Throughout this pandemic, almost everyone has heard procedures such as mask-wearing, social distancing, and online work as a “new normal”. For most of us, including myself, this phrase is taken with a grain of salt. We may think that this is not a truly a “new normal” but rather a “temporary normal”.
Will we still have to take all these precautions after a vaccine is developed? In some instances, probably not. With a vaccine and better ways to alleviate symptoms, odds are social distancing and constant mask-wearing will not go on forever. Similarly, office spaces will likely not be vacant for the rest of our lives.
However, although some of our new normal may be temporary, the coronavirus has introduced a plethora of unique business problems that are unlikely to simply go away after the pandemic is over.
Here are three major takeaways from the last five months that we believe every business must consider in order to achieve success post-pandemic.
1. The Unthinkable is Not the Impossible
A year ago, nobody could have predicted what has happened in the last five months. Most people had never experienced an epidemic or certainly a pandemic prior to this one. We all knew it was possible; after all they had happened before. However, most businesses and organizations did not have any plans as to how to continue operations if one hit. That’s not to say all businesses should have had a plan. Hindsight is 20/20, and it’s easy to sit back and criticize different organizations for not being prepared but criticizing past failure does not protect us from future failure. Rather, acknowledging mistakes and learning from them is how to move forward.
Something like a pandemic that is so universally damaging may never happen again (hopefully), but there are other smaller instances that could seriously hurt the future of any business. For example, sexual harassment or discrimination in the workplace, the mishandling of hazardous materials or dangerous machinery on the job, or the presence of an active shooter all seem unlikely events, but they are very real instances that will unfortunately happen from time to time. Given that it is imperative that firms have both training procedures to prevent these things from happening, as well as protocols for reacting to them if they do.
2. Conflict Resolution is a Workplace Essential
Over the last few months, we’ve seen a lot of unfortunate conflict over important issues. We’ve seen clashes between law enforcement and protestors over racial injustice in cities all over the country. We’ve experienced elected officials in Washington clash over the best way to handle the virus itself and its economic repercussions. And, we’ve even seen consistent conflicts in an area as small as restaurant workers trying to enforce a mask mandate. Although these conflicts push the conversation forward, the conflicts and the resulting stressful situations remain. ,It’s critical that leaders senior management going forward encourages transparent work environments that promote healthy confrontation in order to solve problems as well as taking all of the necessary precautions to ensure a healthy and safe work environment
3. Cybersecurity Will be Increasingly Important
It is likely that companies will allow their employees to continue to work from home at least partially after the pandemic for a long time, and that may, in fact, become the new normal. If this is so, more company information will be stored online and not in the office. Cybersecurity will be an essential measure to protect this information going forward.
Although the threat of the virus may go away. It will leave an everlasting legacy on the nature of American business. Evans Brothers Consulting is committed to helping businesses prepare for an uncertain and constantly changing security solution.