Corona Virus Could Change Work Forever

…and that’s a good thing.

There have always been conflicting interests when it comes to how we work – the needs of the client, the needs of the organization, and the needs of the team member. Traditionally, the client’s needs take priority, followed by the organization, and then the worker.  The degree of trade-off is variable, but it’s still generally led to winners and losers.  And some priorities end up being unmet. 

But it doesn’t have to be this way. The changes being forced on organisations now by Corona virus are forcing us to reshape our working arrangements.  They could provide the push over the edge and forever change how we work.

Technology is the enabler

Clients want their products and services when and how they want them.  Organisations want to ensure productivity and consistency of their service delivery and workers. Workers want to maintain a health work-life balance.

The great news is that all of these, and the conflict between them, have been upended by technology.  The move to take advantage of this change has been super powered by the Corona virus.  Companies are finding there is no better time than now for their Digital Transformation.  Now that business as usual has been disrupted, we can take the time to implement new systems.  We can take full advantage of technology’s ability to improve organizational effectiveness.

Changes for us all

Many of the short-term changes forced on us by Corona virus will redefined expectations for years to come. 

Clients will experience product and service delivery via remote means thanks to the Coronavirus. Home delivery from supermarkets have surged. This trend is not likely to change course, even after it is safe to return to stores.  It may become the norm even after the pandemic has passed.  Service clients will get use to remote delivery and never expect a return to traditional more expensive and cumbersome in-person approaches.

Organisational Business Continuity Planning (BCP) is already in full force and working from home will be proven on-mass.  Systems to support it will be tested, proven and expanded. The processes and systems will become standard. Any institutional resistance and fear will disappear. We’ll wonder why we weren’t always doing it this way.

Our people (aka team members) will experience the benefits of remote work.  It provides people a happier and more productive life that they will want to keep.  The competing realities of being both a human and an organizationally productive resource will be better balanced. 

This is an amazingly exciting time for improvements in how we work.  The Future Ways Of Working (FWOW) are becoming today’s ways of working. There will undoubtedly be hurdles that arise.  And those hurdles may cause us to stumble.  But together we will rise and take great productivity strides. The Corona virus is forcing us to make changes and those changes will stick and have us looking out for even more changes to improve the effectiveness of our organisations.

How WalkMe Helps

WalkMe is a key solution to enable organisations in this new world. 

WalkMe’s vision is to enable digital adoption and improve the productivity of an organisational team wherever they are. At the same time, it is a key plank of a BCP approach. It does this by providing in-application enablement, process guidance, and productivity support – whenever and wherever your team need it. Right now, that is at home, under stressed organizational conditions.  

They can use your systems and follow your processes with reduced need for in person training, on-site advice, or support desk assistance. And people new to systems can get productive quickly and effectively.

At GuideMe, we are WalkMe experts. Our vision is to help organisations take the step to future ways of working through digital adoption.  The end results are measured in higher productivity, lower support costs, happier clients and team members, and reduced mistakes.  You can learn more at www.guidemesolutions.com.

How we do it at GuideMe

At GuideMe we were lucky.  We already work flexibly by design. From home or the client site. At times that fit best for the client, the team member and the wider GuideMe team.

Meetings are remote by default. Our teams are provided the technology and systems they need to be effective. We don’t skimp on the resources we need, as a team or as individuals.  The team actively discusses and balances all the priorities of the client, organisation and team members.

The result is a win for all our stakeholders.  We are more, flexible leading to happier clients.  We save money on rent, leading to more cost-effective rates for our clients. We save time on travel, that goes into our families and home life. We are more flexible and productive as a team leading to improved results as an organisation.

When it comes to WalkMe we follow the advice we give, and walk the WalkMe walk internally. WalkMe is layered over our applications, transforming our systems into processes, making us more productive, and allowing new team members to get productive seriously quickly.

We of course also use a wider suite of applications and systems.  These tools allow us to be fully productive when working flexibly and from home.  If you’re interested this includes Salesforce.com, Office365, Aprika Mission Control, Dashlane, Xero, Zoom, Slack, Transferwise – and of course online banking and a sturdy VPN.

These ideas are ready to go, and now is the time.  Contact us today to schedule a consultation!