As the World (Re)Turns
Life, not as we know it - has returned to the streets but not necessarily into the office. Companies in Ireland, Europe and across the globe are running a cost/benefit analysis to decide if (or when) their people should go back to the office environment.
Even as I type this, it seems surreal that things have changed so much, so quickly. Within a few months, organisations that had never considered remote working as an option for their business - are now fully operational, without a single person "on-site".
What's the Plan?
According to Bain, returning to an on-site working model in the time of Covid-19 is "the very definition of Agile". For those that must, a high level of resilience is required - depending on your industry and the geographical split of your organisation, the rules may be different but the plan is roughly the same.
At the beginning of 2020, it was hard to predict that major sporting events would be held without a crowd. That traffic would disappear (for a while), pints of beer would be delivered to your home (on-demand) and that most of the worlds office workers would be re-located...to their home.
Based on a recent study, remote employees work 1.4 more days per month than their office-based counterparts, resulting in more than 3 additional weeks of work per year.
These are just a few examples of how (resilient) people and organisations adapted to keep operations intact. At a uniquely challenging time, necessity is the mother of invention.
Where Do We Go From Here?
Many industries have been turned on their heads and have had to adapt to changing conditions in the market, as they occur. Sectors like Retail, Hospitality, Transport, Fashion and Property have been challenged in a big way and we've seen some fundamental changes as well as advancements over this period.
Travel has been one of the sectors that has been hardest hit during the pandemic, as this graph indicates - global daily flights substantially reduced before starting to rise again.
For travel companies, the guidelines are changing quickly and a high level of uncertainty remains for now.
Recently, I hosted a panel of Finance Leaders from organisations that have experienced change, to hear their take on what has transpired. There were a number of common challenges and observations discussed, including:
- Technology has been key to remain operational and to generate revenue
- Remote working (where applicable) has proven to be productive
- Operational improvements and efficiencies are easily identified, when there is focus
At Glantus, many of us primarily worked remotely before this event and for now, our business continuity and stability looks good. However, like many others - we continue to monitor events as they happen, adapt where necessary and above all - remain resilient!