Ripping off the Band-Aid
Throughout the pandemic, temporary solutions to manage remote work and employees have worked much longer than they were expected to. What options are left for business leaders between reorganizing the workforce, accelerating technology advances, and syncing-up communication for post-pandemic work? Well, it could open the door to a more diverse and inclusive workforce.
Ease back into the office.
People may find it easy to put the recent events of the last year behind them as they return to work and rekindle the culture and atmosphere their offices enjoyed before the pandemic. And, to be fair, that’s a great starting point when returning to the office. Focus on the positives, such as curbing loneliness and rekindling workplace relationships.
At the same, the pandemic has also changed our perceptions, wants, needs, and expectations.
“Most of my patients who can work from home value the perks of flexibility and zero commute time,” says Rashmi Parmar, MD, adult and child psychiatrist with Community Psychiatry. “Some of them have reported more productivity while working by themselves at home, and perceive social interactions at work as either distressing or distracting.”
What’s more, some people more have safety concerns. “Most of my patients are concerned if it will be safe to return to work, considering that the majority of Americans have not yet been vaccinated,” says Dawn Kamilah Brown, MD, a child, adolescent, adult, and sports psychiatrist, and owner and chief executive officer of ADHD Wellness Center and Mental Healthletics. “Some have expressed concerns about being exposed to the coronavirus and, at worst, getting very sick and dying.”
“Many have questions if there will be new safe-at-work training, requirements, and guidelines for all employees to follow,” Brown says.
If employers try to force employees to spend 40 hours per week in the office again, they will face serious consequences. After all, there has been an increasing number of employees who have indicated they will search for new jobs.
Instead, ease the transition back into the office with your existing team. Again, focusing on the positives is a start. But, you should also listen to your employee’s concerns. And, if they aren’t comfortable, brainstorm solutions like allowing them to come into the office only a couple of days per week, allowing them to continue working remotely, or maintaining social distancing in the workplace.
Consider the hybrid model.
Even if you make the transition back to work as smooth as possible, fewer than 20% of remote employees want to revert to the old way of commuting to work every day before the pandemic. Employees demand the flexibility to decide when it is convenient to go to work.
Additionally, research shows that employees are more productive when they have the option to work remotely. However, remote work can mean much more to some employees than flexibility and productivity. Rather, it is about whether or not one can work at all. People who are able to and willing to work remotely are excluded from jobs they are qualified for if they must commute to an office. This is especially true with people who have primary care responsibilities, physical or mental health disabilities, or are facing economic limitations.
But, at the same time, it’s human nature to need in-person interaction. As such, a hybrid model could be the solution. In fact, more than 60% of workers want a hybrid model with some time in the office and some time working from home. How you approach this will vary depending on your company, but, some suggestions would be;
Allowing employees to continue working remotely, but physically come into the office every couple of days, weeks, or months.
Equipping them with the right technology so that everyone can meet virtually for meetings or conducting staff surveys.
Creating a community by bringing your employees together for in-person meetings or social events.
Promote dialogue and organizational values.
By ensuring two-way communication between managers and employees, engagement will be enhanced, rather than negatively affected,” says Mary Baker for Gartner. Research from Gartner shows that employees’ understanding of organizations’ decisions and their implications during change is far more important than whether they like the change.
Employees gain invaluable information and perspective from two-way communication with company managers and peers, making it easier for them to express and process their negative emotions,” adds Baker. In order to foster two-way communication, managers should focus on both positive and negative aspects of challenges the company must overcome, such as returning to the office following COVID-19.
And, while engaging with your employees, make sure that you reinforce your organization’s values.
Even before this crisis, employers were increasingly treating employees as key stakeholders. During this crisis, you can show employees that you plan to look out for them for the long haul,” says Brian Kropp, Distinguished Vice President, Research, Gartner.
Over the past few years, many companies have tried to define a set of values that describe how much they care about their employees and the importance of creating great experiences for them. Ensure that employees are aware of these values.
You can also encourage your employees to report unethical behavior by modeling the right behaviors. An employee’s misconduct can increase by as much as 33% in volatile economic times. Make sure your employees know how they can report misconduct and highlight punitive measures in case they don’t comply. As a result, work well-being will improve, and psychological safety will be improved.
Emphasize employee wellness.
During the last year, employers have increased their focus on wellness, particularly mental health. We are slowly transitioning to a post-pandemic world, and keeping tabs on employee wellness will be essential. Despite the fact that the job outlook for many employees is uncertain, and Over the course of the pandemic, temporary solutions to manage remote work and employees have worked much longer than they were expected to. What options are left for business leaders between reorganizing the workforce, accelerating technology advances, and syncing-up communication for post-pandemic work? Well, it could open the door to a more diverse and inclusive workforce.
Ease back into the office.
People may find it easy to put the recent events of the last year behind them as they return to work and rekindle the culture and atmosphere their offices enjoyed prior to the pandemic. And, to be fair, that’s a great starting point when returning to the office. Focus on the positives, such as curbing loneliness and rekindling workplace relationships.
At the same, the pandemic has also changed our perceptions, wants, needs, and expectations.
“Most of my patients who are able to work from home value the perks of flexibility and zero commute time,” says Rashmi Parmar, MD, adult and child psychiatrist with Community Psychiatry. “Some of them have reported more productivity while working by themselves at home, and perceive social interactions at work as either distressing or distracting.”
What’s more, some people more have safety concerns. “Most of my patients are concerned if it will be safe to return to work, considering that the majority of Americans have not yet been vaccinated,” says Dawn Kamilah Brown, MD, a child, adolescent, adult, and sports psychiatrist, and owner and chief executive officer of ADHD Wellness Center and Mental Healthletics. “Some have expressed concerns about being exposed to the coronavirus and, at worst, getting very sick and dying.”
