“The only constant in life is change.”—Greek Philosopher Heraclitus, 500 B.C.E.
The year 2020 was packed with change. By some accounts, three to five years of technological advancement happened in one year. This change happened faster and sooner than previously anticipated, partly due to technology and partly due to human innovation/resourcefulness. Change, for better or worse, affords us the opportunity to be more flexible, efficient, productive, and customer centric, all of which enable your company to succeed in the future.
Businesses that are flexible are able to anticipate, embrace and prepare for change. Flexibility brought on by change equips us to anticipate and prepare for the future. We all have to consider change. So, how do we use change to our advantage?
1. E-commerce
First, we can think about the COVID-19 pandemic and its change to business as we know it, especially for small companies. The bread-and-butter of small business is face-to-face interactions. With lockdowns and closures, this type of interaction stopped almost immediately, which meant revenue started drying up. What did companies do?
Technology and software, such as an e-commerce software solution, allowed companies to meet their customers and sell products where they were spending their time—online.
Because of the pandemic, businesses websites need to employ e-commerce software, now a vital tool to engage with and sell to customers. Did you add e-commerce capabilities to your website in 2020? Will you add it in 2021? Is it time to implement a direct-to-consumer selling strategy that involves your website?
2. Logistics software
When companies started selling products online, the question became how to deliver the product safely to customers. Logistics and the software that enables faster delivery suddenly became front-and-center.
Logistics software allowed us to have toilet paper available and food on our tables, for example. It also enabled companies to ship products or track crews installing sneeze guards. Without these sneeze guards, much of the face-to-face commerce as we know it would have halted and more small businesses would have shuttered.
3. Reduced workforce
With reduced revenue comes the need for a smaller staff. Technology provides us with solutions for this challenge. Robots or glass suction cup products, for example, enable workers to move more with less man/womanpower.
With fewer employees taking on more tasks, technology allows staff to learn new skills through training. Technology allows employees to work more consistently and efficiently, which meets the on-going work shortage issue our industry has faced for years.
Technology was part of the solution before and during the pandemic. Technology, especially software, will be part of the solutions after the pandemic. Technology provides companies and individuals the tools to anticipate and embrace change. It also allows companies and individuals to grow through the Internet of Things, Industry 4.0 and so much more. When change occurs, don’t stand still, but adapt to it.
“When you are finished changing, you are finished.”—Benjamin Franklin
