‘IT’ In The Pandemic
By Nishant Shukla, Vice President – Human Resources
“How the pandemic has changed our lives”
It has brought about some great changes, not only limited to our way of life as we woke up, but it also now influences our dreams and our subconscious beings too. We have tried to adjust and accommodate in these changing times, and so has the IT industry. In fact, the IT industry is one the first industries which rose to the occasion and showed the possibilities of working remotely. Flexible working hours as well as working from home has led to a considerable growth in the IT sector. Even the smaller companies have opened their doors for digitalisation and online networking platforms for their employees and customers.
The year of 2021 saw a real challenge for the HR and business community in the war of generating and retaining talent which has brought significant shrinking of margin. However, talent is no longer confined to geographical borders, rather it has become global which has been possible only because of the work from home concept. Companies can now hire from any place and tap on the real talents which will lead to its productivity and growth. This concept seemed rather far-fetched a few years back but looks more like the new normal from now on. However, there are still some jobs that require employees to be in the workplace, but it could be strategically planned so that employees do not have to come in all five days a week and work there for eight to nine hours a day. Unnecessary office politics and toxic workplace environments have also reduced to a considerable extent due to remote work as an option, and employees are getting more time to spend with their family after their working hours.
Though sometimes it becomes difficult to hire people virtually as it is not easy to understand the non-verbal cues through virtual calls during an interview. However, different tools and apps are being developed to overcome this challenge. The question is how long can we sustain this growing bubble, keeping in mind both the demand and supply where talent is a constant factor.
