The digital wave is here to stay

As Sweden and the world open up society again, it will be a new everyday life for many. The question is what changes we will see in both the short and long term. We spoke to Niklas Roupé, at a safe distance, about digitalization and the lasting effects of the pandemic.

At Bombayworks, the habit of working digitally is strong. Since 2007, the agency has been working to create digital growth for clients such as Electrolux and Orkla from its offices in Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmö and Mumbai. But now that the four offices have been replaced by 75 digital home offices due to the pandemic, fully digital working methods have quickly become the norm at the agency.

– I am convinced that the view of travel, digital meetings and video conferencing has changed forever. During the pandemic, we have experienced the value of digital tools and working methods to a greater extent than before and have come to accept them as fully-fledged alternatives to how we worked before. We will take the new habits with us into everyday life even after the pandemic, says Niklas Roupé.

Organizational researcher Jan Löwstedt at Stockholm University also says in an article in DN that he is of the opinion that it will quickly become a habit to have digital meetings, and that we will generally see a new questioning of how we work after the pandemic.

– We have chosen to invest in our office in Stockholm rather than move to larger premises, as we believe that flexible workplaces can be an alternative to the fixed workplaces we have today. It saves costs for us and at the same time our employees' travel time can be reduced. As an example, it can be mentioned that during the pandemic we save around 420 travel hours per week to and from the offices, says Niklas Roupé.

More digital leads to more physical

Paradoxically, an increased digital focus is also likely to reinforce the need for physical contact and care. Non-digital actions will increase in importance.

"We have noticed that it gives enormous appreciation to, for example, send something physical now that everything else is digital. That's why we also believe that physical meetings will become even more important and meaningful in the future," says Niklas Roupé.

The politician and author Per Schlingmann described this development already in 2015, and his observation has proven to be more relevant now than ever: "An axiom for our time seems to be that everything that can be digitized will also be digitized. But here we must also add that everything that can be digitized can also be copied. And what can be copied loses value. This means that experiences that cannot be digitized increase in value."

Human drivers show the way

At Bombayworks, they are convinced that there are more lessons to be learned in the future.

– It all starts with our human needs. Needs such as being noticed, being part of a community and doing something meaningful. When something happens that risks limiting or hindering these needs, you have to find new ways. That is why communication tools such as Officevibe and Impraise, for example, have become even more important for us in order to be able to keep track of how employees are doing when we do not meet physically, says Niklas Roupé.

What was initially seen as quite cumbersome has resulted in several smart digital solutions and working methods. Perhaps we will look back at the time before the corona crisis and wonder how we could actually work the way we did before. Why not work from home more often, and why travel across the country to attend meetings?

– A mindset that is open to change and the ability to see the opportunities will be the success factors when the digital wave continues after the pandemic, says Niklas Roupé.

Publication: Byråvärlden, May 2020