Undoubtedly, this pandemic will influence different aspects of our lives. I’m sure we’ll analyze the changes brought by the pandemic at some point. But today, as Operations Manager at Latamways, I want to reflect on these five months of the pandemic.
Rethinking the changes we had to make to navigate this global crisis is key to ongoing assessment. Many times, we act based on clear intentions and following a plan. Others, we make decisions as we go to provide fast and effective solutions to last-minute customer requests.
During these five months, some of the decisions we made will need further assessment to decide whether they will be permanent or not. Three fundamental pillars in our company, communication, organization and leadership suffered the most significant changes.
The “New Normal” in a Virtual Environment
Latamways used to operate 100% on-site and remote work was exceptional.
We were used to in-person spontaneous meetings, solving issues on the spot, and planned meetings to modify or create new processes.
Now, communication has become structured, programmed and timed.
Depending on the area, meetings are weekly or monthly, they need to follow an agenda and have clear goals as well as action items.
The language industry is used to technology, applications and remote work environments, but managing successful interoperability communications is a major challenge that needs planning.
From On-site to Virtual
Successful communications call for reorganization.
It is of essence that the message goes through, that instructions and objectives are clear, and that there is a specific action plan.
In face of the new reality, we created a remote work manual with the necessary procedures for workflow not to be affected.
We had to be flexible and restructure some of the areas in our company, especially Human Resources. We expanded the scope of the Vendor Liaison position so that it works better with the Vendor Manager, resulting in greater interaction and a designated point of contact for the other departments in the company which whom they communicate.
This “controlled communication” that is applied across the company allows us to identify areas for improvement and act accordingly.
Latamways After the Pandemic
Even though we continue to operate following the objectives and processes in place, trusting our employees was vital to supporting them into the transition of virtual working.
In a face-to-face environment it is always easier for leaders to detect situations that happen in situ that would need addressing, fixing or rethinking.
In the virtual world, we have to rely on different control tools such as reports, management system statistics and emails, among others.
We rely more on the talent and judgment of our team based on processes and experience. This has allowed them to show their full potential and has made it clear to us that our customers continue to choose us for the level of service that we offer.
How has the “new normal” impacted your company or work life? What kind of changes did you need to make? It’s time to stop and think so that “we don’t let a good crisis go to waste“.