Emotional intelligence is a vital and competitive advantage for leaders in the midst of a crisis. And what could be more of a crisis than the year that is 2020?

A company’s executives can be a marketer’s greatest tool for moving the needle on your business objectives. Studies show that when an executive has a strong personal brand, it impacts everything from the company’s ability to recruit and retain talent, to the generation of new business to the company’s market value.

COVID-19 forced many people to become reliant on technology for work, entertainment and keeping in touch with loved ones – both near and far.

Without the comped courtside seats to basketball and baseball games, lavish dinners, endless meetings for drinks … or even the “I was in the neighborhood” drop-by’s … some sales executives have found new ways to remain relevant, empathize with their prospects, pivot their pitch and continue closing deals.

If you own or manage a business in Wisconsin and you’re contemplating how to reopen your company, you may feel as though you are operating in a vacuum. Because for the most part, you are.

Prior to March 2020, if you were to drop the word “influencer” into a conversation or even Google it, the presumptive response or search result would have been references to lifestyle wonks touting everything from high fashion to makeup, food, vacations, and even more generally, lavish lifestyles.

Retailer Kohl’s adjusted its business model to adapt to the new realities amid the public health crisis and the adjoining recession. Other businesses could learn from these pivots.

Over the past few weeks, Kenneth Munson, CEO of Community Care, Inc., and I exchanged a series of emails and phone calls about the guiding principles of his leadership style in his career of service to the community.

We may be getting tired of the phrase, “the new normal.” But it is apparent that the COVID-19 pandemic is reshaping how we do business, where we do business and with whom we do business.

We are collectively getting used to being on camera and revealing our personal abodes for the world (or at least our co-workers) to see. So, how can we be sure that our communication skills are effective when we may or may not be wearing pants?

Join us for a webinar, Friday, June 5 at noon, featuring Timothy R. Sheehy, President of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, Manfred Elsig, Deputy Managing Director and Professor of International Relations at the World Trade Institute of the University of Bern, Switzerland., and Rick Appleby, Certified Business Coach and Experienced EOS Implementer™ with Strategic Planning Solutions.

The simultaneous crises of the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic collapse have left many executives cowering in their C-Level bunkers. Carl Sheeley Jr. is having none of that.

Leveraging local, national and trade media outlets to share your organization’s message is a powerful way to reach a broader audience quickly. And if you’ve done your homework to prepare for the media interview – researching the reporter, rehearsing your key messages and practicing anticipated reporter questions – then the interview should go well.

COVID-19 has been labeled by some as “the great revealer” – tragically showcasing the many disparities that have existed for decades in our society by impacting certain communities and segments of the population at greater rates than others. The pause button this pandemic placed on our lives has shed light on issues that many activists have been asking us to listen to for years.

a pandemic? How do you find truth when mixed messages and misinformation swirl around you? How do you personally handle the tragedy and deep divisions created by this pandemic? And how do you find stories and report on information other than COVID-19 today?

Katie Rasoul loves working with leaders. She believes awesome leaders build awesome teams. And that making leaders a little more effective will have a positive impact on people and businesses. After several years in HR and talent development leadership roles in the Milwaukee area, Rasoul decided to strike out on her own and launch her own company, Team Awesome Coaching. Her goal: to focus her energy on what she’s most passionate about – helping leaders grow and hone their ability to apply a lense of humanity and belonging to the decisions they make. For Rasoul, it’s not so much about the goals employers pursue, but rather how they do it. In her view, leaders always need to keep in mind the people who work for them.

Singer/songwriter John Prine was 23 years old and working as a mailman when he wrote that song in 1971. The lyrics reflect an astute sense of empathy for senior citizens by such a young man with his whole life ahead of him.

I’ve been thinking a lot about John Prine and his life’s story lately. As you probably know, Prine recently passed away from complications caused by COVID-19.