Panasonic India on the Covid-19 situation and future of work

As the COVID-19 outbreak has changed the dynamic of the workforce and workplace, companies are taking care to ensure employee safety while also paying the highest importance to client needs. A letter by Adarsh Mishra, CHRO, Panasonic India, mentions all the initiatives being undertaken in his organization to handle the COVID-19 situation in the best possible way.

Excerpts:

At Panasonic, the health and well-being of our colleagues is paramount for us. Keeping in mind the critical situation, we are taking all cautionary measures directed by the government and advising them to stay strong and be cautiously optimistic. In addition, our HBA’s (HR Business Ambassadors) are constantly in touch with all employees to provide support as required.

We have re-modeled our operations to be digital-first and have introduced ‘Workplace’ – an internal communications platform, which keeps us all connected. Processes have been put in place to ensure employees and their respective managers discuss daily agenda, updates of activities in pipeline and do virtual meetings on a regular basis. In an environment which is weighing down heavily on our people, we’ve created recreational groups for them to engage with each other and help break the monotony related to hobbies, learning platform – Learnado among others. 

We are continuously observing the situation, and will continue to adhere to the safety norms prescribed by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) across all our operations. We are gearing up for the life, post lockdown, as we are in the processof defining the work methodology and team size for the next three months, which will be notified to our colleagues, along with the proper guidelines and advisories to follow.

Following the guidelines set by MHA and respective state authorities, we are prepared for staggered operations at our manufacturing facilities with workers coming in batches ensuring social distancing, frequent sanitizing, usage of masks among other initiatives to protect our workforce. Even raw material and finished goods will need to go through a full sanitization process to maintain safety standards. Furthermore, key technologies such as automation and digitization will be important towards driving production efficiencies.

These initiatives apart, we are making “Aroyga Setu app” mandatory for all employees. Frequent sanitizing, usage of masks, and following of social distancing norms during Morning exercise and Morning Meetings are also being made mandatory to protect our workforce.

This global crisis will have a lasting impact on the economy and

forever change the way we do business; organizations need to reconfigure themselves to a digitally compatible model where technology takes precedence. In line with the Digital India initiative, automation, digitization, virtual meetings, digitalconferences etc., will be the new normal for all.