December 7, 2020. Shanghai – COVID-19 dominated much of the discussion around business and management-related topics this year. From the impact of the outbreak and the digital economy to street vending and the latest trends in employment, we look back at some of the most read CEIBS Knowledge articles from 2020.

The global lockdown had many focused on their emotional well-being over the past 12 months. And, while feelings such as anger, fear and frustration are frequently suppressed or discouraged, CEIBS Professor of Management Flora Chiang got us to ask, can negative emotions be channelled into positive outcomes during the COVID-19 crisis?

Although we know that individuals who tend to reveal their true selves to others at work are better performers, little is understood about why this is the case or in which workplace environments this trait might be most helpful. Diving into the topic of self-verification, CEIBS Professors Emily David, Tae-Yeol Kim and Larry Farh had us wondering if ‘be yourself’ is always the best advice.

The mass quarantine of communities around the world had a negative psychological impact on many people. Even as the situation was evolving, CEIBS Assistant Professor of Management Michelle Xue Zheng and others recruited volunteers in Wuhan for a study into how mindfulness might help buffer the impact of lockdown on sleep duration.

While the pandemic forced us to ask many important questions about how best to tackle new challenges and what they may mean for the long term, one factor which was often overlooked was that of social capital. In March, CEIBS Professor of International Business and Strategy Shameen Prashantham took a closer look at how an organisation’s ability to generate goodwill and a sense of camaraderie can help boost resilience and speed up a return to business normality in critical times.

As the coronavirus swept across the world, families, enterprises and governments were caught off guard by the outbreak, resulting in its immense impact. In April, CEIBS Professor of Economics and Finance Xu Bin explained why COVID-19 has been such a great shock to the global value chain.

As elsewhere, Chinese industries were severely disrupted by the coronavirus outbreak and both offline and online businesses were put to the test. In the first part of 2020, CEIBS Assistant Professor of Strategy Bai Guo examined what China’s handling of the pandemic means for digital economies.

As epidemic prevention and control measures limited the flow of people, many enterprises rolled out various incentives to attract and retain workers. In step with the latest trends, CEIBS Professor of Management Han Jian took some time to give us an introduction to the emerging trend of flexible employment in China.

Time has brought us into the torrents of the digital age and new technologies are transforming our activities at an astonishing speed and in ways that we could never have imagined. In July, CEIBS Professor Management Katherine Xin shared with us five digital capabilities that companies must have.

As economies reeled in the wake of the coronavirus, the world looked to new opportunities to revive business and trade. After it was championed during China’s Two Sessions meeting this year, CEIBS Professors Oliver Rui and Lin Chen considered how the country might unleash the power of the new street-stall economy to boost consumption.

Finally, as leaders from the G20 major economies showed this year, it is possible to take special measures together to tackle the coronavirus. Earlier this year, CEIBS Professor of Economics Bala Ramasamy reminded us that unity is both possible and likely the only way to beat the global pandemic.

For more business research and insights from our faculty, visit our CEIBS Knowledge page here.