A recent study issued by the global research institution, “Gartner”, shows that while the Covid-19 pandemic is changing the way businesses operate, business CEOs must look beyond the pandemic, as they should look at Other global issues that will shape business in the 1920s.

The study confirmed that despite the dominance of the Corona virus in the headlines, it is just one of seven major factors that will reshape business in the current decade of the 21st century, as the global pandemic will have a long and far-reaching impact on the business world, but other transformations are in the areas of the overall business environment. Systematic mistrust, weakening of international relations, and climate change have not gone far from making an impact, as CEOs have to contend with a host of other challenges during the 2020s, but out of this storm will emerge new business opportunities.

According to Gartner, the Covid-19 pandemic came at a time when economies were already on the brink, with inexpensive financing and low-cost energy generating a decade-long boom that led to structural stresses including accumulated debts and the collapse of alliances. International and asset price bubbles.

The study indicated that a set of other challenges facing business communities during the twenties of the current century are as follows:

• global epidemic:

The impact of COVID-19 is highly dependent on how long the pandemic lasts. A shorter pandemic time frame means that societies will return faster to their pre-pandemic ways of working. For example, after 9/11, individuals returned to normal flight use after three years; So if the epidemic continues, it is likely to have long-term societal effects related to consumer savings and buying habits.

• Market crash and recession:

Although COVID-19 was the visible catalyst for the market crashes of 2020 and the subsequent recovery, the reality is that markets were already fragile and unstable, with Gartner finding in both 2018 and 2019 that half of CEOs were anticipating and preparing for an economic downturn, making this recession Unique from the recession in 2002/2003, and 2009, however, no one expected the profound damage caused by Covid-19, hence the need to look for the exploitation of remote work and e-commerce in order to achieve a better infrastructure, which contributes to accelerating the digital business journey.

• Systematic distrust:

Since before Covid-19, global and domestic consumer confidence has been at an all-time low, now with closed borders, the fight for vaccines and the debate over masks and rules, as well as distrust of “the other” – even in formerly close trading partners – all of that. It threatens to widen the gap, however, and in the long run it is possible that the common enemy (the virus) will inspire empathy, common purpose, and cooperation.

In the meantime, CEOs must consider whether consumers will continue their loyalty to legacy brands or switch to those with limited supplies of goods, so it is necessary to assess whether these actions have irreversibly changed attitudes towards the brand. Personal communication – such as open, genuine, trusted, and empathetic email with customers – is an important component of overcoming mistrust.

• Poor productivity:

Slow productivity growth and a lack of focus on efficiency and productivity run counter to the economic growth of the past decade. The spread of COVID-19 has further reduced productivity by complicating business operations and increasing the cost of operating in a socially distanced world, requiring significant re-engineering to return to pre-COVID productivity, hence bold productivity targets.

• Environmental Concerns:

At the start of 2020, climate change was moving to the forefront of formulating long-term strategy and action plans, although temporarily overshadowed by COVID-19, half of CEOs still view climate change as a factor affecting their industry, so don’t be fooled by temporary environmental gains. resulting from lockdowns and reduced travel although these results can be looked at for inspiration for how to adjust business permanently.

In this context, major infrastructure projects designed to mitigate climate change must be taken into account, as they can be delayed in some geographies as funding is redirected to stimulus packages, which requires the invention of alternative carbon reduction strategies.

• Talent shortage:

Despite rising unemployment rates globally, a shortage of key talent will continue to annoy CEOs, while the coronavirus has increased unemployment and underemployment, it has not created new pools of in-demand talent, even a slight shortage of critical talent will erode or Destruction of market centers.

Hence, consideration should be given to the types of skill sets that will be required in a post-COVID-19 world, with attention to reskilling programs during downtime, introducing accelerated learning as a core management philosophy and considering ways to expand the availability of talent by rethinking online job options. The dimension or economy of temporary jobs.

• technological improvement:

Technological advances, of course, will have a huge impact in the next decade, as artificial intelligence, blockchain, quantum computing, and mass access for machine clients will transform the way organizations and societies work.