Innovation and Adaptation in the Face of a Global Crisis

We talked to Nikhil Verma of OnGraph about the most effective AI-focused solutions to help businesses assist their customers in the best way possible, and he had the following to say:-

First of all, how are you and your family doing in these COVID-19 times? 

Nikhil Verma: The one thing COVID-19 has really taught us all is appreciating and loving our family and the time spent together to the fullest. Although this is a difficult time that we all are facing, however, taking care of ourselves and our loved ones is the new normal today. At present, I am enjoying the quality moments spent with the family members at home and pray that this pandemic finally comes to an end soon. 

Tell us about you, your career, how you joined OnGraph. 

Nikhil Verma: At OnGraph I oversee everything related to Sales, Marketing, and Client Success. I have been associated with OnGraph’s growth for almost a decade and have served across a number of positions right from the bottom of the pyramid. I joined the team when we were less than 40 members, and now we are proudly over 300+ 

How does OnGraph innovate? 

Nikhil Verma: We, at OnGraph, are backed with the latest technology to deliver a top-notch user experience. With our advanced app development solutions, we follow an innovative way to acquire, engage, and grow customers. Our experts have delivered the most effective AI-focused solutions to help businesses assist their customers in the best way possible. Having over 12 years of experience in developing some of the most amazing apps for mobile and web, we specialize in faster development and strategy implementation. Furthermore, we have a strong foundation base and have set standards to use the most disruptive services of the world – AI, ML, and IoT in the most effective ways. 

How the coronavirus pandemic affects your business, and how are you coping? 

Nikhil Verma: Businesses today are facing competing and overwhelming challenges as they continue to steer the impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the companies are already taking outstanding actions to emerge out stronger from this crisis. These organizations are facing the pandemic with a spirit of reinvention that accelerates digital transformation. They are implementing agile operations and also establishing variable cost structures. Our organization is one such example. Companies of all kinds have shut down their offices so as to encourage social distancing and contain the spread of COVID-19. They have also restricted any kind of business travel, have established an exclusive work-from-home policy, and turn to an online or alternative business model. However, in recent weeks, the pandemic has peaked in some of the markets while returning in others. In the midst of this uncertain landscape, the steps for reinvention and reopening remain unchanged. The companies are now required to consider how this pandemic’s strength and progress or its recurrence in various geographies impact their recovery strategies. Companies must also traverse through the financial as well as operational challenges of the pandemic while increasingly addressing the needs of their employees, customers, and suppliers. As the circumstances continue to change, organizations must circumvent uncertainty by course correction. This needs a re-evaluation of scenarios, reassessing assumptions, and strengthening their ability to sense and respond accordingly. 

Did you have to make difficult choices, and what are the lessons learned?

Nikhil Verma: Shifting to work from home has definitely proved to be a difficult step for most of us who have been working with our teams for years in a healthy workplace environment. Working in close proximity to your coworkers helps you to concentrate more, communicate easily, and feel much safer on an emotional level. Accepting a completely different style of working has led to feelings of loneliness and isolation. However, it is also important to understand the importance of social distancing for everyone’s well-being as this is the only option to accept as a new normal. So, we must adhere to the government’s safety policies and learn new ways to cope with strong emotions by taking care of ourselves and people close to us. 

How do you deal with stress and anxiety? How do you project yourself and OnGraph in the future? 

Nikhil Verma: Whether someone is working from home or going to work, the COVID-19 pandemic has definitely changed everyone’s way of working. Anxiety and fear about the pandemic coupled with strong emotions, can prove to be quite overwhelming. Moreover, workplace related stress can cause burnout. Actions taken by the government for the well-being of public health, such as social distancing, can lead to feelings of loneliness and isolation, which in turn increases anxiety and stress in people. Though, these public health actions are crucial to contain the spread of this deadly disease. To make oneself, the close ones, and the community as a whole stronger, it is necessary to cope up with all these negative emotions in a healthy way. The way we cope up with the overwhelming emotions can hugely affect our well-being and the well-being of the people near us. So, it is very important for everyone to recognize what stress actually looks like, manage job-related stress, take necessary steps to build up resilience, and know whom to approach in case of help. Also, one should identify things that lead to stress and work together to seek effective solutions. Communication with your supervisors, coworkers, and employees about work stress is important while also maintaining good social distancing. Talk openly with the unions, employees, and employers about how this pandemic is affecting your work. Clearly communicating expectations is necessary for everyone. Also, know how to access mental health resources at your workplace. 

Who are your competitors? And how do you plan to stay in the game? 

Nikhil Verma: The COVID-19 pandemic has acted as a catalyst to change businesses worldwide. The companies today have become more digitally-driven in order to cope up with the change and increase resilience. The use of data analytics has become extensive to analyze how to serve new customers in the best way possible and to stay ahead of the game. In the world of business, we must use speed to our advantage. The easy availability of information and the rapid evolution of technology can really help businesses stay ahead of any competition and understand customer needs better. We are not worried about who our competitors are as we are focused on playing our own game. For this, keeping track of the marketing efforts of our competition definitely helps to improve and also refine our own. If we succeed in executing our game plan, we will definitely win no matter how much competition is out there. 

Your final thoughts? 

Nikhil Verma: So, this was all about the ways and efforts we at OnGraph are following in order to manage things effectively at work during the COVID-19 era. We really hope that this interview serves as an inspiration to people out there and acts as a comforting relief in the face of this threatening pandemic. 

Your website? 

https://www.ongraph.com