Creating a new normal
Does the crisis brought on by the onset of Covid19 create the need to further transform organisations and create a New Normal – and what does that mean?
An overview of the challenge
Public service has performed heroically in response to Covid19 and there is no doubt that the impact of the crisis will be felt for many years to come. The challenge now is to build on the learning that can be drawn from the crisis and establish a New Normal that reflects the needs of society in the years to come.
Unleashing the power of communities – have we just discovered a hidden asset?
We have just seen an upsurge in volunteering as Covid19 puts our communities in lock down and created a heightened recognition of what we can all do for vulnerable members of our community.
How will demand have changed when we emerge from the crisis?
The Covid19 crisis is likely to create a New Normal pattern of demand for local government services – expressed both in the nature of support needed and in the way that support is accessed.
Customer access – Does New Normal imply an increasingly Digital approach?
The Covid19 crisis meant that we had to distance ourselves from each other and find new ways to communicate. This meant that contact centres shut, staff worked from home, customers accessed services on-line and face to face contact was avoided wherever possible.
Service design and delivery
The Covid19 crisis meant that we had to stand up new services from scratch, adapt services to recognise a constraint on physical access and turn others on their head to respond to urgent requirements emanating from central government.
Workforce – remote ways of working
Home working is now the defining feature of New Normal. Most of us have figured out how to work from home and still be productive. We have discovered Teams and Zoom and a way of operating with interruptions from dogs, cats and children.
Untying the Gordian knot
It has become clear that in the wake of the crisis there are some fundamental issues to face and that every council now has a relatively short window in which to resolve a three-way dilemma…