The Impact of Quasar’s Crisis Leadership Through Covid-19

Starting out in 2021, we reflect on the unprecedented times that 2020 has brought the world through Covid-19. We have come to especially appreciate the healthy state of our company today. We want to take this opportunity to depict the strong crisis leadership that made a difference to our organization’s stability and even growth through what was 2020. Here are some key business and operational insights from Quasar’s leadership response to the chaos the was this time just one year ago.

Taking Fear and Uncertainty Head On

As rumors of Covid-19 spread in January 2020, and fear gripped most of China, the management had to face facts and realize that a serious crisis was in the making. Instead of being paralyzed by fear and uncertainty, Quasar’s leadership headed by Ayal Amitai, CEO, began looking ahead, considering courses of action to get the plant working again.

Employees through all tiers of the company were encouraged by management’s optimism and forward-looking attitude. As a result, people felt confident that their jobs were safe and that a plan of action will be put in place to stabilize the situation. Customers (local and international) were also kept in the loop so as to avoid creating and to the effect of removing the overall panic that gripped the country at the time.

Crisis Leadership – Rapid Reaction Time

Quasar’s first priority action was setting up a rapid response team. This team was responsible for interacting with authorities, bringing in solutions (responding) one at a time, and communicating with employees, customers and suppliers. Daily team meetings were conducted and every team member’s status was updated.

Prioritizing Employees’ Safety and Wellbeing

Quasar’s leadership went all the way to ensure that employees’ safety was maintained. Right from arranging for employee transportation, to getting PPEs for every employee and cleaning equipment for each station – the investment was huge. At no point did Quasar consider laying off employees. In fact, more were hired to meet greater demands. The trade-off between remaining profitable and ensuring 100% safety was a challenge. For Quasar crisis leadership is measured in long-term stability rather than focusing on short-term losses.

Handling the Supply Chain and Communication

Reopening quickly was highly dependent on a stable supply chain in place. possible thanks to good relationships with authorities. Official audits – to reopen the plant, happened very early. When supplies seemed to be held up because of restrictions on movement, Quasar remained
patient and sought the best ways to get supplies to the Shenzhen facility. Effective inventory management based on forecasted demand was also part of this. Demand for certain products such as tubing for Breathalyzers and other emergency medical equipment went up. Pandemic conditions around the world drastically reduced demand for non-emergency equipment temporarily. So, prioritizing customer orders and communicating with each customer was a frequent task for operations managers at Quasar.
Even after Quasar resumed operations with 90% workforce, most suppliers had delayed re-openings. Supply shortages were discussed and handled carefully at the ground level to get things running again.

Insights from Quasar’s Crisis Leadership

The pandemic served to demonstrate Quasar’s strength in Operational Excellence and effective communication. Their stability despite all odds and coming out with more business than before is evidence of Quasar’s solid business acumen even amidst this long-drawn crisis. Such an outcome would not have been possible without the leadership setting the direction and tone for the business right from the beginning.