COVID-19 must change our attitude to work

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa speaking at the Sri Lanka

 Economic Summit 2020

Friday, 4 December 2020

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa speaking at the Sri Lanka Economic Summit 2020 said: “In some ways, this new normal has had beneficial consequences. It has forced the adoption of many new work practices.”

Further he said: “Working from home has been normalised for most knowledge workers. Offices where the physical presence of staff remains necessary are devising means to improve efficiency so that work can be carried out even by a skeletal staff. Innovative technology driven solutions have been adopted to solve logistical problems. Consumers have become more familiar with using online platforms for day-to-day activities, whether in accessing financial services or for shopping.”

Also he noted: “Such changes can potentially transform how economies operate even after this pandemic is a thing of the past. If our institutions are agile and adapt quickly, we will see gains in productivity resulting from these changes. I therefore strongly encourage the development of new business models, adoption of new technologies and platforms, and improvement of infrastructure needed to support this productivity enhancing transformation.”

Massive impact

The global coronavirus so far has had a massive impact on the workplace of tomorrow as it forces employers and employees to re-evaluate their pre-COVID-19 work life. As the coronavirus continues to disrupt economies throughout the world, employers and employees must adapt to quarantine and lockdown measures and be prepared to survive one of the worst global recessions. 

Not only will these workplace challenges affect employees today, but they’ll also have a monumental impact on the workforce of tomorrow. Organisations that have adapted well to the COVID-19 working environment are embracing remote working, giving employees more flexibility, and finding ways to become more resilient in the face of major disruptions. 

Major companies have also prioritised worker health and well-being. These changing work trends will force business leaders and employees to reconsider their existing work practices and office requirements or perish in the process.

Resistance to change

Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, HR and business leaders embraced new changes, technologies, and ideas fairly slowly. There wasn’t a need to adjust rapidly to changing circumstances as quickly as there is now. Gradual, incremental innovation was seen as the best way to shift from traditional to modernised work practices. 

While many companies were open to exploring the idea of working from home as a way to attract and retain talent, employers were concerned about their ability to effectively collaborate digitally and many managers feared lower levels of productivity, this simply hasn’t proven true. 

A study from Stanford in 2015 found that when one Chinese travel agency assigned a random group of employees to work remotely for nine months, productivity increased by 13% and resulted in an increase of $2,000 in annual profits per employee. 

With the barriers to remote working reducing and the benefits becoming more obvious, many companies will permit their employees to continue to work from home post-pandemic. 

The COVID-19 crisis has awoken many businesses to the fact that even the very things they take for granted now can change overnight. This, in turn, has caused them to recognise the importance of adaptability and lifelong learning in helping them to thrive in times of uncertainty. 

As the President rightly pointed out this is an unprecedented period and therefore will be the ‘reset’ moment that businesses have needed for years, which means that we must not go back to our old ways of working. 

However, to achieve this change in the next era of work, we need more flexibility and balance and this calls for an overhaul of the eco system, both regulatory and the archaic business practices.