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THE disruptions brought by the Covid-19 pandemic have stirred business and global market uncertainties. In the Philippines, the current business outlook is far from rosy. Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) continue to bear the brunt of the effects of the health crisis, grappling to stay afloat amid travel restrictions and new government-imposed lockdowns. Considering the surge of Covid-19 cases nationwide, we can say that the struggle of small businesses to sustain growth is far from over.

Global warming, extreme weather conditions, new emerging diseases, and social inequalities and biases, as well as corporate scandals, bad working conditions, and employee harassment and exploitation are just some of the global issues disrupting the way we live. There’s a worldwide call to radically address these concerns. One of the first industries to respond is the financial sector led by banks, the money makers. How can lenders address these issues – issues that are far from their usual duties of making money?

Upgrading a business through digitalization is no easy feat. If we can recall in our previous article, we’ve established that digital transformation is an effort to improve existing business models by integrating advanced technologies. After learning this simple definition, what exactly can curtail these efforts in the long run? For digital transformation to be successful, it is crucial for business owners to consider all possible challenges brought about by the introduction of new technologies and an unfamiliar culture to the workplace.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic can be considered the greatest challenge that education has faced in modern times, significantly disrupting institutions worldwide and billions of learners of all ages. In response, academic institutions conducted courses online and faculty and staff worked remotely due to safety and travel restrictions. Virtual setups have since become the new norm, from teaching and learning to graduation ceremonies. The dire circumstances have effectively removed face-to-face group learning in all educational levels and changed the online learning landscape.

THE onset of catastrophic events has always kept the world at a standstill at one point or another. This was particularly the case when the dreadful coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic hit. Economic growth slowed while companies grappled with the underlying financial impacts of this event. When the health crisis wreaked havoc, it left businesses rethinking their operational and leadership strategies. Amid all the repercussions of the pandemic and other catastrophic worldwide events, a new concept is gradually becoming the new business reality - sustainability.

Back in the day, the image of the future was filled with caricatures of flying cars and robots. Pop culture in the 70s and 80s promoted future society to be one that is advanced in all aspects – from transportation and entertainment to the world of work. Surely, these were not accurate predictions, as we are still eons away from using flying cars. What absolutely changed was the way we do things.

Quarantines, lockdowns and travel restrictions. These pushed businesses to resort to work-from-home arrangements in the wake of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. What gradually unfolded was an experimental dabble in the way we work. Suddenly, we found ourselves reliant on technology and virtual platforms like Zoom to ensure that work deliverables are completed.

In recent years, the way banks operate has been shaken by the revolution led by fintech giants and independent digital currencies. It is hard to overstate the consequences of this revolution and to understand them, we have to go back to the fundamental principle of banking – the “art of making money” or fractional-reserve banking.