It is most visible in the national cabinet, which has operated with a level of co-ordination and unity of purpose that would have been unthinkable just a few months ago. There has also been a Team Australia approach to employment and workplace policy. Government has been working with business and unions to help design and implement job-saving measures.

It is important not to overstate this. The government seems to be largely operating through a parallel track process - Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is taking the lead on dealings with business, while Industrial Relations Minister Christian Porter is taking point on managing the relationship with the ACTU and the broader union movement. But the achievements made in quickly adjusting awards and workplace agreements to accommodate the JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme and other initiatives have been impressive.

The Australian Public Service is going through its own Team Australia experience. Thousands of workers from across the public service have been rapidly redeployed to areas of high demand like Centrelink call centres. A blizzard of interdepartmental committees, taskforces and working groups have been set up to co-ordinate and share resources, information and expertise across agencies.

The extent and depth of the crisis - and the uncertainty around when it will end - means that some of these arrangements will endure for a considerable time yet. It seems likely that many will stay in place long enough to become habit-forming, creating and reinforcing bonds and working relationships that may survive even after the virus threat passes, or at least becomes part of the background noise.

Experiences from working through the virus emergency are likely to resonate in other ways as well. People are talking about whether the number of face-to-face meetings will be permanently lower, and working from home, at least for a few days a week, could become commonplace. The experience of redeployment may also leave a lasting impression on those involved.

Department of Social Services secretary Kathryn Campbell recently recounted on an Institute of Public Administration Australia podcast her discussions with a group of APS grads redeployed from Defence to help process JobSeeker claims.

"It was a great conversation because they were talking to me about the policy, why would we do this and not do that, just so that they could get an understanding. They've spent their career so far focusing on defence policy and all of a sudden they're doing social security or social welfare policy and [gaining] quite a different perspective," she said.

The virus is likely to leave its imprint on government in ways that are large and small.