Since 2020, companies in all sectors have faced various challenges. The first was the covid-19 pandemic and the confinements derived from it, and it continued with the increase in maritime freight costs, followed by the rise in energy prices and raw materials, which was accentuated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Faced with a changing landscape, businessmen agreed within the framework of Inter.Mx Expansión Summit 2022 , that education and sustainability are the goals that companies must pursue to face current and future challenges.
Jaime Fernández, vice president of operations at Interprotección, explains that education is the “authentic way” to overcome the different challenges that may arise at the business level, as well as being fundamental to “building a better future”.
“It is the basis to be able to grow in the future , generate productivity for companies and the economic growth of the country. That is the fundamental basis of society and it must be one of the great objectives that we Mexicans, businessmen, must set for ourselves, to expand those opportunities for our sons, daughters, people in general,” he adds.
For a company to develop and overcome challenges, education must be reflected in the people who are in charge of economic agents . Héctor Nava, CEO of Totalplay Business and Government Unit, considers that a leader must be consistent with the objective of exemplifying that their values, beliefs and actions are on the same line.
From the above, he considers that the creation of ” coaches and not foremen” derives, since a person at the head of any economic agent must also pursue the growth of his collaborators, since joint progress underpins collective improvement.
“Basically we have to be mentors to the organization. A maxim that a leader must follow is that when things go well it is everyone’s responsibility, but when things go wrong it is their responsibility”, adds Nava.
Education cannot be far from consciousness and not thinking about the future. Claudia Jáñez, an independent consultant, emphasizes that the approach to sustainability and preservation of the environment must be a personal value, that it must be educated at home and must be reflected in companies.
According to a study by the consulting firm KPMG on Mexico, 76% of companies in the country prepare a specific corporate responsibility report , while 59% of organizations identify climate change as one of their main risks.
“It is something that investors must demand,” adds Jáñez about the aspects of sustainability in companies, which range from production schemes to the way in which products reach the final consumer.
Despite the fact that most companies are aware of climate change, only 4% of economic agents in Mexico financially quantify the potential risks arising from said phenomenon, according to the study by the consulting firm KPMG.
Due to the above, Rajeev Gupta, country head of TCS Mexico, argues that the jobs created today must also be focused on the future, as this contributes to achieving a corporate balance , while Marlene Garayzar, co-founder of Stori, highlights that It is from the private initiative where the necessary actions must be taken to set a different course.
Blanca Juana Gómez, Grupo Expansión ‘s CEO of Contents, stresses that in order to achieve any objective at a business level, inspiration and emotional intelligence are essential, since both serve as pillars when building teams and creating synergies between collaborators, when pursuing the same goal.
“You have to have the ability to make a good team and inspire it. A good team today is diverse, active, as are the new generations. It is necessary to consider who are the professional beings of today. The theme is to look to the future, fill ourselves with ideas, listen and move forward”, he adds.
