Besides Purpose, another topic frequently discussed during the Path was the VUCA world. For those who have never heard of it, we'll explain! VUCA is an acronym in English, originating from the American military vocabulary, used to describe the volatility (volatility), a uncertainty (uncertainty), a complexity (complexity) and the ambiguity (ambiguity) in environments and situations.
In his book "Team of Teams," General Stanley McChrystal explains how the entire structure of the American army had to be modified and relearn what it knew about how wars and the world worked during the Iraq War. Until then, the model adopted by the American army was centralized. There was an interdependence of various agencies, which made communication and information sharing difficult. In parallel, the speed with which the Al-Qaeda insurgents' plans changed their strategy made it almost impossible for the Americans to achieve any positive results during two years of combat.
The solution found was a new work model: restructuring of groups, unrestricted sharing of information, and dissolution of hierarchical barriers. According to the general himself: “We created a team of teams, connected through shared awareness and empowered execution. We abandoned many of the precepts that helped establish our effectiveness in the 20th century because the 21st century is a game with completely different rules for us.”
Well, it's a fact that we live in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world. Just look at the news to see that. Now, how should our attitudes be to deal with a VUCA reality? To operate within the context of this "new world order," a new approach, a new mindset, is necessary.
1. Confront volatility
In this scenario, leadership plays a crucial role in building organizations: providing clear direction for the organization's employees. This is where building a Purpose comes in. A clear Purpose simplifies communication, clarifies intentions internally and externally, and helps define your path, your products, your place in the market and in society. The key to dealing with volatility is to not lose sight of that Purpose..
2. Minimize uncertainty.
This means having a greater understanding of the context in which you are operating so that your brand strategy is data-driven. Being data-driven isn't simple and requires investment in tools and training people to interpret that data. But the fact is that this data will serve as the basis for the strategy. And this strategic construction arises from understanding the needs of the people who build your business: your consumers, clients, and employees. Be empathetic, fearless, and uncompromising in your approach to building the future. The more you know, the more assertive you can be. The strategy is to seek to understand the future implications of today's decisions.
3. Overcome complexity
Sacred cows get in the way, because innovations are more likely to come from a new player, or a startup, than from an old competitor. If you are a large company, work on innovations in small pieces, instead of trying to change everything at once. To achieve this stance, creative leadership and bold actions are a must for your company to successfully manage complexity.
4. Neutralize the ambiguity
A lack of clarity not only distracts people but also harms your business. Everything you do as a brand should make it easier for customers to understand what you do and how to do business with you. Your brand's actions should reflect its purpose in all instances: business model, culture, products, services, and communication. The consequence of this is an alignment between who you are and what you say as a brand.
Ultimately, managing change in a VUCA world isn't always easy, but it's today's reality. This means that anyone responsible for owning, managing, creating, and building brands needs to ensure they have clear purposes and are dynamic and capable of adapting to changes that no one can predict.
Using Purpose as the lens through which all decisions should be made – bringing clarity, removing friction, making a Brand easier to work with and buy into – is what allows organizations to survive and thrive.
Article by Julia Resende
