By José Luis Romanillos, Consultant, Agent & Introducer at J.L.Romanillos Ltd
After finishing my series of 12 articles and anecdotes "Notes from Abroad" last Christmas 2019 with the piece entitled "Connectivity is the Key", I now ironically find myself locked into my flat and island home, isolated and physically unconnected to my habitual world of family, friends, colleagues, partners, clients and business contacts. I now stare out to a new and more uncertain horizon. Planet earth is now being assailed by the pandemic virus Covid-19, that is destroying lives and economies. As governments urgently try to find the solutions on how to combat this virus and protect us all from harm, I strongly believe that life will in fact never be the same again. In this, my first piece in a new series of articles called "Notes from Home" , I consider where we will be by Easter 2021 and the changes that this pandemic will have brought on society. And not all of them for the worse…
I called my friend Peter the other day on ZOOM, to see how he was keeping during the new lockdown period in the UK. Always impeccably dressed and very dapper, it was somewhat disconcerting to see him on the screen in a casual t-shirt, his hand clutching a mug of coffee. Unshaven and looking very tired.
"How are you, my friend?", I asked.
"Hi José. Not brilliant", he replied. "Business activity has virtually stopped dead and I have my mother on a ventilator in hospital as we speak".
"Oh my God! So sorry to hear that, Peter", I said, not really knowing quite what else to say. This was the fifth case I had heard about that week, from within my own network of people, who had been hit by Coronavirus. A very debilitating illness that is extremely dangerous for elderly people, especially if they have underlying medical conditions such as diabetes, asthma or a heart condition.
Peter and I then had a long discussion about how his business world had come to a dramatic stop and how he was trying to find solutions and new ways of working. We both agreed that the digital, "remote" model of working was likely to be the way ahead...and then he told me about a journalist friend of his who had recently made some interesting comments regarding his employer, a large publishing house in the UK. The publishers had a workforce of over 2000 staff and they had all been sent home 2 weeks ago to work remotely.
"Do you know what?", said Peter. "The publishers noted two immediate and dramatic improvements in the workflow. One - the deadlines for copy and editorial were all being met without any of the usual delays or last-minute rush, as is the usual way in the world of journalism. Two - the quality of the work was generally so much higher than had been produced when staff were tied to their desks in the office. Significantly so. Even though these people were now working in an environment surrounded by partners, children, pets, illness and daily chores."
"I can well believe it," I replied, " because I feel exactly the same. I can still hold all my meetings virtually, and don't have to waste time, efforts and resources commuting."
"And, of course," Peter continued, "the employers are now thinking to themselves:
"Do we really need to rent that £2.5 million a year office in Cambridge?"
At that point, a lady suddenly appeared behind Peter carrying a phone. "It's your brother. He needs to speak to you urgently", she said, with a worrying tone in her voice.
"Sorry José, but I have got to go. Talk soon, my friend". And he left the meeting…
I left that virtual meeting somewhat concerned about what was going on with Peter, but the discussion also got me thinking about the new world that we were suddenly confronting. And what would this new post-Covid world look like, once we came out of what could be quite a long and dark tunnel? I started to jot down some thoughts, and after some interesting discussions with other contacts and friends, have come up with the following list of 20 predictions. These conclusions are based on the fact that I believe that customs and habits will change over these confined periods, some of which will become ingrained as part of the "new normal". I will monitor, check and report back by April 2021 to see just how many, if any, come true…
I called Peter back the following day to see if things were OK as I fe red the worst for his mother. He was pleased to take my call, and he reassured me that my concerns were ill-founded. In fact, Peter had received a call that morning from his brother about his mother, which was why he had to quickly cut short our discussion. But the news was good, not bad.
"She had a good night. Her first in over a week, and is now breathing better. Thank God! We are so relieved." Peter looked genuinely better than the last time we spoke. Colour in his cheeks and a broad smile on his face. "And I cannot thank enough the nurses that looked after her and helped her pull through," he added. "They deserve a b....y medal. Each and every one of them".
Amen to that, and may we all be as fortunate...
