Georgiana Grama, Commercial Manager, HAYS
- What was the most challenging thing your company, people, and you, personally, had to face in 2020?
I would say that one of the most challenging aspects of the Covid-19 pandemic has been having to say ‘stop’ to those human interactions we take for granted on a daily basis – for example, having a coffee with a colleague, going to another country for a training opportunity or visiting a client in their new office space. You only realise how important these interactions are when you are trying to subsitute them remotely.
On the other hand, changing my position in Hays and moving to a Commercial role during this period, it was both challenging and exciting opportunity. I realised that hard times sustain and strengthen the personal growth.
- What pleasantly surprised you last year? / What are you grateful for?
I am grateful that as a team at Hays, we have never stopped providing a service to our clients and candidates, and in fact we’re probably working harder than ever before. As an organisation, we adapted to the current context smoothly, allowing us to adopt a ‘business-as-usual’ approach and ensuring a smooth transition to a home-based office for our teams.
- What are your plans and expectations for 2021?
I believe that collaboration with colleagues will continue to grow, with people now trusting in remote working but also understanding the value of working togther in person. One way or another, 2021 is likely to be the year that the world truly transitions to the ‘next normal’.
Our plans for the new year are to manage and facilitate the return to offices in a safe and secure way. Just as important is to support organisations in their journey towards a more distributed model with multiple places of work. For example, we have seen many organisations beginning a gradual return to the office, but remote working, in some form, is definitely something that’s here to stay.
- What do you foresee it will be different this year and what impact it will have on our industry/Romania/your company/your people?
As the vaccine begins its roll out, we’re much more likely to see a greater shift to a hybrid recruitment model. In-person meetings to engage candidates will return, and employers can look forward to interacting with prospective employees before making a hiring decision. From the candidate perspective, we see an appreciation of the speed of online recruitment processes when working from home, but at the same time recognition of the level of engagement you can only get from a face-to-face discussion in a safe environment.
- What is your message for the ABSL community?
We truly appreciate all the hard work you did during 2020 and the opportunity you gave to your partners to gather together, discuss important topics and participate in a very successful conference – all in a virtual environment. It showed us the importance of interaction between different businesses and how we can adapt to a new world together. Keep building this community of inspiring organisations!