Six Months Later: Lessons Learned From COVID-19

By Arka Dhar, Zinier

In 2004, Stanford economist Paul Romer said, “A crisis is a terrible thing to waste.”

Five years later, Rahm Emanuel echoed a similar sentiment when he said, “Never let a good crisis go to waste. It’s an opportunity to do the things you once thought were impossible.”

Today, we’re facing a global health crisis unlike any in our lifetime. And while it might sound a tad draconian to describe any aspect of COVID-19 as ‘good’, it has forced us to adapt and innovate at a pace that would have been unthinkable just six months ago.

Managing the unexpected

In many ways, our response to the pandemic has looked like something that only MacGyver – you know, the 80s TV icon who could solve any problem with his Swiss Army knife and a roll of duct tape – would dream up.

Field service in 2020 has been a series of quick fixes and temporary band-aids. We’ve had to use unconventional solutions just to keep our critical infrastructure up and running, like staggering coordinator schedules to reduce the risk of a widespread outbreak. Or sending technicians into the field in their personal vehicles, instead of having them double up inside fleet trucks.