Some people have spent their entire careers working in positions that require face to face contact. In a post-COVID-19 world, how do sales teams and other departments reimagine the very fabric of work without losing the human connection that makes these jobs tick?
This is the first time Quickbase’s Vice President of Sales, Strategy and Innovation, Steve Percoco has worked from home in his 20-year sales career. Where he once worked on the road or in the office, he now spends his days seeking out face time online with customers across the world.
“I get a tremendous amount of energy being out on the road and engaging with customers,” he said. He’s now had to find ways to make that energy work for him as he spends his days from his home office.
Luckily, Quickbase offers the types of productivity solutions leaders and teams need to stay engaged and succeed, even with the adjustments that come from having a sudden home office. These solutions help him to remain energized in his sales position and make him a big believer in what Quickbase can do for other teams struggling with the same adjustments.
He was able to get into a routine as quickly as possible that created discipline and productivity.
Working during and after the pandemic
Percoco sees many organizations across different fields struggling with similar issues and coming to Quickbase for simple tech solutions to make post-COVID regulations work for them. They’re revolutionizing the way they work by applying these solutions to keep operations organized, both during the pandemic and returning to productivity after.
“I was just on a call with a hospital in Beirut talking to two infectious disease [doctors],” he gives as one example. “They were thrilled that there was a company out there offering a solution to help them manage.”
Quickbase is allowing organizations on the front lines free access to solutions designed specifically for the pandemic, and Percoco sees firsthand how that is allowing hospitals like these to remain operational while observing safety regulations.
He also gives the example of manufacturing, an industry taking heavy hits. Companies are returning to full operations soon, with some using Quickbase to ensure the health and safety of their frontline workers while ensuring full compliance with changing regulations. It’s these daily examples that keep him energized about the products and his work.
Embracing the slow-down
One of the most significant changes he’s seen is a humanization of work as we all make the best of our last-minute home office situations. He believes that this is a crucial step to learning how to work post-COVID-19.
“This pandemic has humanized work,” he said. “I get on a call with a customer who’s trying to solve a problem with Quickbase, and they’re talking from their living room — mom and dad behind the scenes helping kids do homework at the table.”
Percoco believes this is a more profound and real way to work with people, getting down to the heart of what he and the world are doing. Getting to work with people in a moment of crisis as guards come down is something he hopes will stick around for a long time.
“I hope these are new habits we all have,” he said.
As he adjusts to life through social distancing and his experience with his customers, Percoco’s keeping perspective as he’s gotten into a new routine.
“I’m incredibly grateful to work here at Quickbase, and I’m incredibly inspired by my colleagues who have figured out a way to continue to do awesome work and stay dialed in…with home life going behind them,” he said.
