Most of the $191 billion Indian IT-BPM industry, employing 4.4 million professionals¹, was working from home from March 24, 2020, due to the pan-India lockdown imposed by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to contain COVID-19 pandemic.

With the latest news coming in that one of the largest employers in the Indian IT sector, TCS, Tata Consultancy Services, is changing its operating model to 25×25 with only 25% of employees working from office facilities and 75% from home to achieve 100% productivity². Although TCS was planning to move their development centers to Agile Operating Centers

(AOC) in a phased manner, COVID-19 work from home challenge pushed them to hasten the process.

So does it mean work from home will become the “New Normal” for every organization in the IT sector – be it small or large? Let’s not jump to a conclusion yet. We need to brainstorm, assess risks involved and then plan for a long term operating business model for the sector as a whole.

But for now, let’s plan a survival strategy to continue working during the COVID-19 lockdown and post lockdown era.

Vishwas Mahajan, Whizible CEO, recommends 9 tips for IT companies  post-COVID-19?

Religiously Follow GOI Guidelines

1. Follow the Back to Office guidelines advisory by the Government of India³
2. Follow Standard Operating Protocol For IT Companies/IT Parks issued by NASSCOM⁴

Prioritise CCC

3. Cashflows – Manage cashflows for longer runrate, renegotiate debt, avail of special COVID-19 relief schemes at lower interest rates
4. Customers – Retaining existing customer business should be your top priority. Keep your focus on customer satisfaction. Customer needs may have changed, support them to excel in their business. Make the necessary adjustment to your business terms and conditions if required. Keep your existing customers happy.
5. Continuity – Make a business continuity plan for next 3 quarters, be ready if a second wave comes after some time. Align your plan with your customer needs.

Improve Organizational Efficiency

6. Get your hiring policy right – do not rush – if you have laid off employees, do a demand-based, project-based hiring, staff augmentation or gig-based contractual hiring
7. Separate good from the bad – products, employees, processes, make the good better. Encourage good employees to upskill, strike off low demand services and loss-making products from your portfolio. Improve process efficiency and governance
8. Use tools for work-project management which will help manage remotely run projects with gig-workers or WFH employees, there are many benefits of using an online SaaS project management software, beyond remote team management.
9. Become an agile and adaptable organization 

1. According to NASSCOM
2. https://www.cnbctv18.com/information-technology/explained-why-the-tcs-25-workforce-in-office-plan-may-redefine-the-way-it-sector-works-5783631.htm
3. https://www.nasscom.in/advisories-covid-19
4. https://www.nasscom.in/sites/default/files/corona-files/COVID-19_SOP_IT_Industry_20042020.pdf