The coronavirus is changing virtually every part of our lives. The simple act of heading out to buy groceries requires a mask and social distancing. Many of us haven’t been able to see a movie in a theater in months or visit relatives for fear of getting the virus or passing it on to our loved ones.
The coronavirus is impacting companies as well, often in profound ways. Experts feel like even when things “go back to normal,” many business entities will rethink their fundamental structures.
These are some of the notable ways that the business world can change due to Covid-19.
Coworkers Will Grow Closer
Over 2.9 million Americans have tested positive for the coronavirus so far in 2020. That’s a sobering number, especially when you think about how many have died from it as well.
Many individuals who used to work in offices but now work from home probably know someone who has had the virus, and maybe even died from it. They might find themselves:
- Missing their coworkers
- Reaching out to see if they’re okay
You might have had “work friends,” who you took for granted a little bit before. In this era, it’s only natural to miss those people, especially if you’ve seen them every day for years, and now you haven’t seen them in-person for months.
Experts feel that if everyone goes back to the office, work friendships will be closer. Fewer people will eat alone at their desks. There will be more in-person visits just for the joy of doing so.
There May Be Mandatory On-the-Job Medical Screening
It’s also possible that if the office culture does return, that employers will mandate on-the-job medical screenings. They will:
- Check for fever
- Do antibody checks
This does make perfect sense if you stop and think about it. If one person in the office infects everyone else, the whole workforce will be out at the same time, unable to do their jobs.
Many prominent companies have already started taking employee temperatures at the door if they’re still open for business. Starbucks is doing it, as are Walmart, Home Depot, and Amazon.
Expect this to be the norm for some time to come, even if you go back to work in the office soon.
Working from the Office Might Become a Status Symbol
Many companies feel that because so many of their employees have been able to work from home, they might continue allowing them to do so once the pandemic is over. But will there still be some individuals who want or need to come into the office to work?
It seems likely that some companies will allow all employees who can work from home to do that. The ones who want to can still come to work at a centralized location.
The ones who need to will probably have more prominent positions within the company. Working from the office will become like a status symbol. Companies that still retain office space will be in the minority.
There Will Be Fewer In-Person Meetings
It also seems possible that there will be fewer in-person meetings in the years to come, and there will be more emailing and instant messaging.
Before the pandemic, many companies insisted on having daily meetings to talk about ongoing projects. Covid-19 has revealed that most of those meetings weren’t necessary, at least not in-person.
Many businesses are finding that email, staff Zoom meetings, instant messaging, etc. work just fine. People don’t need to come together to talk about work concerns except in extremely rare circumstances.
There Will Be More Internet Access
One more thing the coronavirus is teaching us is that people need more access to the internet than they ever have before.
It’s a time when many students have to learn remotely because it’s not safe for them to go back to school. People see remote areas without broadband internet access as disadvantageous, as indeed they are.
The pandemic drives home the notion that everyone needs strong, stable Wi-Fi. Several phone companies are already working to distribute the 5G network, but the pandemic is making that a more pressing matter than was once the case.
Remote workers for all kinds of companies might have better internet access in the future, which will let them work remotely for the first time.
These probably aren’t the only ways the business world will change from the coronavirus. There may be other eventualities that haven’t even occurred to us yet.
