In a matter of just 5 weeks, life has changed dramatically. Our president and his team continue to put our health first as a priority during this disruptive time of COVID -19 and attempt to strike a balance between saving lives and saving the economy.
But what about your employees?
As the entire world stands together from home, how we work has changed, for many employees this is a time of great uncertainty just as it is for the employers themselves.
I know the main focus for many companies right now is simply survival, but it is also important to check on your workforce. The ones that keep the heart beating, the front line workers. The importance of ensuring your employees are engaged, productive and feel valued is moving center stage.
A good place to start when thinking of pivoting strategies is to consult with our staff. They are the ones communicating with your clients, so they have all the essential information that can make you or break you. It is important to keep channels of communication open between your staff and your management team. Your workers come across essential information that can open up new areas of business and also information that can mitigate revenue sink holes.
At such a stressful time, make sure that you continue to follow best practice in ensuring employees are well communicated with, that their expectations are managed and that those people and teams affected are handled sensitively and with appropriate support
Do not forget the mental health and well being of your workforce during this time.
- Help your employees de-stress: Have outlets like creative hours, where people can intentionally take time out to unwind and recoup. This can be done through drawing, painting, etc. Harvard Medical School found that casual doodling not only improves attention span but also relieves psychological stress so during this touch time, also keep your work family in mind.
- Be supportive and keep your employees motivated: Recognizing individual contributions is important to keeping your people motivated. The experience of remote working brings challenges around having the appropriate equipment, access to systems, and ensuring IT support. Make sure you are delivering the right support here,like providing advice on everything from creating their home work space to chair design and positioning.
- Communicate regularly: Provide an update to your employees to keep them in the loop and to help them feel safe, informed and grounded.
What is clear is that employers will reap in the future what they sow now during the crisis. Those who invest and make an effort to look after their employees during these challenging times will benefit from increased motivation, loyalty and advocacy.
This is a defining moment, one for the history books for organisations. The only way to support your employees while ensuring the long-term success of your organization is to balance deep empathy with economic realities. The three suggestions presented above can assist your team by guiding your workforce through one of the most profound global challenges we have faced in decades.
