BDO's Cathy Moy: Together, we thrive

It’s an understatement to say that the past year has been tumultuous. As we’ve simultaneously navigated the uncharted waters of a global health crisis, the civil unrest that stemmed from the injustices facing the Black community and a rise in anti-Asian sentiment, we’ve all been faced with many new challenges and have had to make incredibly difficult decisions.

For most of us, this is, unfortunately, not the first crisis we’ve faced. However, I think we can all agree that we’ve never faced simultaneous crises of this magnitude. Crises that have not only had professional implications, but also very personal ones. We’ve been given windows into each other’s personal lives in a way that we never previously had.

The pressures arising from the pandemic and racial injustice have placed higher demands on all of us to become better—more decisive in the face of unpredictability, more inspiring amid fear and confusion, and more compassionate with colleagues, friends and family. In many ways, the lines have been blurred between all of our personal and professional lives, and it has brought to the surface just how important culture is to an organization’s long-term resilience.

While 2020 was undeniably disruptive, that disruption has provided opportunity –  opportunity to not only dial in our processes and build operational resilience, but to revisit the higher purpose of our organizations, reevaluate our existing cultures, and take steps to ensure that we are creating environments that foster inclusivity, growth, and strength among our people. It is these types of environments—built upon a foundation of trust—that create what we refer to as culture equity.

While culture itself is built, culture equity is earned—earned by the mindset and actions of our leaders who intentionally, authentically and sustainably create an environment that helps people thrive.

It is also that same culture equity that helps companies traverse moments of crisis. It allows team members to lean into a trusted and common foundation, knowing they can rely on one another to weather a storm.

Looking ahead, returning to “business as usual” cannot be our objective. Focusing on earning culture equity and creating a workplace where all team members can thrive will propel us to business that’s better than usual.

Over the past year, I’ve spent a lot of time getting comfortable being uncomfortable, but sometimes the things that make you the most uncomfortable offer the most opportunity to make a difference.

We’re all in this together. Together, we thrive.