Rita Lowman, President of Pilot Bank, sat down with multiple panelists to discuss the financial hardships many companies have faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Scott Perry (CEO of Amerilife), Terry Igo (CEO of Tampa Bay Trust Company), Travis Jennings (CEO & Founder of Finance Cape), and Gregory Kadet (Managing Director for UPS) discussed with Lowman how their companies have been impacted by the pandemic and how they adapted to remote working.

Having to quickly come up with a plan has been a struggle for many companies during this time. Many companies have a hurricane plan and a financial loss plan, but none had a plan ready for what hit our nation. With the shocking result of 2020 companies all around the world had to strategize and come together to develop a long-term plan for themselves, their employees, and their clients.

For many, it took several weeks to incorporate the technology and information needed to support their business, clients, and employees. As a result of remote working all of these companies had to adapt quickly to the new technology in order to increase team spirit and continue with effective workdays. Many companies were able to do this through the use of conference calls, meetings, and social hours with their clients and team members.

As Rita stated, “technology has been such an important part…”, so how have companies been able to incorporate their technology to ensure they fulfill the needs of their clients? Companies have implemented weekly calls with employees to review and discuss weekly workflow, commonly through Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Without face-to-face interaction with employees and clients it is essential that everyone is on the same page and continues to effectively complete their work. This may be done by team members sending daily recaps to each other and clients, that way everyone is aware of what got done and what still needs to be completed.

As President of Pilot Bank, Rita Lowman is aware of what COVID-19 has done to companies all across the nation. While this pandemic has affected many people and companies in a negative way, it is important to remember that no one is going through it alone. Many successful businesses are feeling the hardships that this pandemic brought, but together, they are adapting and implementing strategies the business world has yet to accomplish.