Doing Business in Africa: Managing the new VUCA world

The consequences of the current pandemic confront corporate leaders from all over the world with difficult decisions and trade-offs to make.  Whether and how companies will emerge from this downturn will not only depend on public support to cushion the blow, but on the preparedness and ability of managers to navigate through Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity, in short VUCA.  

Despite African companies will undoubtedly be hit hard by the impact of CoVID-19, they should be equipped to mitigate at least part of the shock. After all, successfully doing business in Africa implies the ability to cope with a complex and challenging business environment, in other words VUCA, on a daily basis. The web-multilogue “Managing the new VUCA world” looked at what European companies can learn of Africa’s entrepreneurs with regards to management in times of crisis and anticipation of a challenging future.  

Food for Thought

Peter Bamkole | Enterprise Development Center – Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos

Elo Umeh | CEO Terragon Group