One of the benefits of the recent COVID-19 pandemic that many businesses are experiencing is its ability to evolve and come up with creative solutions to complex problems. On June 24th, speakers from BDO: Matt Grossman, Gregory Gratteau, Karen Schuler, Ross Forman, and Walter Seliga spoke about the evolution of people, places, and productivity in the workforce.
It is clear that the pandemic will continue to impact organizations. Business should start to ask themselves where they want to be in terms of response and recovery, including possible business requirements and operational requirements in order to be better prepared moving forward.
People are at the forefront of every business, so it is important for workers to understand the new return to work policies and guidelines that are put into place, as well as new expectations that will be given. There is a need for employee engagement, and it will be important for businesses to discuss how employees can stay engaged and continue collaborating moving forward.
From a management perspective, there will likely be new ways of recruiting and hiring. Businesses will need to adapt to new technology in order to conduct training and onboarding procedures. Leadership will evolve throughout the duration of this pandemic and beyond, with new ideas on how to lead in a virtual environment, and how to maintain a company culture. With many employees working remotely, it can be difficult to continue a company’s past culture, so it may be necessary to implement a new one, or make revisions to the old one.
With the increase in remote work, the use of office spaces is expected to change moving forward, and new ideas will be put into place to ensure the health and safety of employees. Offices will have a new purpose, and will likely have to undergo restructuring in order to fulfill updated guidelines. The implementation of a hybrid work style is likely to be a common practice among many businesses, and it will be important to understand how to collaborate virtually effectively, which will take practice, but in the long-run will benefit companies immensely.
Unfortunately, since there has been an increase in web use, it has also led to an increase in data breeches and phishing activities. Businesses need to be aware of this, and the implications if proper protection is not practiced. There are new regulations being put into place that will help keep data safe, but businesses should continue the conversation of deciding a timeline that certain bits of information will be needed, and when to discard the information from their systems. This information is industry-specific, and should be discussed in detail to ensure the safety and security of the information being collected. Businesses should develop a data protection framework, and establish a holistic ta protection program to evaluate their options.
It is important to remember that evolution will require flexibility and change, which can be difficult to accept at first, but will create long-term benefits to businesses.