Navigator – Resilience

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Building back better

A picture of challenge and change

Businesses are living through the biggest global crisis in a generation.

To understand how it's affected them, including their plans for the future, we surveyed more than 2,600 companies globally as part of our annual Navigator research.

The results paint a picture of challenge and change. While 98% of businesses have felt the impacts of the crisis, 65% have been agile and stable enough to be resilient. And many see the crisis as a catalyst for change and long-term growth.

The insights in the Resilience report will help you grasp those opportunities while overcoming the challenges.

Why not get ahead today?

Navigator — Building back better

Download the global report (PDF, 3.2MB)

Resilience unwrapped

Our research revealed a common understanding among businesses of all sizes and sectors of the building blocks of resilience.

They are:

Pulling through by pulling together — with customers, employees and other businesses.
Building agility through a collaborative, people-first culture.
Using technology to build that culture and grow the company.
Seeing sustainability as vital for resilience today and growth tomorrow.
Using closer relationships with suppliers to build a secure and transparent supply chain.

How is your business building resilience?

Resilience is the result of many factors

Companies of all sizes and sectors agree there's more to resilience than a strong balance sheet.

33%

of your peers see employee morale as the biggest barrier to resilience in the next six months

What drives resilience?

What will be the biggest barriers to resilience in the next six months?

62%

Finances

62%

Workforce

37%

Technology

Businesses are concentrating on culture

Capturing the positive changes from the crisis and putting people first will help businesses become more agile.

49%

Treating employees well is among the key characteristics of a resilient business

4 in 5

businesses have become closer to their employees, customers and suppliers

How do your peers expect technology to change the way they work in the next two years?

57%

More virtual internal and external meetings

37%

Remote working becoming the norm

29%

Reducing office space

27%

Operating out of multiple locations

Technology will continue to be critical

While technology has kept many businesses going, its longer-term value will lie in supporting a more responsive, collaborative culture.

63%

of businesses are preparing for future uncertainty by adopting technology or investing in innovation

Companies prioritise technologies that will enable them achieve their future goals

25%

Tools that enable collaboration through virtual meetings

23%

Tools that enable digitised production processes

Tools that enable digital payments

Tools that enable cyber security

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced businesses into an unprecedented crisis, however amongst the hardship it has become increasingly apparent that technology is the ultimate solution to help businesses - and entire economies - survive periods of extended social distancing. Those companies that have invested and built their strategies around digitalization are the ones most set up to navigate the real-time challenges, to adapt and prosper in today's dramatically reshaped world. We are seeing companies in Vietnam harnessing the power of technologies to respond at pace.
TIM EVANS | CEO OF HSBC VIETNAM

Sustainability is taking centre stage

Businesses increasingly view sustainability as integral to their operations. Like technology, it both builds resilience and offers long-term opportunities for growth.

85%

of businesses see environmental sustainability as a priority

9 in 10

see transformation as an opportunity to prioritise sustainability

Where will the pressure come from to be more sustainable in the next 1-2 years?

92%

External sources, including customers and investors

75%

Internal sources, including employees and business leaders

54%

Regulators, including from industry and government

Closer working will make supply chains more secure

Businesses are using closer relationships with suppliers to gain more control and build transparency.

93%

of companies have supported the businesses they work with

67%

want to make their supply chain more secure over the next 1-2 years

How can you prioritise supply chain security? Your peers are:

31%

Identifying and securing critical suppliers

30%

Reviewing the suppliers' ability to withstand future uncertainty

26%

Working with markets/countries that are more stable

22%

Owning more of the supply chain (vertical integration)

In Vietnam, the EVFTA ratified in June 2020 placed increased importance on businesses redesigning their supply chains to meet the EU's requirements and take full advantage of the opportunities the trade deal offers. At the same time, COVID-19 has served as a warning signal for many to diversify their supply chains to protect from concentration risk on one specific market. A trend we are seeing is businesses closely monitoring their supply chains to ensure their operations are more resilient and less susceptible to disruption from external shocks.
TIM EVANS | CEO OF HSBC VIETNAM

Navigator: Perspective from Asian businesses

Stuart Tait, Regional Head of Commercial Banking, Asia-Pacific, HSBC talks about how Asian businesses are embracing change through resilience, supply chain management and digital solutions.

Resilience and preparedness

What makes a business resilient? Agility, customer focus and sustainability to future-proof your business.

Supply chains and sustainability

COVID-19 has exposed weak links in supply chains. What are Asian companies doing to secure their supply chains to weather future challenges?

Digitisation

What’s the key learning for Asian companies from COVID-19? The need is to embrace change from digital solutions.

Navigating Business – Asia Pacific Series

All industries and sectors across the world have been uniquely disrupted by COVID-19, causing companies to revisit their strategies as they look to react to the current environment and plan for the future. In this Navigating Business Series we interview HSBC experts as they provide insight around sector outlooks, opportunities for multinationals and investments and the future of trade. This series includes 6 episodes split across 3 thematics:

Sector Outlooks (Fred Neumann, Co-Head of Asian Economics Research, HSBC)

Sector Outlook: Technology, Healthcare and Education
Sector Outlook: Tourism, Apparel and Automotive

Opportunities for Multinationals (Sandeep Uppal, Global Co-Head of International Subsidiary Banking, HSBC)

International Businesses: Globalisation in transition
Reshaping Global Business Strategies

Future of Trade (Ajay Sharma, Regional Head of Global Trade Solutions, Asia Pacific, HSBC)

Understanding Supply Chain Risk and Disruption
The Future of Trade: Emerging Technology and Sectors

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