Waseem El Tanahi, Founder and CEO of Media Republic, Cairo 360 and Cairo Gossip,
tackled the different challenges facing companies during the pandemic in his session with
Narrative Summit’s digital talks series, Reshaping Norms. The series, which is broadcast
across Narrative Summit’s social media channels, hosts a number of local and global
experts to discuss the impact of COVID-19 and how the pandemic will reshape the future of
the economy, social life, and technology, both locally and globally.
El Tanahi expressed the difficulties and unprecedented challenges that brands and
companies are facing due to the outbreak of coronavirus and the urgency that is required
to face the crisis. He stressed that companies should be quick to restructure their existing
plans, campaigns, and strategies and move fast to seize the current opportunities in light of
the new reality. He stressed that the current situation, even with all of its challenges,
represents an opportunity to re-explore one’s strengths and weaknesses.
“Increased opportunities represent the main element of key performance indicators, and in
light of this global crisis, there are several elements that should be integrated by
enterprises, especially small and medium-sized ones, to their KPIs and decision-making
process. This includes the ability to invest in various industries, their cash reserves,
resilience towards environmental factors, employee protection, and social participation
schemes, all of which should be taken into consideration when taking investment decisions
in the future,” said El Tanahi.
In advice aimed at business owners, El Tanahi recommended that regardless of your brand positioning, you have to re-think where your place is in the global narrative; you need to communicate in a way that is empathetic to what people are going through. “Tremendous opportunities have emerged during the current crisis in the telecommunications sector and its related fields, such as teleconferencing and distance learning. The sector also saw a remarkable activity in the field of e-commerce and an increasing shift to the so-called remote delivery services. In addition, major fashion houses began manufacturing trending products, such as masks to meet the high demands in the market, while also promoting their brands,” added El Tanahi.
El Tanahi also shared his insights on the post-COVID-19 world indicating that focus will be shifted to certain sectors, especially healthcare which is ranked at the top three destinations for investment in the Middle East. He also expects the emergence of several healthcare companies that will compete to support the national health sector in the short and long terms, to manage operations during times of crises. El Tanahi also believes that we will see developments in the field of telehealth, which provides communication between patients and doctors via the Internet or cameras, enabling more opportunities in the future.