How Have DotActiv Employees Adjusted to Remote Working?

In March 2020, the introduction of South Africa’s nationwide lockdown changed various aspects of everyday life. Life as we knew it changed in the blink of an eye. We found that one of the biggest changes for DotActiv’s employees was the transition from working in an office to working from home. 

For some of our DotActiv employees, this was an easy transition. However, for others, it proved to be a challenge. To better understand what they've gone through, we asked a few of our employees about their experience working remotely. We wanted to find out more about both the successes and challenges they had faced thus far. 

We also wanted to learn how the nationwide lockdown has shaped DotActiv as a company and find out whether it is stronger now than it was before. 

Successes of remote working

The DotActiv employees that we spoke to highlighted several advantages to working from home.  

No one enjoys spending hours in traffic to and from work. Working from home meant that our employees could save time and money on commuting to work every day. Some employees mentioned that they had more time to sleep later or wake up earlier and exercise, contributing to better work-life balance and lower stress levels.

          2. Better work-life balance

Working from home meant that our employees could spend more time with family and take up new hobbies. They could also get more sleep, which meant they found that they had more energy.

They were also able to use their lunch break to be more productive, using the time to run errands or perform household chores rather than procrastinate. These factors, to mention a few, again contributed substantially to a better work-life balance.

Although it may depend on the household, several DotActiv employees found that they could be more productive due to fewer distractions within their homes.

For example, time usually spent catching up with a colleague was now eliminated and directed towards critical work tasks. 

One of the advantages of working from home was the opportunity for our employees to customise their workspace. 

Whether they preferred working with loud music or were more productive when working alone, remote working allowed everyone to create their ideal work environment.

Challenges of remote working

Whilst there are several advantages to working from home, there were also various challenges that our employees encountered.

For many employees, a video call or message could not replace the social environment of the office. Many of our employees prefer in-person connections and tend to miss their colleagues and long for face-to-face interaction. 

Those who prefer to work in an office, surrounded by people, did say they felt isolated or disconnected during the national lockdown.

While some employees found remote working helped improve their work-life balance, others found the opposite was true. 

Working from home meant that one was not “leaving the office” anymore. In some instances, employees would often work overtime because they had easier access to work. A few also found it difficult to “switch off” and set boundaries between work and home life. 

While DotActiv strives to get work down right the first time, every time and on time, we do advocate a healthy work-life balance.

Whether an Internet Service Provider experienced downtime or we had to suffer through load shedding, our employees all had their fair share of external factors that prevented them from working at some point during the national lockdown. 

This did cause frustration amongst these employees and affected productivity in some instances. Fortunately, this wasn’t common enough that it would stop someone from being able to work at all.

How has DotActiv adjusted to remote working?

DotActiv has been fortunate enough to have not only survived the national lockdown thus far but truly thrived. This speaks to how well DotActiv’s Board of Directors run this business and the strength of the management team.

It was a significant transition for many employees to begin working from home and no one knew what to expect. Yet, we have soldiered on and are poised for growth in 2021 and beyond.

DotActiv employees can all agree that lockdown has made us stronger, both as individuals and as a company. During the early stages of the hard lockdown, we doubled down and refined the company direction. 

We transitioned to a category management services-first company as opposed to focusing solely on selling category management software. Whilst an adjustment, our employees are excelling in this regard.  Our work is now more refined, production has doubled, and we have received positive feedback from customers. 

With regards to the company culture side, we are also stronger. 

Before lockdown, our Cape Town and Johannesburg offices rarely interacted with each other. Now that we host our Friday Huddles virtually and can include all employees, there is a closer sense of unity and connection despite the distance.

With the onset of lockdown, we needed to conduct our meetings virtually via Google Meet instead of in-person. This included meeting with external clients as well as interviewing new candidates. In the beginning, virtual meetings were an adjustment. They have now become second nature across the business. 

It has also allowed us the convenience to meet with anyone and deliver services, despite their location. 

On Tuesday, 30 March, following a year in which the vast majority of DotActiv worked from home, we will be reopening our Cape Town and Johannesburg offices on an optional basis. Our offices will be following all necessary COVID-19 protocols, ensuring that we are able to work together but still remain safe. 

Conclusion

Although there has been a lot of uncertainty during these unprecedented times, we have experienced success. At DotActiv, we have made the necessary adjustments and have come out stronger for it. 

Interested in working at DotActiv? You can find out more about what positions are open here.