AT&T HR vice president in Mexico speaks on new challenges, opportunities during COVID-19 pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses have adapted to challenging situations, but Adrian Quintanilla, AT&T's vice president of human resources in Mexico, said with each challenge, comes an opportunity.

"A positive experience that I have lived at a professional level is to discover new ways for our collaborators to continue with their work –which is very important for the community– from different spaces," Quintanilla said in an AT&T press release. "For example, before COVID-19, the idea that our call center executives could assist our clients from a place other than the call center itself would have been, in my opinion, almost impossible. Thanks to creativity, technology and openness to new ideas, most of our executives are now working from home, with minimal impact on our service quality metrics. This, to me, is formidable."

Working from home could lead to more changes in the future, Quintanilla said.

"I think that having to adjust to a working format mainly from home has led us to consider whether it is possible that some of our operations are carried out more efficiently and safely through remote work," he said in the press release. "All companies, not just AT&T, will need to reevaluate what functions can be accomplished more regularly from home and how this can be balanced with business and customer needs."

But with the the new opportunities comes challenges. A main challenge AT&T is experiencing is motivating employees who are working from home and being able to stay connected with them. 

The company is also focusing on other changes that should become permanent in a post-pandemic society. 

"Something we should be aware of is that our employees have families and friends who could be impacted," Quintanilla said in the press release. "Therefore, for me it is vitally important that we continue to do the right thing and we are doing it for our colleagues in the company, but also for the people in the communities with whom we share this country."

He said the second would to to keep finding solutions for working creatively.

"The third and last is hope," he said in the press release. "When we lose hope we are enveloped in a bleak picture. So we must continue to inspire hope and direct our efforts towards a better tomorrow."