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“Great crises produce great men and great deeds of courage” This quote by Former U.S. President John F. Kennedy couldn’t be more relevant in today’s times. The pandemic continues to uncover new challenges and compel everyone to think unconventionally. The world was initially paused as a result; organizations and governments alike found themselves working round-the-clock to help and support each other. It was no different for us as our global operations were impacted, infrastructures required a major rehaul to scale out to support work from home, and many had a dual responsibility – working on deliverables while also being available for family and friends. Amidst all this chaos, the Anuta community has managed to go above and beyond to help others – ‘Anuta’s Awesome Avengers’.
Nearly every Anuta employee had a battle to be fought at home. Someone’s loved one had to undergo a major surgery while somebody else’s family member was struggling to find a hospital. One employee faced the terrible trifecta – his father was in ICU, his pregnant wife contracted Covid19, and their infant was in the NICU. Even though these situations were mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausting, they brought out sheer resilience, grit, determination, patience, and hope as everyone emerged much stronger.
At Anuta Networks, employees, investors, partners, and customers have stood up to these challenges and turned them into opportunities – to enhance each other’s lives and work. Be it introducing newer policies, developing fresher perspectives, going the extra mile to help, or simply being there for each other – it is the right time to say a big thank you for all the great work by our stakeholders.
We spoke to Nitin Kamate and Vamsi Kottisa from our engineering team to understand the stark realities, impactful ideas, and timely strategies implemented to fight the virus. Nitin and Vamsi are amongst the multiple Covid warriors at Anuta who have been working tirelessly to get people from inside and outside the organization connected while ensuring that systems have been up and running.
As a team, we have quickly taken stock of the situation, developed processes, and connected personally. We have lived by our core values, collaborated well with each other, and adapted to newer ways of functioning for the future – all the while giving back to our fellow employees, customers, partners, and society. Read on as we take you through the various initiatives at Anuta to highlight how employees were taken care of while not losing sight of business goals and customer deadlines.
Devising robust solutions
As Nitin rightly points out, we were quick to realize that traditional methods of communication would no longer cut it. People were understandably scared. The inability to meet in person was a significant contributor to an increased sense of insecurity and doubt. What followed was a series of newer ways of staying connected, spearheaded by our CEO Chandu Guntakala – regular stand-up meetings, Slack communication, WhatsApp groups for support, a dedicated helpline for emergencies, and more. Conference calls also helped us share our personal stories to benefit from each other’s collective wisdom, experience, and knowledge. As a result, team members were in constant communication to provide support for medicines, hospital beds, tests, and vaccinations. Brahma Reddy judiciously helped people with medicines, while Atmesh also did his bit to enable folks to manage the crisis confidently. Teams were thus able to concentrate on work in addition to being there for their loved ones. Chandu and the leadership team orchestrated a plan to develop best practices and policies to handle every situation quickly and smoothly.
Connecting on a human level
As Vamsi observes, a lack of understanding of the disease was a much bigger problem. Advice was flowing in from many sources, but it also brought with it confusion. In such situations, you might know what to do, but having a friend as a sounding board to hear you out makes all the difference. For example, when Nitin had a personal emergency to attend to, Vamsi was there for him and ensured that the work was taken care of by fellow team members. This is a story that many of us at Anuta can relate to since this year required us to ensure our family was safe while maintaining critical work duties.
Being true ambassadors of Anuta’s values
As a company, we believe that being strong is the path to success. Also, a bad day should never be wasted as it is essential to learn from our mistakes. Our employees improvised and enhanced every process and strategy. Innovation was evident, and so was the way we let our work speak for itself while not losing focus on the business. We were crazy inside but calm outside as our business continued to flourish, and we were also available for any personal emergencies. Even though we are a small, energetic team, we proved that small is the new big as we multitasked with a smile on our faces.
Collaborating with partners and community
Our employees, partners, and customers stepped up to the challenge. We saw leaders emerge from the crisis with unequivocal support from our team members, customers, and partners. So, when our partners were busy with a product launch and deadlines were looming, we decided to prioritize and release the product in phases. Kudos to our partners and Anuta’s leadership team for leading from the front and going the extra mile to support our team members. Even though onsite resources were initially planned, we swiftly moved to a virtual setup to ensure business continuity. As a result, we were more efficient, and our customers provided us with many opportunities to step up even further.
Nitin, Vamsi, and scores of our other employees have also helped support neighboring communities, associations, and societies through regular supplies of groceries, medicines, and other essentials. We are delighted to see how the community at large has seen tremendous growth and improvement, courtesy of our employees’ relentless effort.
Crafting new bullet-proof policies for the future
Thanks to Anuta’s flexible working hours and regular time off, employees were well prepared to care for their families’ vaccination and medication requirements. Timely help from Brahma helped fix laptop issues so we could continue with our tasks seamlessly. Our Samraksha Kit (providing ample reimbursements for medical expenses) came in handy too. After all, family does come first. Special thanks to Venki for hassle-free reimbursements. As we wrap up 2021 and look back at a challenging year, we are immensely proud of our employees who showed great initiative and led by example – learning, unlearning and relearning to make better decisions, handle a mammoth crisis with maturity and improve outcomes for the future.
A big shout out to our leaders, customers, investors, and partners who have been accommodative and understanding from across the globe. We are already witnessing the fruits of our labor. Last week, our product Anuta ATOM was recognized as the best network automation solution.
As for 2022, we are raring to go!
