Quarantine and the transition to remote work have become challenges for many businesses. Even IT companies, which previously worked remotely, faced a number of difficulties. Oleksandr Sadovskyi, co-owner of SPD-Ukraine and a graduate of the Presidents' MBA kmbs, talked about how his business operations have changed under new conditions.

About remote work

Our company has two offices in Cherkasy and one in Kyiv. With the start of quarantine, we sent all teams home in both cities. Since our company is in the IT sector, remote work is not something new for us. We already had the infrastructure set up, and before the quarantine, the IT department checked everything again. So, the transition to remote work went smoothly.

We did not notice a decrease in the efficiency of engineers. As for administrative and service workers (for example, office managers) – they have significantly less work during quarantine. Instead, HR managers have more work. Therefore, we compiled a list of HR tasks (to do analytics, conduct surveys, etc.) and asked those who were freed up during the quarantine to help with their implementation.

In my opinion, the main thing in remote work conditions is constant communication with the team. Especially if you previously did not have the habit of assigning tasks to employees and communicating online. Fortunately, there are enough tools. We use the corporate version of Google Hangouts and, on some projects, Slack.

About the business context

Overall, our company is stable now. However, it is worth understanding that business does not exist in a vacuum; it is a derivative of the clients' business, and their business is a derivative of the global economy. The IT business still boils down to the person for whom value is created at the end of the chain. For example, for one client, we develop SMART terminals used in offline sales. And if physical stores do not operate, then ultimately, it will be bad for us as well.

Our main clients are in the USA and Israel, and the crisis has hit them quite hard. We are already feeling the first signs of a recession: some clients have started asking for discounts, some are cutting certain initiatives. We have already provided a discount to some, and we are negotiating with others.

Any business does not exist in a vacuum; it is a derivative of the clients' business, and their business is a derivative of the global economy.

No one knows how the situation will unfold, so there are risks "hanging in the air." We are now communicating a lot with clients to understand what is happening with them. For example, we see that they are freezing the hiring of new employees, waiting to see what will happen next.

Among our clients, there are two large public companies that have a margin of safety. With the businesses with which we have built relationships over the years, the situation is stable. With smaller companies, startups, it is more difficult. But we expect that even under quarantine conditions, we could hold out at least until the end of the year, unless some large-scale force majeure occurs.

Due to quarantine, our fixed expenses have partially decreased: for office rent (we were given discounts), for expensive parking spaces in Kyiv, for purchasing office supplies, holding events, etc. We have also significantly reduced investments. This saving mode helps balance the decline in income.

About priorities

We have plans for the year (quite specific) and for 5 years (more visionary). Officially, we have not reviewed them yet, but we have already discussed among ourselves that the annual growth plans will not be fulfilled.

Our planning is now more situational. The main tasks today are to secure the support of clients, agree with them on the terms of interaction until the end of the year. Of course, no one can give guarantees, so we are preparing for the scenario where all clients will ask for a discount.

We are also trying to develop sales, but today this direction is not working as we planned. In fact, this has a positive side: you can take a step back and reflect – because there was not enough time for this before.

Our main priority in the current conditions is to keep the team. To do this, we optimize costs, reduce investments. Even if some clients refuse projects, we do not want to lose people. The market will still play its part, and if the team is there, we will be able to quickly take advantage of opportunities. And if people need to be recruited again, we will lose months, if not years.

In remote work conditions, the main thing is constant communication with the team. Especially if you previously did not have the habit of assigning tasks to employees and communicating online.

About charity

The main part of our employees is located in Cherkasy, so most activities related to our brand take place here. The same applies to charity: the projects we invest in are mostly in Cherkasy.

When the quarantine began, we discussed with other members of the Cherkasy IT cluster what could be done to help hospitals. Initially, we thought about purchasing ventilators, but it turned out that it is not so simple: even if you have money, you cannot just buy and bring it to the hospital – too much bureaucracy.

In Cherkasy, charitable funds appeared quite quickly, which can be trusted. It is easier to do this individually, not from the company (for fiscal and bureaucratic reasons), so we decided that each of us would help the "Cherkasy against COVID-19" fund separately, as an individual. This fund purchases masks, protective equipment, ventilators for hospitals.

Subjectively, the situation in our region is quite calm. It seems to me that now we are much less afraid than a month ago. Maybe we got used to it, or maybe we are tired of being afraid.

About business after the pandemic

I try to look to the future optimistically. Clearly, if the global economy "collapses," then all businesses will suffer. But if we gradually come out of quarantine, most likely, some people will want to continue working from home, at least partially (say, half the week). After all, even those who did not see themselves in remote work before now feel its advantages: no need to spend time on the road, stand in traffic jams, etc. Accordingly, after quarantine, it will be possible to reduce rented office space and save a lot of money.

Already now I see that the attitude towards outsourcing is changing. Previously, sometimes we were looked down upon: for example, American workers at those sitting in Ukraine. Some considered remote work ineffective or did not understand how it happens at all. And now everyone is in the same conditions. Accordingly, understanding has appeared, communication between people has improved. This will likely give a boost to the development of outsourcing on a global scale.

Many areas that are now growing rapidly (say, delivery) may then shrink just as quickly. But this does not apply to e-commerce. The development of e-commerce will be very long. But it will not be about any specific technologies, but about digital transformation and management decisions. There is no need to write new online stores – there are enough platforms. The main thing is the presence of the right strategy in the company.

Oleksandr Sadovskyi: "The most important thing for us now is to keep the team"