4 Steps for rebuilding your business post-pandemic

It’s easy to lose hope with the coronavirus pandemic continuing to wreak havoc around the world. Now, businesses that are already financially drained by governmental measures taken to fight the pandemic face a global recession.

However, even if the short-term outlook remains uncertain for a lot of industries, there is a silver lining. With businesses having more time on their hands, there’s never been a stronger case for digital transformation. For many companies, it’s a wakeup call to modernize. After all, enabling things like eCommerce and remote work can add enormous value to today’s organizations, with one adding to the bottom line and the other enhancing productivity.

Here’s what you need to do to make sure your business can weather the storm:

1. Assess the damage

The first step to any recovery operation is to determine just how deeply your organization has been affected by the pandemic. Beyond looking at financial statements, managers can review what the company has done recently, such as laying off employees, reallocating budgets, or closing down high-street venues and offices.

2. Reallocate your budgets wisely

Many companies, particularly those in the restaurant and tourism sectors, had to seek outside funding to help them keep afloat. On top of that, most had to reallocate their budgets and reduce spending on things deemed nonessential. Because of the very sudden nature of the lockdowns and other restrictions, many of these decisions were rushed and poorly made.

Now is a great time to review where your funds are being spent, and whether they can be put to better use elsewhere. For example, some businesses are more than capable of letting their employees work remotely. Office rent accounts for a large portion of the budget and might not be that necessary an expense even after the pandemic is over.

3. Review your processes

A lot of routine tasks are repetitive and can be automated, yet prior to the lockdowns, many of these were handled by employees whose skills could be put to better use elsewhere. However, lay-offs and furloughs now force many companies to do more with less and look into automation more seriously.

Review all your core business processes, and look for workflows with repetitive steps that can be automated. This might include, for example, employee onboarding processes, training programs, or customer support. Although money is tight right now, it’s important that your funds are being spent on scalable processes that can adapt to change.

4. Develop a timeline

Chances are there are several things you want to do to recover and prepare for the global economic slump ahead. But trying to tackle everything at once might not be realistic or even desirable. That’s why it’s essential to set your priorities. In most cases, these are the things that bring value to your organization and directly impact your customers.

For example, your first goal might be to obtain funding. After you’ve done that, you might want to invest in automation technology to handle routine operations. The next priority might be to revamp your IT infrastructure to better support remote employees.

Countless businesses are negatively affected by COVID-19, and yours might be one of them. We’re here to provide reliable IT services and support to help you get back on track. Schedule your free IT consultation today to find out more.