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Surviving the pandemic: how to innovate in one of the hardest hit industries

Dr. Alex Osterwalder
Dr. Tendayi Viki
Sebastien Tondeur
January 13, 2022
#
 min read
topics
Innovating In Uncertain Times
Business Strategy

Imagine you’re running one of the biggest event companies on the planet, then all of a sudden the pandemic hits. All events are cancelled. You have thousands of staff members on your payroll. You have no idea when things will go back to normal.

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This is exactly what Sebastien Tondeur, the CEO of MCI (www.wearemci.com), was facing in March 2020. In this January’s webinar, Sebastien will share how he overcame the challenge.

Join Alex Osterwalder (author of The Invincible Company), Tendayi Viki (author of Pirates in the Navy), Nick Himowicz (Host of webinar) and Sebastien Tondeur (CEO, MCI).

We’ll have a conversation and extract powerful lessons and practical advice drawn from Sebastian’s experience in leading MCI Group through the pandemic:

“When the first wave hit in March, we envisioned this “problem” as a 3 month thing. Sure it would hurt! but relatively speaking; it will be just a scratch. Then, here comes September, the second wave… then we realize the unavoidable: Oh Sh…it’s a perfect storm.”

We had to face the brutal facts - as Jim Collins famously said; so we faced two important decisions: (1) do we believe that this industry sector is going to be relevant in 5, 10 or >20 years, (2) how are we going to survive to execute on our business plan & vision given the constraints.”
Sebastien Tondeur
CEO of MCI

“Simply said, we think we are ready to thrive again because we plan for the long term, we listen to our instincts, and we work as a team.”

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About the speakers

Dr. Alex Osterwalder
Entrepreneur, speaker, and business thinker

Alex is the inventor of the Business Model Canvas, used by more than 200,000 companies across 178 countries. He is co-author of Business Model Generation, named one of the Financial Times' top 10 most-cited business books. He ranks number four on the Thinkers50 list of global management thinkers and has won the Thinkers50 Strategy Award. He has spent two decades coaching senior leaders at organisations including Bayer, Bosch, WL Gore, Honeywell, and Mastercard.

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Alex
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Dr. Tendayi Viki
Author, speaker and advisor

Senior Partner at Strategyzer and author of multiple books on innovation and strategy. Tendayi regularly leads strategy workshops for Fortune 500 companies, helping leadership teams navigate disruption and make bold decisions with confidence.

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Tendayi
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Sebastien Tondeur
Chief Executive Officer of MCI

Sebastien Tondeur is the Chief Executive Officer of MCI, he holds an MBA from Northeastern University in Boston, USA. Under his leadership, MCI has grown from a Swiss to a global organization with a presence in 31 countries, making it one of the biggest events group worldwide with a turnover of €434 million. Sebastien is driven by a passion for entrepreneurship and is a firm believer in the power of face-to-face interactions to build communities, inspire, and foster change.

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Sebastien
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by 
Dr. Alex Osterwalder
Dr. Tendayi Viki
Sebastien Tondeur
January 13, 2022
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Surviving the pandemic: how to innovate in one of the hardest hit industries
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Surviving the pandemic: how to innovate in one of the hardest hit industries

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January 13, 2022
#
 min read
topics
Innovating In Uncertain Times
Business Strategy

Imagine you’re running one of the biggest event companies on the planet, then all of a sudden the pandemic hits. All events are cancelled. You have thousands of staff members on your payroll. You have no idea when things will go back to normal.

This is exactly what Sebastien Tondeur, the CEO of MCI (www.wearemci.com), was facing in March 2020. In this January’s webinar, Sebastien will share how he overcame the challenge.

Join Alex Osterwalder (author of The Invincible Company), Tendayi Viki (author of Pirates in the Navy), Nick Himowicz (Host of webinar) and Sebastien Tondeur (CEO, MCI).

We’ll have a conversation and extract powerful lessons and practical advice drawn from Sebastian’s experience in leading MCI Group through the pandemic:

“When the first wave hit in March, we envisioned this “problem” as a 3 month thing. Sure it would hurt! but relatively speaking; it will be just a scratch. Then, here comes September, the second wave… then we realize the unavoidable: Oh Sh…it’s a perfect storm.”

We had to face the brutal facts - as Jim Collins famously said; so we faced two important decisions: (1) do we believe that this industry sector is going to be relevant in 5, 10 or >20 years, (2) how are we going to survive to execute on our business plan & vision given the constraints.”
Sebastien Tondeur
CEO of MCI

“Simply said, we think we are ready to thrive again because we plan for the long term, we listen to our instincts, and we work as a team.”

related reads
No items found.
Surviving the pandemic: how to innovate in one of the hardest hit industries

Imagine you’re running one of the biggest event companies on the planet, then all of a sudden the pandemic hits. All events are cancelled. You have thousands of staff members on your payroll. You have no idea when things will go back to normal.

Thanks for your interest in 
Surviving the pandemic: how to innovate in one of the hardest hit industries
Surviving the pandemic: how to innovate in one of the hardest hit industries
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Let's talk
Want to turn strategy into results? Connect with us to explore practical solutions that fit your needs. We'll help you design business models and value propositions that deliver measurable growth.
Thanks for your interest in our solutions. We will be in touch with you soon.
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