In order to know more details about STL’s response to the coronavirus, Telecom Review spoke to Rahul Puri, regional sales head, MEA who highlighted the measures that the company is taking to protect employees and better serve customers.
How did STL respond to the coronavirus pandemic?
As any socially-conscious organization with an international footprint would do at this time, we formulated an action plan to act as quickly as we could. The very first step was to ensure the safety of our 3000+ employees across 16 countries. We were among the first in the country to announce work from home for employees. We ensured that customer business continuity was maintained. I am very happy to say that none of our customers suffered disruptions.
In what ways can STL facilitate remote working? Did you apply any enhancements on the solutions and services you offer to cope with the increased demand on internet?
Technology has certainly been a boon in these times. Video conferencing has essentially replaced physical meeting rooms everywhere. AT STL, we are using digital platforms even for important customer meetings. For instance, we garnered approval from a leading telco in India for our product through 3D modeling beamed through a virtual platform. That’s probably the first of its kind. This is one of the many ways in which we are adapting to the new normal.
In Europe, we rolled out a trial offer of dWiFi, a solution that automatically offloads from 3G/4G networks to WiFi, to help telcos in the region cope with the increased demands for connectivity. The infrastructure in our smart cities in various Indian cities has been used for spreading awareness about COVID19 to the citizens.
In the Middle East, we are helping a leading telco to digitally enhance the network to cater to the needs of its customers during current times by providing our digital engagement platform (dEP), a web-scale platform built using micro services architecture bringing unparalleled agility and scalability to CSPs.
In your opinion, what trends will become the new norm in the post-COVID-19 period?
We are looking at a scenario where mobility will be severely curtailed for the coming months. We will see an exodus into the virtual world. Whether it’s for events, product launches or team meetings, all of it has to adapt to this new reality. How quickly businesses adapt to this new reality will determine how successful they can be. Building resilience will be key. Business models will need to be reframed, social innovations and experiments such as work from home, virtual round tables and digital events may become the new norm.
What message would you like to relay to your customers in these tough times?
As leading providers of end-to-end network solutions and services, we would like to approach the crisis as an opportunity for global collaboration and cooperation. An opportunity to explore more creative ways of doing business. Telecom being an essential service during these times, we are committed more than ever to our customers and are delivering as promised and making all arrangements to ensure operations are not severely affected. Teams are working round the clock to help customers mitigate network challenges the customers may face.
