» FOR SOME WEEKS NOW optimism has been rising , a refreshing counter to the stolid acceptance that has come to typify the mood under the coronavirus pandemic . As we enter the New Year , vaccines have been rolling out for some weeks and we have the very real prospect of getting on top of Covid-19 . Some way to go but it ’ s looking positive .

The pandemic has changed our lives forever : and against the hardships endured during the pandemic it has also brought out the best in human nature . An admirable human condition is our ability to accept and adapt and , actually , to improve even under quite severe hardships .

Some behaviours adopted under the pandemic will remain for a while yet , such as masks for example , and even the way we greet each other : the handshake may never recover completely . Zoom will surely remain a committed part of our day-today business landscape ( and so it should , if only to save hours needlessly spent traveling to often pointless meetings ). And , says Rhonda Ridge , many installers will become more focused , organised , better managed and , actually , more profitable as a result of the pandemic .

Rhonda says this from her point of view as the author of the popular AdminBase installer management system . Which ,

whilst it has been organising window and door installers the length and breadth of Britain for more than 20 years now , has seen a surge in the number of companies adopting the system , almost from the start of the first lockdown and with no sign of that slowing down any time soon : “ Whenever the owners of window and door installation companies have time on their hands , during lulls in installation schedules such

as the Christmas and New Year break for example , we have an increase in enquiries ,” asserted Rhonda . “ And within a couple of weeks of the first UK lockdown , the same happened . And , at that time , rather than it being because of any benefits that AdminBase may bring under the pandemic , it was because they had the time to plan , to analyse their businesses without the distraction of installations .”

‘ We have a policy of continually improving AdminBase ’

All that changed however as the pandemic wore on and especially when the first lockdown ended : “ When installations began again it was under strict distancing and safety regimes , conditions that required organising in ways that many companies were not prepared for . And by then many owners and managers were learning that AdminBase happened to be very good at managing window and door installations under the restrictions .”

Two key developments that had been introduced to AdminBase in the months preceding the outbreak , gave users of the system a particular edge , explains Rhonda : “ We have a policy of continually improving AdminBase , as new technologies and needs emerge . Improvements in mobile computing technology had allowed us to launch the AdminBase apps in 2019 , which takes AdminBase on site through tablet computers used by salespeople , surveyors , fitters and remedial staff . The apps are