It is completely understandable that most hospitality industry companies are focused on short-term survival right now. World, business and industry conditions require such attention. However, as time passes and we settle into our routines and manage to put out our most pressing fires, it will soon become time for the industry's leaders to look past the clouds of uncertainty hanging over us and take the necessary time to consider how firms need to position themselves once the pandemic crisis has abated and the world returns to normal. Strategy is about the future, and it is a mediator between the firm and the environment. It is what helps us to evolve proactively to changing conditions. Thus, while the crisis will in fact end one day (though we don't as of yet know when), it would be naïve to think that the After Corona (AC) normal will be the same as the Before Corona (BC) normal. New laws, new social norms and behaviors, changes to democracy and governmental intervention policies, employment shifts, and so on will have helped create a new world for people and firms.

The question, therefore, is what will the new normal look like in the AC world? More specifically, how will the decisions, actions and events of today shape the hospitality industry of tomorrow, and what can firms do to prepare for the changes to come?

Tim  Weiland
Tim Weiland
General Manager at The Alpina Gstaad
Anne-Marie Auriault
Anne-Marie Auriault
Founder & Managing Director at Pimlico Asset Management, and Independent Board Member
Dominic  Seyrling
Dominic Seyrling
Director – Investments at Archer Hotel Capital
Alex Sogno
Alex Sogno
CEO, Global Asset Solutions

The big question mark after the coronavirus crisis is, what will be the people's perception? In the short term, the customers and our employees will need to be reassured, with re-inforced hygiene control processes. Also, we expect customers to want more LOCAL: buy products locally made, eat local food, travel domestically... We shouldn't forbid ourselves to be optimistic, as this crisis will also generate lots of opportunities.

Scott  Woroch
Scott Woroch
Partner and Managing Director, Kadenwood Partners