Hartford Business Journal

16 Hartford Business Journal • October 19, 2020 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Joe Cooper jcooper@hartfordbusiness.com P roductivity at Hartford's Covr Financial Tech- nologies soared this spring when it abrupt- ly shifted to remote work in the throes of the corona- virus outbreak in March. After all, the digital life insurance software developer is in an industry that's highly adaptable to telework- ing, according to CEO Mike Kalen, who says year-over-year sales are up 60% through the first seven months of the health crisis. But an initial spike in productiv- ity waned after Covr's 90 employees, including 15 in downtown Hartford's Boat Building, had been working from home into the summer months. Kalen found that employee atten- dance was declining at videoconfer- encing meetings, and training new hires remotely was less effective. Those factors, and others, encour- aged Covr in early October to fully reopen its office for staff except for those at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19, or who provide health care for family members. "The majority of employees understand this is the right thing for Covr at the right time," Kalen said of Covr's phased reopening plan. Covr is among the few firms that has commit- ted to bringing back most or all of its employees as the state continues to ease restric- tions on certain businesses, schools and social gatherings, area brokers and landlords say. Large employers in the Hartford area — including Prudential, Travel- ers, Cigna, Aetna, Raytheon Tech- nologies and others — are planning to mostly keep their offices closed through at least the end of this year to blunt the possibility of a wide- spread COVID-19 outbreak. (They have also beefed up their telework capabilities in recent years, making it easier to operate in a remote setting.) For smaller employers, the debate over returning employees to the office vs. keeping them at home is heating up as Connecticut's daily infection rate this month rose to levels — greater than 1% — that have not been seen since late June. While a majority of Americans were pushing to work remotely at the start of the pandemic, some smaller employers are increasingly pushing to at least bring back work- ers on a modified basis, as they wait for a potential COVID-19 vaccine that could debut early in 2021 — although some health experts say it won't be ready until the spring. Adapting quickly It was mid-March when Covr and many other downtown offices closed and quickly pivoted to remote working. Covr, which offers software that provides a centralized portal for finan- cial advisors to compare the benefits of certain life, long-term care and disability insurance plans, was fully remote by March 16, when all em- ployees in their Hartford, Idaho and Colorado offices were equipped with laptops, cameras and headsets as they continued to serve financial advisors and individuals in all 50 states. The company after July 4th began welcoming employees back to its 2,000-square-foot Hartford office on a voluntary basis. Five Hartford employees opted to return to the office, but two-thirds of the entire company stayed home. Returning employees were required to social distance, wear masks around the office, and use a mobile app to track daily health metrics. Since nearly all workers returned on Oct. 5, Kalen says Covr continues to track how schools, res- taurants and other businesses are managing in-person operations. On Oct. 8, the state began phase three of its reopening plan, which in- cluded allowing performance venues to open their doors and increased in- door dining capacity at restaurants. "This is the best decision for our business, recognizing that it's not a no-risk decision," Kalen says. "If the situation changes we can make modifi- cations as needed." Just a few blocks from Covr, electric- ity and natural gas consultant Titan Energy New England also reopened its office in the Stark Building — at 750 Main St. — on a voluntary basis in May, to coincide with the first phase of Connecticut's economic reopening. All of Titan Energy's 10 in-office employees have since returned to the 18-story tower, at 750 Main St., said Brendan Kearney, Titan Energy's manager of customer support and key accounts. Half of those workers have their own offices, while others work out of a "bullpen" that separates em- ployees with glass partitions. Its entire FOCUS: RETURNING TO WORK Office or Virtual? Remote work debate intensifies as CT continues economic reopening, infection rates spike Majority of CT employers still allowing remote work According to a recent Connecticut Busi- ness & Industry Association survey, 54% of the 962 executives that responded said their employees can work remotely. An average 40% of employees at those firms worked remotely at least through the second phase of the state's reopening in June. And 72% of employees at those companies continued to work remotely through July — the significant increase reflecting the return to employment of those who were earlier laid off or furloughed. Over one-third (37%) will continue to work remotely for the foreseeable future. Covr Financial Technologies CEO Mike Kalen has brought back to the office nearly all of his downtown Hartford employees, after many worked remotely early in the pandemic. Covr's Hartford employees, at the Boat Building, remain spaced out. HBJ PHOTO | JOE COOPER PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED

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