Over the last couple of years, businesses, and the entire world, have had to find ways to adapt to a global pandemic. From medical breakthroughs, and finding ways to make money in a time when the world stood still, to educating students of all ages from afar, the world underwent many changes. Furthermore, business operations had to work around COVID-19 restrictions to keep the money flowing.
Businesses had to switch much of their work to remote locations; new software and tech tools were created to manage workloads of unparalleled proportions; online sales became the sole crutch of markets, and customer service became polished versions of existing functions, whilst sometimes providing the only human contact presently available.
Perseverance is something habitual we all developed, some excelled and many faltered. Hindsight provides a unique perspective to creating new normals within unprecedented times.
Here are three examples of perseverance in business:
Healthcare:
- Telehealth vs. In-Office Visits
As a person who never heard of Telehealth before the pandemic, I was skeptical when initially using it. Now, years after the outbreak and months into the calm, I find myself preferring Telehealth for many reasons. This is what Telehealth did for the world:
Telehealth, for those that may not know, is a video or audio call with your healthcare provider. During the worst of COVID-19, this provided a safe way to meet with your doctor without posing risk to yourself or others. For appointments not requiring a physical examination, Telehealth changed the game.
Appointments for prescription management, talk therapy, and a myriad of other healthcare needs became living-room conversations. New HIPAA protocols had to be written to allow these sensitive topics to be discussed by internet and phone. Software for signing documents became essential for what was previously exclusively pen-on-paper or faxed documentation.
Dining and Grocery Shopping:
- Curbside and Delivery
Before the lockdowns, I would rarely even have a pizza delivered to my home. When businesses closed their doors or limited occupancy, curbside pickup and delivery options became the only alternative to home cooking.
Services such as Uber Eats, DoorDash, Instacart, and Amazon Fresh became more than a convenience. While employees categorized as Essential still did the work behind the scenes, consumers seldom had to interact with aspects of businesses once centered around in-person operations.
Performing Arts:
- Concerts and Plays
Being a musician or a theater performer during the COVID-19 pandemic was a major challenge, to say the least. Audiences could no longer gather in the same place to enjoy these art forms. Again, technological alternatives became popular in keeping the world of performing arts afloat.
To maintain the flow of profit and to ensure artists were compensated for their hard work, selling tickets for shows suddenly shifted. Concerts and plays became exclusive online live streams, accessible upon purchase. Sale of merchandise and even virtual meet-and-greets supported their art until in-person options returned.
Perseverance Here to Stay
Many of these adaptations remain, whether by convenience or demand. However, while we may all consider ourselves lucky to not always require such drastic changes, we should take the skill of perseverance with us. Applicable to all walks of life, but particularly in business operations, it is a skill that once mastered, will have no equal.
The business world is ever-changing. Albeit, not always as fast as it did during COVID-19, the ability to adapt will always be paramount. Operations will need to continue persevering to keep their businesses running, whether it be during a pandemic, or just staying ahead of the competition.
Ves Slone 