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Harnath Babu, KPMGBy Harnath Babu

Hundreds of thousands of employees working from home are waiting to return to normalcy, but for many it may not mean going to the office. Are we accelerating towards the digital future we once imagined? Will it be the new normal? Read on to find out how COVID-19 is acting as a catalyst of change and fast-tracking digital revolution.

The outbreak of the coronavirus worldwide has fundamentally shaken up the business landscape and changed the way we work. While we were already preparing for the digital future of work driven by mobile connectivity, cognitive tools and cloud, COVID-19 accelerated the transformation pushing enterprises to enable remote working for 100 per cent of their workforce and increase business resiliency by embracing virtual collaboration platforms at unprecedented speed all exclusively remotely.

Although it cannot be foreseen when all of this would be over, but whenever that happens commuting to office and interacting face-to-face with our co-workers may not be the same. As we ponder, some companies are reportedly making a big move and considering permanent work from home for majority of their workforce.

Work

Work will most likely be as it is right now with the future already making its way to the present. As we adapt to work from home, our reliance on email, chats, and videoconferencing is increasing, we are getting accustomed to interacting with companies virtually as well as depending on e-learning platforms over the traditional classroom trainings. This is leading to not only limited physical contact in response to the COVID-19 pandemic but also shaping the way work works.

As employees' work lives have changed, so have the companies themselves. We can experience how online food delivery platforms jumped the bandwagon to make essential services and groceries available to us as we sit in the comfort of our home.

And as we get comfortable with online shopping, retailers will need to rethink their business strategy and focus more on online delivery of products even if they maintain a brick-and-mortar store. This would mean a strengthened logistics and delivery system, less staff in-store and more gig workers to handle surges in online shopping demand.

In banking and financial services, we can see how digital way of interaction is becoming the new normal as artificial intelligence and machine learning frontends to automate several processes and customers getting comfortable with online and mobile banking.

It implies that financial institutions will have to relook at their infrastructure that can support both digital and physical services efficiently with their manpower deployed to work from anywhere.

Similarly, hospitals and healthcare service providers are implementing virtual consultations that can be done through audio and video conferencing tools giving rise to telehealth. And as we move towards the future of work, doctors and patients will be able to connect virtually over collaboration platforms instead of an in-person visit.

The education sector has also undergone a huge transformation as the outbreak forced schools and universities to shut down. There has been a distinctive rise of eLearning where children are being taught remotely and on digital platforms.

And this integration of technology with education will get accelerated and online education will become an integral component of school education creating a hybrid model with significant benefits.

Impacting almost every industry sector, COVID-19 has made us transition to a world of automation and brought a radical change in the way we work by taking off the administrative tasks that could be performed by robots.

This would certainly not mean job destruction but job augmentation wherein the tasks performed by humans are most likely to shift to non-routine, more complex and innovative. In such an environment, humans and machines will be enabled to do what they do best independently as well as with each other.

Workforce

Workers across the globe have been affected by lockdown in several ways. While for those in white-collar jobs, it has meant remote work; for several service/blue-collar workers, it has provided a peek into the future where machines may replace humans especially as enterprises consider automation; and for gig workers, there is a struggle these days.

However, several companies across sectors such as automotive, media to business process management will explore areas that can be equipped with remote working models using freelancers and gig workers on a continued basis. There will be reluctance to add full-time roles when they could add flexible roles instead.

Enterprises will also focus on engaging people with the right blend of expertise and experience to achieve their goals while enabling new ways of working while enhancing virtual work support systems. And all this will be accompanied by continuous learning to support the upskilling needed across the workforce to address the forthcoming talent shortages.

The pandemic has also shown that we do not need to fly to other cities or countries for business reviews. These meetings can be as effective when done through video-conferencing platforms. And not having to travel would not only save companys cost, but also make leaders more efficient, while reducing the stress and time spent in travelling.

However, on the flip side, as we employ remote working environment, humans being social animals, would miss the connecting with their peers and colleagues. While working from home, they may also feel like they never leave work, which can ultimately impact productivity.

Hence, leadership teams will have the responsibility to address such pitfalls and beat the collaboration, productivity, and emotional disadvantages that can arise.

Workplace

As our work gets supported by an ecosystem of virtual resources, we are certainly going to leapfrog into a new mode of work that will be defined by the thing we do, not the place we go.

Technology is also going to play a pivotal role in transforming our workplaces which will be a blend of the physical and virtual experiences to deliver a consistent employer identity to stakeholders, employees as well as clients.

As enterprises consider to significantly reduce the number of employees working from office, they will not only save cost on real estate but also will have to transform work floors in a way that social distancing can be maintained.

This could not only mean decluttering the office space but also doing away with the collaboration workspace for employees. The cramped cubicles would make way for spaced out workspaces.

Co-working spaces which work on the concept of shared desks would lead to more segregated and private places. For instance, a meeting room that would normally fit eight individuals might now only hold seats for four.

Conclusion

While it is still unclear when this pandemic will get over, what is certain is that our work life will never be the same again. Enterprises will become more resilient because the fully distributed nature of the model is inherently less risky and well suited for business continuity and agility, and employees will have more flexibility over their schedules as they work remotely.

For efficient communication and collaboration, investment will shift from real estate to newer technologies that make remote working more functional and productive. The focus on data security would also increase, making it essential for enterprises to invest in technologies and ensure data and information is not compromised.

So, let us gear up for the change brought in by virtual work capabilities.

The author is CIO at KPMG in IndiaDISCLAIMER: The views expressed are solely of the author and ETCIO.com does not necessarily subscribe to it. ETCIO.com shall not be responsible for any damage caused to any person/organisation directly or indirectly.

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Moving beyond Covid-19: what does the future of work look like? - ETCIO.com