COVID-19 Resources: Leadership, Job Information, Videoconferencing Tips and More

Welcome to this week's Retail Resources post, a blog updated each Monday to include the most relevant information and resources I've seen over the past week to help you lead — as well as stay sane — in this unprecedented time. If there's anything you would like me to share in a future post, please let me know by dropping me a line at mcampanelli@napco.com.

Leadership Resources

• COVID-19 has had a dramatic impact on what consumers are shopping for and how they are shopping. In this Total Retail webinar, Loran Gutt, vice president, corporate development, Bazaarvoice, discusses how retailers are pivoting quickly to keep up with demand.
• This New York Times article, which discusses how a well-intentioned dress giveaway from Draper James went very wrong, serves as a cautionary tale for retailers and brands thinking of doing something similar during the current crisis.
• Youexec.com, an executive network platform built to share knowledge across businesspeople around the globe, has created a  Coronavirus Employee Management Kit, designed to help you manage the state of affairs at your workplace due to the coronavirus crisis. Once you sign up for the free report, you'll have access to a presentation you can follow to help you keep track of the financial impact of the pandemic on your company, your change of workflow now that employees are telecommuting, a team status dashboard, and more. I found it really helpful

Job Information

• As I have mentioned before, LinkedIn is doing a great job of updating a list of companies that are currently hiring. There were a quite a few new jobs posted this week.
• The National Retail Federation also has a great list of job opportunities for workers displaced during the COVID-19 crisis.
• If you're unemployed and, like many Americans, having a hard time getting your unemployment claim processed, the "Today" show featured a segment about a free service developed by the makers of the DoNotPay app that helps get unemployment claims processed quicker to get money to people faster.

Videoconferencing Tips

• As Zoom has become part of our daily vernacular, I thought this article would help. It details 17 video meeting mistakes you may be inadvertently making on Zoom video calls that may make you look unprofessional. (The tips work well for any videoconferencing platform you may be using, by the way.)
• Tech guru Shelly Palmer shares some great tips in this article, where he focuses on your work-from-home video setup. Total Retail's video team said it was one of the best roundups of tips they've seen.
• And it's not a myth: Zoom exhaustion is real. This article explains the phenomenon, why you may be feeling it, and how to combat it.

Fun Stuff

• Wine anyone? This guide helps you figure out the best place to order vino online. Cheers to stocking up for your next virtual happy hour!
• Everyone loves Melissa Etheridge, right? Well even if you don't, you have to give her props for this: Since March 16, Etheridge has been singing and playing the guitar in mini #ConcertsFromHome, which you can view on her Facebook page. The concerts take place every night at 6 p.m. ET (but you can view them any time), and it's just her and her guitar. Cool, right?
• The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is offering free online art history classes during the coronavirus pandemic. Classes run the gamut from the history of fashion design to photography to, yes, appreciating modern art. Enjoy!