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By José Luis Romanillos, Consultant, Agent & Introducer at J.L.Romanillos Ltd
After finishing my series of 12 articles and anecdotes "Notes from Abroad" last Christmas 2019 with the piece entitled "Connectivity is the Key", I now ironically find myself locked into my flat and island home, isolated and physically unconnected to my habitual world of family, friends, colleagues, partners, clients and business contacts. I now stare out to a new and more uncertain horizon. Planet earth is now being assailed by the pandemic virus Covid-19, that is destroying lives and economies. As governments urgently try to find the solutions on how to combat this virus and protect us all from harm, I strongly believe that life will in fact never be the same again. In this, my first piece in a new series of articles called "Notes from Home" , I consider where we will be by Easter 2021 and the changes that this pandemic will have brought on society. And not all of them for the worse…
I called my friend Peter the other day on ZOOM, to see how he was keeping during the new lockdown period in the UK. Always impeccably dressed and very dapper, it was somewhat disconcerting to see him on the screen in a casual t-shirt, his hand clutching a mug of coffee. Unshaven and looking very tired.
"How are you, my friend?", I asked.
"Hi José. Not brilliant", he replied. "Business activity has virtually stopped dead and I have my mother on a ventilator in hospital as we speak".
"Oh my God! So sorry to hear that, Peter", I said, not really knowing quite what else to say. This was the fifth case I had heard about that week, from within my own network of people, who had been hit by Coronavirus. A very debilitating illness that is extremely dangerous for elderly people, especially if they have underlying medical conditions such as diabetes, asthma or a heart condition.
Peter and I then had a long discussion about how his business world had come to a dramatic stop and how he was trying to find solutions and new ways of working. We both agreed that the digital, "remote" model of working was likely to be the way ahead...and then he told me about a journalist friend of his who had recently made some interesting comments regarding his employer, a large publishing house in the UK. The publishers had a workforce of over 2000 staff and they had all been sent home 2 weeks ago to work remotely.
"Do you know what?", said Peter. "The publishers noted two immediate and dramatic improvements in the workflow. One - the deadlines for copy and editorial were all being met without any of the usual delays or last-minute rush, as is the usual way in the world of journalism. Two - the quality of the work was generally so much higher than had been produced when staff were tied to their desks in the office. Significantly so. Even though these people were now working in an environment surrounded by partners, children, pets, illness and daily chores."
"I can well believe it," I replied, " because I feel exactly the same. I can still hold all my meetings virtually, and don't have to waste time, efforts and resources commuting."
"And, of course," Peter continued, "the employers are now thinking to themselves:
"Do we really need to rent that £2.5 million a year office in Cambridge?"
At that point, a lady suddenly appeared behind Peter carrying a phone. "It's your brother. He needs to speak to you urgently", she said, with a worrying tone in her voice.
"Sorry José, but I have got to go. Talk soon, my friend". And he left the meeting…
I left that virtual meeting somewhat concerned about what was going on with Peter, but the discussion also got me thinking about the new world that we were suddenly confronting. And what would this new post-Covid world look like, once we came out of what could be quite a long and dark tunnel? I started to jot down some thoughts, and after some interesting discussions with other contacts and friends, have come up with the following list of 20 predictions. These conclusions are based on the fact that I believe that customs and habits will change over these confined periods, some of which will become ingrained as part of the "new normal". I will monitor, check and report back by April 2021 to see just how many, if any, come true…
I called Peter back the following day to see if things were OK as I fe red the worst for his mother. He was pleased to take my call, and he reassured me that my concerns were ill-founded. In fact, Peter had received a call that morning from his brother about his mother, which was why he had to quickly cut short our discussion. But the news was good, not bad.
"She had a good night. Her first in over a week, and is now breathing better. Thank God! We are so relieved." Peter looked genuinely better than the last time we spoke. Colour in his cheeks and a broad smile on his face. "And I cannot thank enough the nurses that looked after her and helped her pull through," he added. "They deserve a b....y medal. Each and every one of them".
Amen to that, and may we all be as fortunate...