Where We Are Now – An Update from Rob Grady
September 1, 2020
Over the last six months the Mulcahy team has been working in a hybrid environment to serve you while keeping our team as safe as possible. We have been working diligently to modify our workflows in order to limit the disruptions that come from this model. I have never been comfortable with the term new normal; I believe we will get back to some semblance of what we were used to before COVID. I would like to offer an update on what Jack Foster, Editor-in-Chief of Agency Sales magazine, dubbed more aptly as the new abnormal, a term I consider to be less permanent.
About 1/3 of our team has been working in the office, consisting of almost all our inside staff. The balance of our team has been working remotely around the Twin Cities and in our out-of-state offices. We continue to improve our infrastructure and processes to effectively serve our customers in this arrangement, helped by our new CRM and ERP systems launched at the beginning of the year. Improvements to these systems are ongoing through employee and customer feedback.
We have been fortunate so far (knock on wood) to avoid any illnesses from the pandemic to our employees and their immediate families. While there is increased risk to everyone since social restrictions were relaxed in June, the opportunity to have a fun and productive summer has been most welcomed. We as a company are now expanding on that opportunity with in-person meetings and events while following the guidance and rules issued by the state health department. We have leveraged technology like everyone else, but seeing people face-to-face has been a welcomed change for the team!
We are working to expand that opportunity with our customers. While we were disappointed in having to cancel our annual Technical Expo this year, we are planning a mixed in-person/virtual event at the end of October that will feature short presentations, prizes, and a few surprises! This will even include a Watermark fundraising opportunity to support our community, though the dunk tank won’t work this year! Our webinar series will continue, but we will include some additional elements to break up the monotony of the flood of invitations for these types of events (we are getting them, too).
Lastly, we wish to thank you all for your continued business. We have faced a lot of challenges in 2020, and I have received feedback from other parts of the country that those challenges have resulted in some serious hardships to our industry. While all of us have been affected in some way by the pandemic, we are humbled and grateful to continue to be able to serve our customers and manufacturers while keeping our employees safe and healthy. We hope you enjoy a safe and healthy remainder of the summer before the heating season kicks in and the temps drop!
Thank you for your business!
Regards,
Rob Grady
President