The New Normal

The New Normal

A team member asked me the other day about the key lessons I’ve learned during the COVID-19 outbreak. Since so many of our normal routines and communications have been upended as team members maintain safe social distancing and are working remotely, it’s an important question.

At this point, one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is how effective we can be at using technology to communicate. While we are more physically isolated than ever, our goal has been to keep our teams engaged and assure them that as a global organization we are tackling this unprecedented challenge together. By combining this priority and the best in class tools at our fingertips, I’ve actually seen more of my team in the almost 200 markets we operate than ever before. With many people already working from home, this connection on a common platform around a global issue convinces me, we are going to come out of this stronger.

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As so many of us hope to “get back to normal” soon, I think it goes without saying that we’ll be getting back to a “new normal” – and technology like video conferencing is going to play a key part and is going to impact our business in three important ways.

First, we can engage all of our team members on a more regular basis. One way video conferencing has helped us operate over the past month is through regular virtual town halls. Because our business has different lines and different stakeholders, we’ve tried to have some that address the entire organization and complement those with more targeted discussions relevant to specific teams or regions. They’ve been successful in part because we’ve been transparent in the conversations, often starting with the hardest topics, so that our team knows exactly where we stand.

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Personally, my favorite part of town halls is answering team member questions directly. I answer as many as possible in the 45-minute segment and then answer the rest over email. To me, doing Q&A connects me with our 15,000+ team members and helps our leaders to understand the real concerns of the team, so we can quickly adjust our practices to respond. If my team hasn’t realized this already, these town halls will continue long after this crisis has passed.

Second, embracing this technology will allow us to be even more flexible in how our team members work. Many team members, myself included, were a bit uncertain at the outset of this outbreak when we were forced to pivot quickly into remote work and different routines.  However, the benefits have become increasingly clear – more time with family, less time commuting, flexibility for those who need it, and better connecting across our global offices.

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Third, it isn’t a new idea that video conferencing can replace the need for travel at times, but this is a nudge we needed as an organization to really focus on it. At worst, we will think harder before booking a trip to make sure travel is necessary. At best, we’re being smarter about how we spend our time and money so that we’re better as an organization for it. As an added benefit, I think about how much we can reduce our carbon footprint by being a bit more strategic about our travel. 

There is no “back to normal” following COVID-19, and I know that the way our organization connects will be forever different. However, I truly believe embracing these ideas and beliefs now can have a big impact as we emerge from this crisis stronger and more efficient than ever.

Yaron Vilosny

To be the Future, We must build the future. 🌀

2mo

Bob Faith great to see a leader embraces the benefits of technology but also understanda the need to connect. For such an operation as yours have u consider extending your environmental commitment and keeping the personal meeting in a more cost effective way. While building a network of charging sites for EVTOL. Would Be great to connect.

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Ron B.

35 year manufacturing / Asia sourcing expert. China / Vietnam / USA

3mo

Bob you are in charge of a fraudulent company that works with aggressive debt collectors Genesis Credit (Jason Hoover) that report fraudulent applications that cost $30 from back during COVID times! You need to do better!!! Reach out to me to resolve immediately or I will escalate!!!!

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Shikha Sharma

Wellness Photographer

5mo

Hello Bob, you company took over Bainbridge's Novel Midtown Tampa AFTER we had ended our lease and now your company is threatening us to give money that we never owned! I'm sending an email please respond.

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Shannon Lyon

Physical Therapist Assistant at Reliant

9mo

I have been trying to communicate with your team regarding my daughters stay in a Louisville KY property and I go straight to voicemail with every call, messages and emails unreturned. Two years following the end of her lease we are being charged for pet damage. She never owned a pet. Impossible. Trying to dispute the charge and no one from Greystar returns calls or answers phones. Thank you for any help with this. It is very frustrating.

Mary Kelly, Commander, USN, CSP, CPAE

Energize your conference with actionable leadership tools! Former Navy Intel Officer turns crisis into clarity. Author & Hall of Fame Speaker. Stronger strategies, better decisions, faster results. Text dog to 66866.

1y

Great points here!

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