Reflections on March 2020

One month ago (to the day) I returned from a business trip to Paris. It felt a little bold to be travelling, but not outrageously so. Australia had just started panic buying of toilet paper and I actually bought some in Paris as a tease for my family as their present from my trip (we’ve still got it if you want some imported Parisian toilet paper). Paris itself felt the same as ever, but there was a heightened sense of foreboding everywhere, of something coming that wasn’t safe, but wasn’t yet clear.

And now we know what it is. The world has changed so much and so fast. This virus is obviously very infectious and also has a higher mortality rate than what we are all used to dealing with. And sadly it can kill you even when you don’t have severe underlying medical conditions and are basically of normal average health for your age.

I thought I would write some reflections on these past few weeks.

Keep a sense of perspective

We all feel like we have been through a lot in the last month. And compared to ‘before’, we have.

At the same time there are a very few who have been severely and dramatically affected. Those who have had loved ones die or who are still in a grave medical condition. The medical professionals who are dealing with sick and dying people every day. The family of those medical workers helping them go to work every day. The other people impacted are those who are suddenly and unexpectedly out of work or who run a business that has suddenly had to shut and lay off staff. The emotional stress for them is ‘next level’.

For most of us (and I am one of these fortunate ones), we have to keep a sense of perspective. Sure we have been through a lot, but compared to some, it really isn’t that big a deal.

Obey the authorities

They have a tough job and are making decisions no-one thought they would have to when they took on their jobs. No doubt they are doing the best they can with the best information they have. They will get some things right and other things less so. Cut them some slack about this and acknowledge they are doing what they can. Most importantly, listen to what they are asking of us and do it.

I’m not so sure this is the ‘new normal’

After the first excitement of looking at how wonderfully old barriers have been broken to achieve work-from-home (WFH) for so many people at the same time, the reality is starting to dawn.

Some work is really suitable to do from home, other work less so

Personally I have always felt this way. The discussion about WFH is too binary and needs to be more nuanced. If you have a clear deliverable that requires concentration and individual effort, then taking that to a WFH environment can be fantastic. However if you have something that needs collaboration, idea generation and harnessing diverse views, having your team dispersed is not the best answer. 

We really miss the person to person interaction

Yes, you can do drinks over zoom. But is it really the same? The witty repartee on whatsapp is great, but again, not the same as the chatter in the office. Humans are social animals too and we need that sense of belonging and participating. Being remote and trying to get this interaction virtually is okay, but it isn’t the same and this void will need to be filled.

And our home environments are meant to be where we are at home, not at work

The juggle moving to such a radical work-from-home set-up has created enormous stress and pressure for a lot of people, especially parents of young children. It is clearly not sustainable over the medium to long term.

Macro efficiency is impacted

Tom DeMarco in his 2001 book “Slack” nailed this when he observed that efficiency and innovation are hard to hold together.

In this environment I would suggest that having ultra-high levels of WFH and agility & innovation at a company-wide level are going to be impossible to achieve together. I suspect having ultra-high levels of WFH effectively locks the organisation into its current state of play. Which may be okay for the short-term, but is not acceptable in the medium-to-long term.

Micro efficiency is impacted

What I am finding is that every meeting is now harder. This week I had one meeting which lost 20 mins out of 60 because the phone conference system died unexpectedly. Another meeting where someone was trying to make a point. All we heard was that every time they said “Can you hear me?” it was crystal clear, but then when they made their point it sounded like they went under water. It took ten minutes for them to make their point.

And chairing meetings like this is a nightmare, it is amazing how much you need to read the body language and mood in the room when you are chairing meetings. This is a lot harder on a multi-screen 2D image. So my apologies for everyone I failed to pick up their points in the last few weeks. I’m doing the best I can!

So in conclusion, some thoughts:

If you have a job, you have a social obligation to help people around you

Those of us who are fortunate enough now to have paid employment (including me) have inadvertently ‘won’ the game of musical chairs that no-one knew we were playing. Who knew the music was about to stop and some people would keep their jobs and overnight millions would be cut off from their work and their income?

So if you have a secure income, you have a social obligation to help those who don’t or whose business is hanging on by a thread. Spend your money on a business that is struggling to keep afloat. Find a restaurant that has been forced to pivot into delivery and has lost 90% of its income and give it consistent support. Support a charity which is working with the people who are now suddenly in a place they never imagined would ever happen to them. Look at how your favourite arts are trying to survive and give them financial support too.

We are going to have to remain careful and vigilant for quite some time

Even if the curve is flattened now (and in Australia and New Zealand it appears to be), this virus is going to be with us for the foreseeable future. We are all going to need to be more careful about our hygiene and health practices for a while. This may change how many people we have in various spaces at the same time, including at work. Watch this space as we learn what is okay and what is not.

We will see more people returning children to on-site schooling (and it will probably be safe to do so)

The initial reaction to get children out of school was perfectly understandable. But now there will be a rebalancing. With a flatter curve (so lower risk) and having now lived the complexity of school-at-home and combining all this with the message that ‘school is open’, I think we will see some families return to on-site schooling – and probably fairly soon. For some children (especially those in Year 12) this will no doubt make sense.

We will see more people returning to their place of work (and it will probably be safe to do so)

Similarly, to my point about school, the complexity of working from home will see a push for some workplaces to re-open and allow staff back into the office. This will then also drive other economic activity around those offices (e.g. retail and hospitality). The question will be how quickly we can do this and maintain social safety.

But elements of this will remain

The days of being ‘under the weather’ and still going to work are over. You can’t just ‘soldier on’ anymore! But fortunately people will now be more accepting that you are at home and still able to be ‘dialed in’ as needed.

We have now seen how many jobs and a lot of work can be done from home. So this barrier has been busted. A lot more work will be allowed to be done remotely and again the cultural expectations of each other will permit this in a way that may not have been possible before.

In finishing, please everyone stay safe and well. Look after each other and continue to listen to our authorities and do what they are asking us to do. Pray for our medical professionals for what they are doing every day. They are the real heroes.

And I think we will all take our business-continuity-planning a whole lot more seriously going forward!