5 Major Trends & Shifts to Business as a Result of COVID-19

There’s no denying the negative impact of COVID-19 on industries and businesses, but the news is not all bad.

In adversity, competent operators know to seize the opportunity to change how they operate, so their business not only survives but thrives. 🙂

For example, some changes include remote working, which is now the norm.

Were you allowed to work from home pre-COVID-19? If not, you weren’t alone; many companies were reluctant to let their staff work away from the office. 

Since COVID-19, many businesses now have crisis management plans, and they’re rethinking their logistics and supply chains.

Positive Trends and Changes

In this business blog post, we take a closer look at the positive trends and changes that have taken place in companies during the pandemic.

Remote Employees Can Definitely Work—Literally

When COVID-19 first hit, many companies were forced to move to a mobile workforce for their employee and customer safety.

One thing that successful remote employees have had in common is using technology and software to help optimize their workforce, including development, streamline processes, alter schedules as needed and track metrics, resulting in content and productive employees and happy customers.

Effective Crisis Management Plans Are in Place

As PwC notes, the pandemic strained even the most well-thought-out business crisis plan. Many companies immediately got on board to develop effective incident management plans that were specific to the virus.

As we get into 2021 and business owners start thinking about bringing people back to work in person, these crisis plans may be tweaked to help the transition while looking for corrections to the course.

The Re-Thinking of Supply Chains

Early on in the pandemic, supplies like toilet paper, paper towels and pasta were nearly impossible to find. This situation had many laypeople reading up on concepts like supply chains to understand why they couldn’t find any TP or spaghetti.

Larger global firms learned very quickly that having a reliable supply chain is a must to keeping the business operational.

Moving forward, some companies may realize that they need to use supply chains that are closer to home to avoid the halting of any production in the future.

Flexible Schedules Are a Good Thing

Another business shift that has resulted from the pandemic is the switch from rigid schedules to flexible hours. People who were used to working a strict 9-5 shift were suddenly attempting to be productive from a home office while trying to help their kids with online school and other responsibilities.

Bosses soon learned that to get any sort of solid work from their team, they had to throw these set-in-stone schedules out the window and let people work when and how they could. They quickly saw that the work was still being completed and people were productive. This shift could continue; employees have proven that flexible schedules are a positive and humane thing to offer and have no negative impact on the company.

Emotional Health Is Important

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an extremely stressful time for most people.

Even the hardest-working employees felt like they were at their breaking points at times — when they were juggling all of the work they could plus trying to find groceries that were in short supply, staying healthy, checking in on their elderly loved ones, helping their kids and much more.

Mental health days have become more necessary than ever, and many companies are now recognizing their importance. Going forward, it is hoped that this trend will continue, and employees’ emotional well-being and physical health, will be honoured and protected.

These Trends Are the Silver Lining

While no one will want to re-do the events of 2020, COVID-19 did cause some positive changes in many businesses. As vaccines and effective treatments become prevalent and people return to their old way of working, it is hoped that many of these trends will continue in companies throughout the world.