This year has posed unprecedented challenges that changed our lives dramatically. Moving forward, how can we turn 2020 around and learn from the catastrophe?
PANDEMIC STRIKES
The year of 2020 started off with the Covid-19 virus that seemingly paused the world. Country lockdowns, social distancing, and ill-stricken staff have all been contributing factors in halting business operations. Notably, a pause in the global supply chain affected businesses and consumers alike. Demands were hardly met due to freight expectations of lower demands in conjunction with a falling economy. Nearing the middle and end of the year, there was a recovery in the Asian supply chain that resulted in suppliers playing catch-up with piled up demands.
INTERCONNECTEDNESS OF BUSINESS
An overarching theme that dominated the year seemed to surround the concept of collaboration. Across private and public sectors, we saw just how interrelated the world was. As one country shut down, another country’s businesses took the shock. In particular, the global supply chain found itself having difficulty adapting to the instantaneous changes. The labor force took a toll with unemployment and staff being struck with the virus, emphasizing the interdependence of even employers and employees within a company.
HOW TO PROCEED
With multiple vaccines on the way and some already being administered, the future seems promising. However, one must proceed with caution. For one, the world as a whole should look into how to emphasize its interconnectedness. As we saw with lockdowns, many goods were delivered late or were simply out of stock. How can we ensure this does not reoccur in the future, and plan with oversea businesses? Collaboration and communication seem to be the core of the solution to this question. Another important thing to consider is the factory conditions for manufacturers. The Covid-19 crisis proved to the world that factories right now simply have a hard time operating without its employees. One way to move forward is looking into integrating technologies that would improve the efficiencies of factories. This could range from technologies that track movements of goods or monitor the health of employees.