How telecoms have helped business through the pandemic so far…

In March this year, Covid-19 caught many UK businesses off guard and their historical strategies were simply not able to cope with a global pandemic on this scale. Companies began scrabbling around setting up new ways of working and harnessing technological innovation to keep their business engines running and at the heart of this telecoms were the key, shining a beacon of light in the form of technological innovation.

As a response to the crisis, it is estimated that around a third of SMEs moved their businesses online in April 2020. Businesses have also harnessed technological innovation in lockdown to provision for remote working – either using Zoom or Microsoft Teams to stay connected with their clients and to keep their workforces stay motivated and engaged.

Technologies such as virtual conferencing, mobile connectivity and social media will have been essential for businesses to keep in contact with customers and stakeholders. In 2019, 2.7 billion people owned a smartphone enabling continuous data connections and 3.4 billion people use social networks, this number is expected to grow drastically in the face of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, companies that rely upon on telecoms solutions will need to invest in cloud technology to ensure their employees and clients can access the vital data that their businesses are built on, so what are the key areas of focus…

Security:

As many of these new ways of working have sunk in as a response to physical necessity, businesses have realised the opportunity of utilising telecoms and technologies that enable remote working to reduce costs. But what organisations need to take cognisance of is the need for tougher security measures, that will need to continue evolving across the business as we come out of lockdown as a cost-driving initiative, encouraging a remote working infrastructure and a reduction in non-essential travel. We will also observe a huge shift by companies to online. The internet is a gigantic market of 4.4 billion individuals sharing an ever-larger quantity of data. 12 billion emails are sent every hour. According to data specialists and by 2025 there will be 5 times more data stored on the planet than there is today. The total volume will stand at 175 ZB, i.e. 175 thousand billion GB. Global pandemics which promote remote working for survival could make that figure even higher.

Payment-tech:

With the news that the second wave of Covid-19 may be coming and to protect against future pandemics, we will continue to see businesses prioritise the payment for goods and services using online payment methods.

For those that have been able to stay resilient during Covid-19, the battle has only just begun. As we deal with the fallout of returning to our ‘new normal,’ businesses will need to adapt their business continuity strategies with technology and telecoms at its heart to keep themselves alive. Also with remote working becoming the norm businesses must invest in protecting the data of their employees and customers, as well as educating and training workers on how to prevent cyber-scams from occurring.