How To Adapt Effectively To The Post-Covid Business Environment
There have arguably been three recent business inflection points: The Internet in the late 90s led to massive customer engagement changes, the 2008 financial crisis made corporations question costs and make savings, and the Covid 19 pandemic. Each has disrupted the status quo, and each created winners and losers; all have been affected by how companies, markets, and society function.
Let the dog drive
Back in the pre-internet late ’90s, there was a joke about a future billion-dollar corporation run by a man, a dog, and a computer; the dog was there to make sure the man never touched the computer. As people are often the most expensive, challenging to motivate and manage resources, the thinking was that they would increasingly be replaced by technology delivering new efficiencies at less cost and hassle.
However, many previously hugely successful major corporations failed to grasp the opportunities or see the dangers of technological advances, and many old school players saw their whole industry model disrupted or even destroyed. Smart, agile, and flexible tech-led startups, however, proved to be formidably effective. Their business model focused on watching the market, riding the waves, and building continuous adaptability into their corporate culture and strategy. Many have now emerged as household names and the most powerful corporations on earth.
Technology disruption, particularly the growth in AI, further threatens many industries and human jobs; the unknown is to what extent it will create new and better-qualified opportunities. What is certain is the penetration of email, text, and smartphones, will continue and Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions will be integral in most people’s lives. The way they now directly engage with banking, shopping, transport, music, entertainment — everything from taking a cab, buying an airline ticket, food, clothes, listening to music, accessing news, or managing their money would be unrecognizable to many little more than a decade and a half ago and is still evolving.
“Our research shows conclusively that the biggest shifts in company fortunes, for good or for ill, happen coming out of downturns.” Bain & Company
The lessons are apparent; a culture of continuous change must now be at the heart of every business to gain and keep a competitive edge. The way things are done today may be different tomorrow, and adaptability is the key. And over the last year, for many companies facing reduced or even no demand, the choices they faced were stark — adapt or die.
For some, cutting back, furloughing people, or mothballing their business, has enabled a “keep alive and wait and see” strategy. For others changing working practices or refocussing their business model and applying technology effectively to develop new business models has enabled them to meet customer expectations and survive or even thrive.
Covid has cut a swathe across the labor force, with many jobs unlikely to be ever replaced as businesses adapt to the new reality, including opportunities to implement AI solutions. While some functions like call centers were already largely outsourced, and new technologies were already reducing human involvement, most businesses still primarily functioned from fixed locations — offices, shops, restaurants, etc., central places where people convened and worked together to deliver products or services.
The critical question is when the pandemic ends and the world starts to open up, what lessons will your business have been learned, and what new practices will become your new normal?
Without a doubt, many old practices have gone with the focus shifting to meeting operational challenges; creating efficient new supply chains, developing different service partners, and managing the shift from face to face to online or home delivery. To what level business structures and practices will return to pre-Covid days and what new processes and procedures will remain is yet to be proven.
When the pandemic recedes, executives can’t expect office life to be as it was. But they can create a new work world that will keep employees happy and productive.
“I can’t wait to get back to the office.”
While many people have adapted well to remote working practices, some undoubtedly miss the human companionship of the office or other workplace, and there are health and mental welfare issues created by enforced isolation that may negatively impact work performance. If people are going to continue homeworking, it is essential to ensure they have the right technologies and tools, and the business takes account through the package they receive and other support to enable them to perform efficiently.
In 2019, New York, the cost of office space per employee averaged $14,800 annually.
Marketwatch
Has covid taught businesses how to reduce costs and to focus on sustainable solutions? If an SMB with ten employees was likely to be paying almost $150,000 to open the doors before Covid, is this still a necessity when resources can also be invested into new channels, training, marketing, customer support, and product development. Possibly more hot-desking and part-time office attendance will become the norm. However, with more online work, cybersecurity needs to be at the forefront of focus and investment for all SMBs.
A balanced future work model will be different for every organization and needs careful thought, weighing costs and practicality with the benefits of team working and relationships — undoubtedly more effective face to face. Coming out of the pandemic offers an ideal opportunity to review every aspect of a business, the clean house where necessary, identify areas in need of investment, or change to position for a bright future from surviving to thriving.
Simple tools to help SMBs develop their best strategy in the Post-Covid world.
Nothing is as certain as change. When the crisis is over, the temptation will be for organizations to think that defaulting to old habits rather than seeking to adopt the best.
As businesses position themselves for the new normal, they cannot afford to be constrained by traditional information sources, business models, and capital allocation behaviors
Involve people. Those who work in the business at all levels have a stake in its continuity. Short, multiple-choice questionnaires are not complicated to prepare nor to analyze; after all, you know your business and can be very useful in gaining a fresh perspective on a whole range of issues and identifying opportunities
Analyze your business, your sector, and your position in it. Simple questions like:
- Was your business thriving pre-Covid?
- How has performance changed?
- How well were you able to adapt, and what were the fundamental changes?
- How fast is your sector likely to rebound?
- Has the pandemic created a shift in behavior and attitudes that will continue?
The trick for the future will be to analyze changes, what has been beneficial and what has been lost, and plan to develop and adopt a hybrid strategy business model combining the best of the past and new ways of working to create a sustainable and winning future strategy.
Use a SWOT analysis
What are the key differences in your working practices now? What issues have you faced/overcome? What has been learned? Where are the problems and opportunities? SWOT is also a good (free) tool for identifying differing opinions and perspectives and refocusing on a business.
Asking a group drawn from different parts, levels, and disciplines within a business often presents surprising and useful answers as each will see different strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Sales, marketing, customer service, supply; amalgamating and analyzing their responses can prove extremely useful in gaining valuable perspective challenging known positions, revamping business models, and seeking how best to invest in the post-crisis business landscape.
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Originally published at upstack.co on May 10, 2021, by Symon Blomfield.
