| | JANUARY 202219McKinsey Global Survey found that companies have accelerated the digitization of their customer and supply-chain interactions and their internal operations by three to four years).Remote working has certainly been a blessing in disguise for a section of the workforce -those who were qualified and skilled but had to settle for less or were unable to work due to family commitments or post-maternity obligations. As far as employees are concerned, reskilling and upskilling seem to be their mantra. The accelerated digitization has created many opportunities in the tech space - AI has become even more relevant in 2021.Meanwhile, corporations have learned that offering WFH can be a win-win situation, as it offers employees flexibility and comfort while saving establishment costs and other expenses. The pandemic may have caused an unprecedented disruption; however, it has also opened doors for many. It is now up to the Indian corporate sector to leverage this opportunity, reimagine how employees do their jobs, and it's up to the employees to find what works best for them.With most companies being compelled to adopt the work from home model throughout the pandemic, how did it impact productivity and efficiency as a whole? Can you recount your experience of working from home at Future Generali as well?Like organizations across the country, the pandemic motivated us to adopt the WFH model. However, being a dynamic and flexible organization, Future Generali has always invested in technology towards being a future-ready organization. It is this forward-thinking mindset and vision that helped us see much lower disruption compared to other companies. Future Generali's swift action helped us move to a WFH scenario overnight, making arrangements to move office assets and laptops to employees' residences much ahead of the mandate and lockdowns. We managed to easily establish a WFH protocol, thereby ensuring zero disruption in work. We ensured that our customers were served by investing in digital tools for self-servicing and technology that enabled our call center to respond to customer queries while our executives worked from home.It always helps when you have agility and employee-centricity at the core of management thinking. Employees reciprocated this sentiment by readily adapting and learning new technology, as a result of which productivity increased, and FG grew by 15 percent quarter on quarter.Personally, I have found that WFH offers several advantages, like saving several hours of commute time, which I now use to focus on work, family, and indulge in other activities. I am able to schedule and structure my meetings and plan my day better, which has impacted my productivity positively. What is your take on the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance? With lines between work and the home getting blurred, how does one strive to maintain a status quo between the two? It all boils down to a single thing: discipline. The only way to make sure you maintain a healthy work-life balance is to be disciplined. While working from home, make sure you log in and log off on time. Just because you are at home, don't mess up your routine and your schedule. Figure out when you are at your productive best and plan your day accordingly. For instance, I find that my most productive time is early in the morning, and so I make it a point to never schedule meetings in my first hour of work. Instead, I set aside that time for some thinking and strategizing.As women, we juggle so many things simultaneously and end up doing so much more work between managing the office, home, and children. Therefore, it is all the more important to make sure you take time out for yourself. Neglecting yourself can prove costly in the long run, as overall you will find yourself not as effective as you need to be. Can you take us through some steps and measures that you have taken as an individual to attain the ever-elusive work-life balance? First and foremost, I make sure that I never skip a PERSONALLY, I HAVE FOUND THAT WFH OFFERS SEVERAL ADVANTAGES, LIKE SAVING SEVERAL HOURS OF COMMUTE TIME, WHICH I NOW USE TO FOCUS ON WORK, FAMILY, AND INDULGE IN OTHER ACTIVITIES
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