Speaking at the 2003 Shingo Conference, Guy Briggs, general manager of North American operations for General Motors lamented, “We spent the 1980s ‘counting robots’ before we realized that it’s people that make the difference in our business.”

As leaders face the most volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous business conditions ever, one thing is clear: Talent is an organization’s most powerful and sustainable competitive advantage.

The recent spate of natural disasters that devastated parts of North America included a violent variety of events. There were three major hurricanes—Harvey, Irma, and Maria—wildfires in California, an earthquake in Mexico, and tornadoes in Oklahoma.