By Monica Torres on Mar 31, 2020 12:00:00 PM
As a fairly new permanent resident, it’s easy for me to notice differences in how governments and companies deal with crisis/emergency situations. Even though I love my native country, situation’s like the COVID-19 pandemic remind me how lucky I am to have been able to move my life to Canada and go through this pandemic here. Let me explain why.
First, I was quite surprised and grateful that companies like Prodigy acted very quickly and instructed us (their employees and contractors) to work from home as soon as COVID-19 was classified a pandemic and authorities encouraged everyone to do so for our own safety and that of others. While I still had friends and family going to their respective workspaces, I had been safely working from home for over a week.
Second, the way the government has stepped up shows the character and spirit of Canadians. They don’t shy away from challenges, but face them head on together as a community. The number of initiatives the government continues to establish to help Canadians and businesses is quite astonishing. For some Canadians, this is easy to take for granted, but I certainly don’t. Sadly, this isn’t always the case in developing countries where they either don’t have the resources or don’t know how to better manage them to be able to support their people in times of need. All the more reason for us to be grateful and remain hopeful. We have a government who stands by us, a support system and a community around us that will help us get through difficult times.
Third, I highly appreciate the straightforward and proactive way Prodigy’s leadership team has dealt with the COVID-19 outbreak. There is little I admire more than leaders who face challenges head on, roll up their sleeves and get to work to support their people. It’s in moments like this when true leadership shines through. When many of us may be suffering from extreme stress and anxiety as we see multiple industries lay-off most of their workforce, we need true leaders to be open and honest with us and communicate what is going on.
I have seen this in Prodigy’s CEO, Jeff Watts, and the entire leadership team who together have stepped up and done their best to keep their employees and contractors not only working, but up to date on the company's strategies to ensure we come out strong on the other side. This is not an easy position to be in, and some decisions are impossibly hard. In Jeff Watts’ own words “I have over 100 people and their families to take care of.” No pressure! I see the leadership team taking care of us in the strategies and policies that have been put in place, and the online update meetings that have been and will continue to be held as the situation progresses.
All in all, I am grateful to be part of Prodigy, to be able to continue to work and support our communities when friends, family, and neighbours haven’t been that lucky. To be in a company that has helped me grow personally and professionally through multiple ups and downs; one that does its best to take care of us, and get us through safely in the most difficult times. And last but not least, I’m grateful to live in a country in which I can feel safe, financially and physically at home, at work, and all around.
Monica Torres
Digital Marketing Coordinator at Prodigy Labs
