If you’re a global business, you’re already ahead of the game when it comes to modifying and reopening from COVID. Unlike small mom-and-pop brick-and-mortar companies, you’re used to operating on a global scale.
This means that remote meetings like Zoom or knowing how to get items around the globe in a safe, fast, and affordable way is nothing new to you. Still, if you’re like a lot of businesses, you might be struggling right now regardless of size.
Working on an international scale might not be new to you, but a global catastrophe probably is! If you want to rebound, there are a few ways to go about it. Make sure to personalize everything for your company, but consider six key approaches that can be modified to suit just about any business:
1. Use what you learned during COVID
There’s not going to be anything like “going back to normal” nor should there be. If COVID has taught us anything, it’s that there were standard business practices that didn’t make a lot of sense. Maybe your international business had a lot of employees coming into an office, but now that everyone’s virtual, you’ve realized that isn’t very necessary. Employees might be happier, and you have lower overhead.
2. Look at the new talent
COVID might have opened up some new positions at your company or maybe you’re expanding and looking to hire. You’re in the perfect position to find and secure the absolute best talent right now. Unemployment rates are high and quality workers are looking for a great job after being laid off. The competition also isn’t very fierce considering a lot of companies aren’t bouncing back right away. This is your time to build the best team.
3. Don’t be too quick to return to “normal”
Of course, there will be some elements of your business that will eventually revert to a different mode-and some things, in some ways, even back to pre-COVID trends. However, be careful when it comes to this. You don’t want to get back too quickly, especially in uncertain times. Having a third-party expert help you with plans for reopening and asking your team for their insight can provide valuable information. Take your time. Consider the environment. The next steps you take can set the foundation for what your business can and will be.
4. Consider the competition
What are your competitors doing right now? How are they doing things differently and why? For instance, have they started using a temperature screening kiosk as can be found at https://kiosk.com/market-solutions/temperature-screening/ to help prevent the spread of COVID? You can learn a lot from your competition, and bear in mind they’re probably keeping an eye on you. If they’ve rolled out a new software that you’ve been thinking about, is there a way to gauge how well it’s working for them? There’s no need to reinvent the wheel in any aspect of life including business. Let your competition do the tough learning for you whenever you can.
5. Customize your business on a country-to-country basis
You likely already do this, but now that we’re in the midst of a pandemic it’s even more important. Keep close with the contact(s) you have in countries where you do business and modify procedures and strategies based on what’s happening there. Are there opportunities for growth or sales others are overlooking? Things change quickly, so this will require regular oversight and maybe assigning a go-to person or team on a different level than what you’re used to in every country.
6. Use this time to reinvent yourself
Maybe you’ve been thinking of rebranding or dramatically changing your business model. This is the time to do it. You’ll never have a better time to take risks and try out changes.