AIC Talk | Ram Menen Retreat for a stronger rebound (Part 2)

Question:

In terms of assessing the situation, what elements should companies pay attention to when evaluating the facts during the crisis?

Ram:

Managing and dealing with turbulent times depend on how lean and mean you are in good times. The first thing a business should bear in mind is cash. Whenever a sudden shutdown like this hit, the first thing for the management to check is the financial situation and the chances of survival. By restructuring the debts and other liabilities, the business modifies into a cost defensive mode to seek sustainability. 

To handle the crisis and hedge the risks, the entrepreneurs must get prepared in advance and have a business continuity plan. A crisis like Covid-19 is not the first time such a pandemic has happened and it is not going to be the last. However, this time, the entire pandemic was further thrown into a deeper  crisis because of social media amplifying the fear of the unknown, throwing the world into chaos. Initial mis-steps resulted in a fast escalation of the pandemic. The disrupting supply chains becomes the epicenter of the crisis caused by shutdowns and social distancing, exposing the dangerous reality that the world had put all its eggs into one basket and bringing the world economy down to its knees. Quick and extreme actions by China resulted in efficient desease containment and full recovery in manufacturing production, which prevented the world from slipping into deeper trouble by shipping the urgent medical and PPE to the front lines all over the world.

As I mentioned before, having situational awareness is vital. Making sure the whole team is on the same page by constantly feeding in information and ideas of facts.

Question:

Fresh graduates, in China and around the world, may face a shrinking job market, what’s your advice to young professionals, especially those who wish to seek career in the aviation industry?

Ram:

The second piece of advice is anticipating changes and looking into the future. Change in life is the only constant. We should focus on managing today with what can happen in the future, rather than what has happened in the past. Experience gained from the past is a good basis to have, but what can happen in the future is what should be applied to manage today. While today is the reality, the future is where you want to be and surviving today is how you go into the future. 

My third advise is that the paranoia of failure should not stop progress. Never be afraid of failure as in failure there is learning and new opportunities. Improvising from the learning and perseverance reserves your success.

                                                                         Question:

In such a changing world, regulators should prepare for the uncertain future to create a sustainable commercial environment for all stakeholders. So what's your advice to regulators, especially regulators in China's inland cities?

Ram:

Regulators used to be bureaucratic in the past, but they have been more proactive and listening to the industry associations for the past fifteen to twenty years. Whenever creating regulations, regulators must understand they are not making "golden rules" that are set-in-stone. Living in a dynamic world, any regulations you are forming should be flexible enough to keep up with the evolving technology and changes.

To this end, regulators need to be more open-minded and react faster to the changing dynamics. Regulations are necessary for safe and secure framework, yet should not inhibit future growth. In fact, regulations are foundations for further progress. In a lot of places we are still working with regulations promulgated in the last century which become a hurdle for today’s environment. It would be better if authorities could listen closely to the industry associations or employ them as advisors to make regulations with a changing environment. Close dialogues with the industry and regulatory authorities can help create a regulatory framework that allows palatable and effective future development.