Commercial Integrator August 2021 - 40

FINAL THOUGHTS
CI Download: 2021 CI Buyer's Guide
Remote Work and
Quarantine are
Very Diff erent Things
WE ARE ALL FINALLY EMERGING from our
homes and makeshiſt workstations and are
returning to the offi ce in some capacity. At
Commercial Integrator, the editorial group
has been going to the offi ce two days a week
to start. I for one am ecstatic that I now can
leave my small offi ce in my house for the
large, wide-open offi ce (with actual humans
inside!).
On a few of these recent drives to the offi ce,
I remembered why I hate driving in metro-Boston:
the traffi c. Sure, I get to catch up on some
podcasts and prepare my brain for work,
but I also have to avoid terrible
Massachusetts drivers and the
long Dunkin' drive-thru lines that
spill out into the street on a busy
stretch of road.
So, on the days where I'm
working from home, I've learned
to enjoy that fl exibility.
As organizations begin to
roll out their hybrid working
strategies and double down
on remote work, the word
" fl exibility " becomes key, especially as we
suddenly realize just how much of a mental
toll isolating ourselves from the rest of the
world took.
I argue that what we did last year and for
have been interrupted due to quarantine and
97% say they need vacation days to recharge
while at home.
Imagine never being able to leave the ofOn
the days
where I'm
working from
home, I've
learned to
enjoy that
fl exibility.
fi ce. That's what we did in 2020, and that was
not remote work. That was quarantine.
Remote work means having the ability to
work out of one's home and grab a slice from
the local pizza place and then log off around
5 p.m. and hit the gym. It doesn't mean
you're locked in your home during the worst
global health crisis we've seen in years.
For integrators still supporting remote
positions, make sure fl exibility
is a cornerstone of your remote
work policy.
We all want to put 2020
behind us. There is no shortage
of bad memories and adverse
feelings about a year that was,
in many ways, taken from us
as a result of the COVID-19
pandemic.
However, that doesn't mean
we should forget all of the
lessons learned from the year in which much
of the world converted to a remote work
schedule.
Productivity for individual work remained
the fi rst half of this year was not remote work.
It was quarantine. Yes, we worked remotely,
but we did not have a choice. In fact,
we were forced to stay inside and we were
constantly reminded of work whenever we
walked by our company-issued laptop sitting
on the kitchen table. There was no fl exibility
involved.
According to an October 2020 study from
TELUS International of 1,000 American workers,
80% fi nd it hart to " shut off " aſt er working,
more than half have taken a mental health day
since they started working from home due
to the pandemic, half say their sleep patterns
steady or even improved when employees
worked from home. Many companies got
more work hours from employees as a result of
commute time dissappearing and adding that
time to potential work hours. There were some
positives to pluck out of the diffi cult year.
Now we are charged with taking those
lessons from the year of quarantine, applying
them to future work environments, and creating
remote workfl ows that get the best of both
worlds - organizational productivity as well
as individual fl exibility.
Zachary Comeau, Associate Editor
zachary.comeau@emeraldx.com
CI's annual
guide of
who's who in
commercial
integration
solutions is
now available.
The 2021
Buyer's Guide
makes it easy
for you to fi nd what you are looking for.
The Category Index sorts providers by
product and service types while our A-Z
Vendor list provides contact information
for each of these companies. Product and
service types include:
› Audio/Video
› Building Enhancements
› Control & Automation
› Networking and Communications
› Security
› And much more!
Download your copy of the 2021 Buyer's
Guide today to access this annual list and
get started on your next project.
The 2021 CI Buyer's Guide
is available as a free download on
commercialintegrator.com.
CI Webcast: From the Archive:
4 Operational Boosts to Build Big
Value in Your Company
As an integration business owner, you've
likely considered the possibility of one
day selling your fi rm. That move may be
many years from now, or you could be
considering an exit soon in order to retire
or try something new in your career.
There are also plenty of business
owners who have thought about selling
but decided they have no wish to do so
now or in the future. Even so, valuation
is important for running a company and
maximizing value for your company is
about more than an eventual sale.
This webinar from June 23, 2021
covers a number of topics, including:
› Strategies for maximizing your
cashfl ow
› How to ensure you aren't wasting
money on inventory
› Ways to grow your business without
growing your headcount
› How to increase share of customer
wallet
This Webcast is available for free on
commercialintegrator.com.
Commercial Integrator, (USPS 005-160) (ISSN 2165-9850), Vol.11 No. 8, is published monthly by Emerald X, LLC., 100 Broadway, 14th Floor, New York, New York 10005, 800-440-2139. Commercial Integrator
is a registered trademark of Emerald X, LLC. All reproduction, including photocopying, is prohibited without written permission. Postage Paid at New York, NY and additional mailing offi ces. POSTMASTER:
send address changes to COMMERCIAL INTEGRATOR, PO BOX 297, Lincolnshire, IL 60069-0297.
40
Commercial Integrator AUGUST 2021
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Commercial Integrator August 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Integrator August 2021