The world is reopening after a once in a lifetime BIG reset. As you get back to business, have a purpose to serve as a productivity champion and a motivated leader in your office. Determine that you cannot be like a feather, which when tossed into water, moves wherever the current takes it.

Fly like a dragonfly which goes against the water current to reach its destination and  accomplish its mission. Simply No excuses. Discover opportunities from the flanks if the frontal axes are inaccessible, and win new territories. Innovate, Grow  and Execute.

Fly to the mountaintop. I want to wish everyone a great beginning as we return to business. Innovate, not just invent; this video explains.

Airbnb is cutting 1,900 employees. Uber is also re-calibrating with 3,700 leaving. Across sectors and regions, aggregation business models which connect physical elements through digital platforms have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic. Uber orchestrates a framework where drivers and riders come into equilibrium; Airbnb brings short-term travelers and landlords together. Those entities were dislocated by the pandemic. But platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Google search which depend on digital raw materials like photos, texts, websites, videos, and music have done just well on growth, even if not necessarily financially since adverts have dried up.

Airbnb will lay off 1,900 employees, or about 25% of its workforce, as the pandemic continues to slam the travel industry. The home-sharing company is streamlining its operations in anticipation of its annual revenue being cut in half, according to a memo from CEO Brian Chesky. In total, it’s one of the largest layoffs to hit Silicon Valley since the pandemic struck — and marks an “ominous sign for the tech economy,” says Vox. It’s also a dramatic shift in fortune for the unicorn, which was poised to be a leading candidate for IPO this year.

[…]

Uber is laying off 3,700 employees, or about 14% of its staff, as the ride-hail giant reels from the pandemic and an ongoing battle over worker protections. According to CNBC, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi will give up his base pay for the year. The cuts are happening as California sues Uber and rival Lyft, saying drivers should be considered employees and owed a minimum wage, overtime, paid sick leave, and unemployment insurance. The lawsuit also seeks restitution for unpaid wages. Tech news site The Information says Uber’s bookings have plunged 80% from a year ago.

As the world reopens, some of these redesigns will be permanent. I expect new business models to emerge. Think about it: not many companies will hire people and expect them to show up daily at work. Also, surveillance and security protocols to curb virus transmission will become a new normal.

This is the message: Think deeper into what you do, and how a new ordinance in business systems will affect your sector and business specifically.

As crude oil paralysis rattles Nigeria, the government has gone to review the 2020 budget. After the review, many components will go including some federal jobs, National Assembly constituency projects and capex: “As Nigeria faces a fiscal crisis caused by COVID-19 pandemic and the measures to contain it, the Buhari administration has conducted a review of the 2020 budget, which, if carried out, may be the first step required along governance reforms to cut waste and direct revenues for development”.

“All Government Owned Enterprises (GOEs) will be required to cut their capital expenditure and overhead budgets by 25%, even where their budgets have already been approved by the National Assembly,” the memo further stated.

Covid-19 is evil – there is no debate about it. But like I have noted, it would offer opportunities for the U.S. to revamp its healthcare systems and push Europe into a new model of economic prosperity by investing in infrastructure and critical systems. For Nigeria, the only right-of-the-number-line outcome we can get from this demon of disease is reform of our insanely crazy bureaucracy and processes. Of course, if the oil spikes above $50 per barrel, the national masquerades will return from Osogbo, Kano, and Umuahia with recklessness of waste and no directions. But while that happens, the cuts happen because like masquerades, it is all a makeup show which comes and then disappears!

Because of Covid-19, America will revamp its healthcare system, Western Europe will push for new vistas on human welfare and Japan will strengthen how its industries work. Yes, Covid-19 will possibly give the U.S. a ticket to rebuild its infrastructure, as it looks for ways to quickly jump start and re-grow its economy. Indeed, the world will not miss this moment, which even though extremely unfortunate, has come!

Who could have believed that rich men can stay home to use local hospitals? An abomination a few months ago, but we have had governors who were touched and treated by “local” doctors, and they are well! Who could have imagined that all the politicians with fraud related legal problems are suddenly healthy, and none of their lawyers have asked the courts to grant them permissions for medicals in Europe or the U.S.?

People, there is an opportunity here – to rebuild our healthcare, schools, etc, and engineer a restoration in Africa. We must not miss the moment, no matter how the push is coming!

There are already reforms on the fuel subsidy and the IMF has pushed for electricity pricing reform to provide a recent emergency loan. These things are coming as a result of Covid-19.

Africa’s Covid-19 Moment