On April 30, Amchams in Europe Association held a first-ever online discussion on the topic of the COVID-19 crisis and how businesses across Europe and Eurasia are responding to challenges.
The event was moderated by Susan Danger, the CEO of Amcham EU and Chair of the Amchams in Europe Association. The panel discussion featured Simone Crolla (Managing Director at AmCham Italy), Peter Dahlen (Manager Director at AmCham Sweden), Eveline Y Metzen (General Manager at AmCham Germany), and Emmanuel Adam (CEO of British-American Businesses).
All the countries represented differ in sizes, economic and political background, and also on the strategies when it comes to battling the COVID -19. One thing that definitely unites all of them, and us, is uncertainty. It is hard to make any predictions, but it is rather clear that it doesn’t really matter if you are in a pandemic phase 1, or 2, some very challenging times are still ahead.
The panel agreed that when it comes to responding to challenges in order to restart and support the economy, it is required to think broader. Tax measures would definitely be one of the long-term measures to help the companies to survive. As a society, Europe will need to find a balance between social distancing and restarting businesses. Countries should also be focusing on retaining foreign investors, and organizations such as AmCham should continue offering a strong platform for networking and stakeholder engagement. The international cooperation aspect should be kept on the political agenda of the governments and when planning the economic recovery, the question of sustainability must remain.
A huge thank you to the ACE network and secretariat for organizing this event! And of course, we would like to thank all our members who were able to participate!
If you have any other questions or comments about the event, please get in touch with our office directly!
In the meantime, AmCham Estonia, in cooperation with our strong network, we will continue focusing on business leadership through the crisis, international cooperation, access and networking, and promoting trade and investment!
As the panel so rightly pointed out, keywords of the day are: solidarity, mental strength, and stability, good leadership, bravery, the cooperation of science and politics, and resilience!
