A Note from DRF: A question we find ourselves asking right now is what communities will look like and how they will operate in a post-pandemic world. As restrictions are lifted, we may freely move about more but some businesses, organizations and those in the workforce will still struggle to recover for some time to come. DRF asked our friend Ted Abernathy with Economic Leadership LLC to curate some thoughts on the subject from leaders across the United States to help us think about what’s next.

Here are a few post pandemic thoughts.

Employees

Employers will be more concerned about employee health and safety permanently. Before the pandemic, most emphasis was on maintaining “no lost work-days” or maximizing “the number of days with no accidents”. Going forward it is going to include standard safety procedures, but also intense scrutiny on how lines are laid out, ventilation with bacteria removing filters, acceleration of automation in processes to reduce density in plants, office workers with limited workdays in plants, temperature checks etc.

Employers will have to navigate the issue of individual freedom versus employee health and work-place safety. (We are seeing companies treating employees almost like children, with negative repercussions. For example, Company A wants to require all employees take a nutritional supplement.) For employees able to work from home, lifestyle versus location will drive where they choose to live. I do not think it will lead to massive relocations across the Country, but significant relocations within regions are likely.

Companies

Employers are also going to be less inclined to keep inventories and safety stock at the bare minimums. Employers are and will continue to look for multiple sources throughout their entire supply chain.  Multi sourcing decisions will include review of the distance of raw materials and components to the factory.  Continuing onshoring will occur to serve the younger populations of the USA and Mexico versus utilizing lowest cost options. Cost to produce goods will continue to be important, but no longer the sole driver in decision making for many companies. Sustainability and environmental responsibility will continue to grow in importance as Millennials reach higher into organizations. Corporate “social” responsibility will continue to grow; but will likely clash with individuals’ beliefs and freedoms.  Internet Security and secure systems, clouds, etc. will continue to be of utmost importance as everyone uses the internet for more work.

Travel and Offices

The widespread use of WEBEX, etc. will have long-term travel implications. Companies and organizations will be more inclined to use travel for “mission critical” meetings and the computer for everything else. More people will be working from home permanently, reducing public transit needs, parking, and office space.  Companies are saving enormously and will want to retain the savings permanently.Government operations have developed contactless ways of doing business via teller windows and the internet. I expect we will see that continue and grow as the public appreciates easier ways to access their government.

Issues

I think the biggest issue we will contend with over the next 5 years is a fractionalized Country that is less inclined to meet one another in person, making it almost impossible to heal the fractures. It started a number of years ago, but the pandemic has accelerated the divide dramatically. The pandemic has kept many people home and isolated from day-to-day interactions with a variety of people. It is easy to hide behind a computer screen. As a result, people are almost losing their ability for positive social debate versus rude lectures and bullying.  You see it not just in politics, but also in almost every public discussion today. Unlike most national crises, this pandemic has not drawn us closer together as a nation.