Learnings in Troubled Times

What have you learned during the coronavirus lockdown?

People fly kites at Easter! I look up at the sky and see kites of all shapes, sizes and designs.

I’ve lived in the Philippines for 10 years and never looked up at the sky at this time of year.

An uplifting sight.

I’ve also been reminded of the adaptability of the Filipino workforce.

For years I’ve been frustrated by the manual processes. I understand that they keep people employed.

And in a developing country, that’s important.

When we migrated to WFH, how would we pay the new employees who don’t yet have a payroll account with our bank? Used to be a manual deposit to personal accounts.

How would we execute currency transfers when our US clients pay into our peso account? That required a form delivered to the bank.

How to get documents notarized? A weekly occurrence.

And just like that, the processes have been converted to electronic.

Same as my workforce that has seamlessly migrated to WFH.

Some things, I hope ARE the new normal. Not the isolation, the uncertainty, the alcohol bans. But the subtle improvements in business.

I may never visit a supermarket again, now I’ve experienced farm fresh deliveries.

Have you improved processes in the new normal?

#business #philippines #coronavirus