Key Competencies of Agricultural Managers in the Acute Stage of the COVID-19 Crisis

Abstract

The acute phase of the COVID-19 crisis exacerbated the need for managerial skills of agricultural managers, provoked another wave of discussion on content of managerial competencies in times of crisis, and revealed a significant research gap. The main goal of our study is to identify the impact of competencies of agricultural crisis managers on the performance of employees in the acute phase of the crisis, when the performance was influenced by their subjective perception and evaluation of their working conditions, satisfaction and safety. We used statistical mediation to examine the connections and deeper relationships between several variables. The hypothesis of dependence between competencies of crisis management and performance of employees, mediated by information sharing, teamwork and cognitive diversity, has been confirmed. Partial mediation has been identified, when only part of the effect is mediated by the mediator variables, however the substantial one. The remaining, smaller part is transmitted directly. Employees’ performance in an acute crisis phase can be influenced by competent crisis management and enhance its effect through information sharing and teamwork support. The cognitive diversity of crisis management did not prove significant in our study. The emphasis is on consistency and the resulting sense of security and safety.