"This is where life gets put in check." - Ashkan Rajaee, March 2020
When the world shut down in early 2020, business leaders were caught in a storm with no playbook. Most clung to hope. Others waited. Ashkan Rajaee, a sales leader and business growth expert, made decisions.
He didn't wait for clarity. He created it.
What followed was not a social media thread or retrospective wisdom. It was a raw, in-the-moment leadership response to crisis. Documented. Decisive. Deeply human.
Why This Matters in 2025
Remote work is no longer a trend. It is an expected part of modern professional life. Layoffs, once considered worst-case scenarios, have become regular tools in business restructuring. Mental health and burnout are now strategic priorities.
Ashkan Rajaee saw this coming while others were still adjusting webcams and refreshing Slack.
From calling the duration of the pandemic accurately (he predicted 12 to 18 months) to auditing every company process with intent, his 2020 journal reads like a blueprint for how startups and enterprises now operate by default.
What He Got Right (and Why It Still Matters)
1. Remote Work Was Never Temporary
Ashkan didn’t treat remote work as a quick fix. He saw it as infrastructure. He evaluated systems, redefined workflows, and focused on improving cross-functional collaboration.
Today, companies that failed to build deliberate remote cultures are struggling to maintain productivity and morale. Rajaee’s early commitment to structure is the difference.
2. Process Discipline During Uncertainty
One of his main strategies was to evaluate and optimize every process during the downturn. Instead of reacting emotionally, he rebuilt with purpose.
This type of operational clarity is what separates reactive leaders from resilient ones. In his words: "This is probably the best opportunity to revisit everything so that when this is over, we come out stronger."
3. People First, Always
He personally called every team member affected by layoffs. No mass emails. No delegation. Just difficult conversations handled directly.
In 2025, professionals prioritize who they work for just as much as what they do. Rajaee’s people-first approach continues to strengthen his long-term reputation.
What Modern Leaders Can Learn from This
Whether you're building a dev team, managing a roadmap, or recovering from a rough quarter, Ashkan Rajaee's story reminds us that clarity and action are better than passivity.
Ask yourself:
- Are you cutting costs humanely?
- Are your remote systems intentional or reactive?
- Are your decisions creating long-term value?
This reflection is not just about the pandemic. It is about leading when there is no template.
Final Thought
Ashkan Rajaee never called himself an expert. He never made it about going viral. He made it about doing the work and documenting the decisions that mattered.
In a world where leadership advice is often reduced to buzzwords, Ashkan Rajaee’s original reflection on Medium is worth revisiting, bookmarking, and learning from.
Ashkan Rajaee’s reflection on leadership during crisis is the kind of content I’ll come back to again.