As we adapt to changing the way we live and operate our businesses in these challenging times, there can be a silver lining.
In the past, many business owners have thought the only way to run a business was to have their staff where they could watch and measure their productiveness, effectiveness, company values, and strategic goals. These owners struggled to embrace the concept of having their staff working remotely or of providing flexibility around family/work-life commitments – especially mothers returning to work.
However, I have recently seen a fundamental and profound shift in thinking by many business owners. As they work through these uncertain times and are forced to change their business models in order to survive COVID-19 and provide support to their employees and their families, this old way of thinking seems to be changing.
Mutual trust and camaraderie between business owners, their staff, customers and suppliers has strengthened, thereby changing the landscape in which business owners can embrace the opportunities that lay before them. For example, downsizing office space and supporting employees to work from home reduces business costs, as boosting a business’s IT capacity to support staff working remotely or using a ‘hot’ desk approach is far cheaper
than providing annual commercial office space, or continually having to increase the need for additional office space as a company grows. Current Technology also allows businesses to reduce costs in travel, access opportunities in other states or regions, and gain access to new customer/supplier relationships while at the same time providing a much-needed work/life balance for employees.
As we come through to the other side of COVID-19, businesses will be presented with other new opportunities to downsize their business costs and continue to support their staff in new ways, while still enabling human face to face interaction with employees, customers, and suppliers and being able to measure productiveness and effectiveness.