Many businesses were directly hit by the pandemic, especially for those that need face-to-face delivery of services. Some firms did not survive and had to file for bankruptcy, while others are barely making it. The pandemic seems to drag on with no definite end. Thus, businesses have to develop ways to keep their company afloat and adopt the necessary changes to stay in business.
Here are the main changes that the pandemic has brought to the world of business.
Remote work setup
During the rise of the COVID-19 cases, staying at home and practicing social distancing is a matter of life and death. Hence, companies had to resort to letting their employees work from their homes. Workers process the necessary business operations from their built-in workspace.
With this, businesses have to choose the right software that can facilitate their online operations. They had to come up with new strategies to still generate profits, serve their customers, and provide employees income during these uncertain times. Since businesses cannot do face-to-face meetings, projects are now discussed via Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, MS Teams, and other videoconferencing tools. Even team buildings are being held through these platforms.
As a result, employees can spend less time commuting and more time on their family and work performance. The pandemic has brought to light that this kind of distributed work setup is workable. Despite the rising number of people being vaccinated, there are still new variants that are resurfacing. Thus, we can say that a remote work setup is here to stay.
Blended setup
Although several companies transitioned to telework, some cannot do that. Offices that have confidential nature or need for the actual presence of employees at the office adopted a blended setup. Half the workforce gets to do remote work, and the other half performs their tasks at the office desks.
To make this possible, they availed professional office cleaning services since there is still a risk of COVID-19 spreading within offices when employees go to the office. One thing is certain, the workplace that employees will go back to will never be the same. People should still need to maintain physical distancing, wear masks, and limit their number when gathering.
The good thing about this is that employees can still have social interaction with their coworkers. This can be what remote workers miss. Aside from that, employees are also given a flexible schedule. They can work in the office in the morning and work at their home office in the afternoon.
Employee Treatment
Some corporations were left with no choice but to lay off their employees. Despite this unfortunate event, we have also seen how great businesses went a mile to care for their employees. Here are some big businesses that showed they care:
- Shopify — This e-commerce company gave its employees a $1,000 stipend for their home offices and other things they need to transition to their work-from-home setup. Having about 5,000 employees all over the world, the collective sum for this allowance is immense. We can see how Shopify prioritized its employees.
- Google — While a remote setup has its upsides, it also carries many downsides, such as loneliness, burnout, and an unbalanced routine. With this in mind, Google instructed its employees to take an extra day off or a “reset day.” Google considered this holiday to be a time for “collective well-being.” Said company even told its employees to take the time to do what they need to do for themselves.
- Verizon Media — This company is known for buying Yahoo. What they did is they limited the number of staff in their retail shops and give other assignments to the former team working on their stores, so they could continue earning. Those with public assignments also have increased compensation.
- PepsiCo — PepsiCo is also one of the charitable corporations that provided an additional $100 weekly to employees who produce, transport, or deliver its products. It also gives the full salary for two weeks of any employee that has to be quarantined because of COVID-19. After the two weeks are up, PepsiCo will also provide two-thirds of their regular pay. This can extend to 10 weeks for those who got COVID-19 or have a loved one who is sick with the virus.
There is no doubt that the pandemic has disrupted many businesses. Though it led to bankruptcy for some, it also brought drastic but significant changes to the way businesses operate. It is also good to see that the pandemic has highlighted how adaptive, resilient, and great companies can be.
