With Covid-19 vaccination in Britain proceeding apace, it’s time to accelerate your business thinking and planning. What sort of future should you be planning for? What is coming at the end of the pandemic? What will the day after tomorrow look like?
Expect no clear end to the pandemic. Even if everyone in the UK has the vaccine, the World Health Organisation reminds us there is a global population to vaccinate. This points to continued regulation of gatherings and international travel for some time. Best to plan for yet more innovation to meet the pandemic’s ongoing impact on your business.
Those attending CES 2021 tell us to expect further improvements in video conferencing and mobile technology. Even with some return to commuting and office life, the benefits and convenience of home working have been obvious. A CBI survey shows many businesses planning for a more flexible time in the office — 2–3 days a week, a move towards smaller workspaces in suburban areas with lower rental costs.
The losers were very clear — many self-employed slipped through the cracks and did not receive state support. The High Street has been replaced by online retail. But the winners are also obvious: tech giants grew stronger, as did many online businesses and those related to home working. Perhaps only the lucky will survive, but more likely it’ll be those making their own luck, energetically refreshing their offering, becoming nimbler, smarter, more attractive.
Ask anyone what they miss the most — it’s the loss of human contact. There is a pent-up need to re-engage. Expect a boom in all kinds of activities: dining out, the performing arts, music, cinema, theatre, mass spectator and participation sports. The Governor of the Bank of England has noted the huge pile of built-up savings ready to be spent.
Many of us have witnessed how things that were taking years now happen in days. Focus will turn again to Brexit and international trade, climate change, and artificial intelligence — changes that were continuing under the radar. Plan for business opportunities that align with automation; opportunities that make life easier, where humans work better with smart machines.
Plan to rule out any return to old ways of working: the new normal will be different. A return to work cannot come soon enough for many, but when it does, they will need to be innovative and creative — to offer something fresh that catches the attention of customers.