V Bhatia
COVID-19 has brought businesses globally to a standstill with social-distancing resulting in the postponement of all industry and company-specific events. Indian companies are following the lead of global brands like Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Amazon and encouraging employees to work from home. While this permits a modicum of business continuity, it has affected their team’s learning and development (L&D) activities.
In domains like fintech, such activities are important as employees need to be trained on the latest technologies and regulatory norms. Often, these processes are interconnected with those of various financial institutions that fintechs partner with.
Atul Todi, CEO and co-founder, 10Times said that realising the need for ongoing L&D activities, fintech companies are leveraging the online ecosystem to virtually deliver the necessary upskilling and re-skilling training to their employees. Lots of solutions built for industries like online-education are now being applied for the online webinar space. A case in point is Finastra’s ‘Behind the Hype: Applications of AI in Fintech’ to be held on April 16, 2020 that explores different applications of AI and machine learning in the domain.
“By leveraging live-streaming solutions, mixed with engagement and gamification features, organizations are focusing on retaining their target audience and keeping them engaged. Also, unlike physical events, where crowd management is often hard, virtual events have opened up a whole new set of data analytics-driven optimization methodologies. Lastly, while online events take away the charm of physical proximity, they are cost-effective since companies need not spend on physical infrastructure, which typically comprises a major chunk of the cost,” Todi added.
POPULARITY OF VIRTUAL EVENTS
The merits of virtual events far outweigh its limitations, from an organizer’s and attendee’s perspective. For instance, the online ecosystem eliminates geographical restrictions, drives cost-efficiency, and provides the facility of accessing recorded material later.
What is making these events popular is that the platform also provides all the tools for hosting optimized meet-ups and workshops. This has come as a boon for companies amid the current lockdown.
However, can virtual events build humanly-relationships, especially in domains like fintech where automation is prevalent? According to Todi, any event brings together people bound by a common objective. “For industries like fintech, which deal with a lot of automation and processes, virtual events provide the perfect platforms that new-age players can access to make valuable connections and, in the process, feel human,” he noted.
Fintech companies can leverage virtual events for business networking with customers; especially in this age of impersonal chatbots, robocalls and online communications. While these automated tools get work done, they might not necessarily help in building relationships or closing a new business deal.
Fintech business relies on constant innovation, L&D, networking and relationship building. When offline is not an option, online events permits people to interact with others in-person, albeit virtually. At least, the show goes on.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
