemic levels of travel. As people become more comfortable traveling, there will be an increased opportunity to help clients in travel and hospitality transform, adopt to a new post-Covid normal and gain market share. Now more than ever, businesses in these industries must understand the experience they're giving to both customers and employees – how can they win customers back, what kind of improved care are businesses able to provide and how can employee retention increase are all critical questions that must be examined in order to realize long-term success post-pandemic.
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