Innovation in times of COVID-19
Turning a crisis around opens doors to opportunities. That's why, in a time like the one we're living through, we're seizing the COVID-19 pandemic as a great opportunity to innovate. Now, when we talk about innovation in this critical era, where the health emergency has practically brought the world to a standstill, affecting companies at all levels—small, medium, or large international corporations—we find ourselves on high alert. Faced with this situation, many questions arise. How can we maximize the value we contribute to society? What are your differentiating competencies and how could they be used in new ways, creating competitive advantages? What will the future look like? These are just a few examples. In response to all these questions, at GDI we work as a team, seeking to integrate our clients' needs with the demanding requirements of a resilient environment, with our primary objective being to retain our clients. Understanding this as a significant investment in the future, we sought ways to support you, maintain active communication, listen attentively to your current needs, and pay close attention to feedback on the products and services you've already received, as well as the new ones we're offering. This allowed us to identify the ideal environment to work, renew, and innovate on technological platforms that will enable us to stay at the forefront and achieve greater market share. The evolution of these integrated platforms will allow us to automate most business practices related to the operational and production aspects of our company, facilitating and centralizing information with our strategic partners. At GDI, we've implemented several digital updates for you, our business partners. We at GDI are confident that these innovations will streamline our business relationship with our clients—our strategic partners—and strengthen it for future challenges. Now, let's remember that this crisis will end, all of this will pass. Therefore, let's not lose sight of the bigger picture and keep in mind that, while not everything is under our control, our attitude and our decisions are, and it will be up to us to make something productive out of it or not. At GDI, we aim to emerge stronger from this and be part of the solution.
The impact of COVID-19 on employment
Employment is undergoing a revolution, now accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Technology was already threatening to transform the labor market, but today the fears and changes have already become a reality. The outlook, in terms of employment, is not encouraging, since the health crisis has also triggered an economic problem, which increased the unemployment figures during 2020. Between April and May of last year alone, 12,180,000 formal and informal jobs were lost, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) and the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS). Despite everything, Mexicans seem to be among the workers who paint a positive picture of the future. A total of 47% of Mexican employees expressed optimism about the labor market in 2021. WEAK RECOVERY In 2021, employment began to show a somewhat timid recovery, with the creation of 47,000 jobs, in its monthly comparison of January. Companies today face the challenge of adapting to new needs. 66% of employers say there will be an improvement in flexible work options, and 65% will increase work-from-home options. The digitalization that industries are experiencing is part of the catalysts for generating a change in traditional remuneration and serving their consumers who carry out most of their activities from home. The main challenge for Latin American countries is the development and investment capacity to digitize their operations. According to data from the Indeed survey, the Education (50%), Human Resources (40%), and Information and Communications Technology (32%) sectors are the industries with the best perception for hiring in 2021, as most agree that hiring plans will be the same as before the pandemic. They are followed by Architecture, Engineering and Construction (20%), Arts and Culture (29%), Finance (20%), Manufacturing and Public Services (22%), Sales, Media and Marketing (23%). Healthcare will experience a slight decline, with 42% agreeing that they plan to hire at 75% of pre-Covid-19 levels. While Retail, Food Service and Leisure (29%), as well as Travel and Transport (33%), will be the least hiring, as most agree that they will only hire for key functions. In the new normal, companies will emphasize short-term plans rather than long-term ones, due to the changing and adaptive conditions that will persist during the pandemic, with contingency plans in place to deal with the unexpected. Having a secure and stable job will be one of the top priorities for 2021 among workers aged 16 to 54, says Indeed. To avoid the deterioration of formal employment, it will be necessary to understand that job recovery comes not only from generating new jobs, but from generating quality jobs. Furthermore, in the short term, the recovery will be linked to the progress of vaccination to overcome the pandemic, while in the long and medium term, investment will be crucial for a sustained improvement. Mexico is caught between hope and waiting to see a recovery in employment. The health crisis offers almost no certainty of recovery, but it does guarantee the arrival of irreversible changes. At GDI we adapt to changes and seek the best for our employees, providing the necessary tools to move forward despite the contingency. We are looking for the best option to continue working remotely, implementing more digital methods and certain tools to stay connected and thus be able to serve our clients efficiently and safely. Faced with challenges, we strive to move forward and support our employees.