“Many have questions if there will be new safe-at-work training, requirements, and guidelines for all employees to follow,” Brown says.
If employers try to force employees to spend 40 hours per week in the office again, they will face serious consequences. After all, there has been an increasing number of employees who have indicated they will search for new jobs.
Instead, ease the transition back into the office with your existing team. Again, focusing on the positives is a start. But, you should also listen to your employee’s concerns. And, if they aren’t comfortable, brainstorm solutions like allowing them to come into the office only a couple of days per week, allowing them to continue working remotely, or maintaining social distancing in the workplace.
Consider the hybrid model.
Even if you make the transition back to work as smooth as possible, fewer than 20% of remote employees want to revert to the old way of commuting to work every day before the pandemic. Employees demand the flexibility to decide when it is convenient to go to work.
Additionally, research shows that employees are more productive when they have the option to work remotely. However, remote work can mean much more to some employees than flexibility and productivity. Rather, it is about whether or not one can work at all. People who are able to and willing to work remotely are excluded from jobs they are qualified for if they must commute to an office. This is especially true with people who have primary care responsibilities, physical or mental health disabilities, or are facing economic limitations.
But, at the same time, it’s human nature to need in-person interaction. As such, a hybrid model could be the solution. In fact, more than 60% of workers want a hybrid model with some time in the office and some time working from home. How you approach this will vary depending on your company, but, some suggestions would be;
Allowing employees to continue working remotely, but physically come into the office every couple of days, weeks, or months.
Equipping them with the right technology so that everyone can meet virtually for meetings or conducting staff surveys.
Creating a community by bringing your employees together for in-person meetings or social events.
Promote dialogue and organizational values.
By ensuring two-way communication between managers and employees, engagement will be enhanced, rather than negatively affected,” says Mary Baker for Gartner. Research from Gartner shows that employees’ understanding of organizations’ decisions and their implications during change is far more important than whether they like the change.
Employees gain invaluable information and perspective from two-way communication with company managers and peers, making it easier for them to express and process their negative emotions,” adds Baker. In order to foster two-way communication, managers should focus on both positive and negative aspects of challenges the company must overcome, such as returning to the office following COVID-19.
And, while engaging with your employees, make sure that you reinforce your organization’s values.
Even before this crisis, employers were increasingly treating employees as key stakeholders. During this crisis, you can show employees that you plan to look out for them for the long haul,” says Brian Kropp, Distinguished Vice President, Research, Gartner.
Over the past few years, many companies have tried to define a set of values that describe how much they care about their employees and the importance of creating great experiences for them. Ensure that employees are aware of these values.
You can also encourage your employees to report unethical behavior by modeling the right behaviors. An employee’s misconduct can increase by as much as 33% in volatile economic times. Make sure your employees know how they can report misconduct and highlight punitive measures in case they don’t comply. As a result, work well-being will improve, and psychological safety will be improved.
Emphasize employee wellness.
During the last year, employers have increased their focus on wellness, particularly mental health. We are slowly transitioning to a post-pandemic world, and keeping tabs on employee wellness will be essential. Even though the job outlook for many employees is uncertain, and there are high levels of general anxiety due to world events, many employees continue to feel a great deal of uncertainty.
As such, you can use this as an opportunity to prioritize the health and wellbeing of your employees. Offering flexible schedules, access to apps like Calm, or just having an honest conversation regarding mental health are a couple of ideas. You may also want to consider providing direct access to mental health professionals, offering gym memberships, or bolstering employee’s health care coverage.
And, don’t forget about their financial wellbeing. According to a new report published by Salary Finance, employee financial wellbeing is more than an HR issue. It’s also a DEI issue.
Financial stress is reported by at least 50 percent of women, Latinx people, LGBTQ people, and people with disabilities.
Black and Latino people are less likely to have financial security than white or Asian people in terms of saving for three months.
About half of Black and Latino employees (55 percent) are unhappy with their savings level (compared to 37 percent of the general population).
For income providers, you can assist with your team’s financial wellbeing by investing in savings management, debt guidance, and benefits like a pension.
Adopt AI and automation.
“Two ways businesses historically have controlled cost and mitigated uncertainty during recessions are by adopting automation and redesigning work processes, which reduce the share of jobs involving mainly routine tasks,” write Susan Lund, Anu Madgavkar, James Manyika, Sven Smit, Kweilin Ellingrud, and Olivia Robinson for McKinsey. “In our global survey of 800 senior executives in July 2020, two-thirds said they were stepping up investment in automation and AI either somewhat or significantly. Production figures for robotics in China exceeded prepandemic levels by June 2020.”
“Many companies deployed automation and AI in warehouses, grocery stores, call centers, and manufacturing plants to reduce workplace density and cope with surges in demand,” add the authors. “The common feature of these automation use cases is their correlation with high scores on physical proximity, and our research finds the work arenas with high levels of human interaction are likely to see the greatest acceleration in adoption of automation and AI.”
But, there’s an additional advantage that AI is presenting to employers. It can be used to hire, retain, and upskill their workforce. In turn, you can leverage AI to make unbiased reports by generating reports or setting goals. For example, if you want to build a more diverse and inclusive team, AI will prevent unconscious bias in upskilling decisions by not only picking the most outgoing employees.
There are high levels of general anxiety due to world events, many employees continue to feel a great deal of uncertainty.
As such, you can use this as an opportunity to prioritize the health and wellbeing of your employees. Offering flexible schedules, access to apps like Calm, or just having an honest conversation regarding mental health are a couple of ideas. You may also want to consider providing direct access to mental health professionals, offering gym memberships, or bolstering employee’s health care coverage.
And, don’t forget about their financial wellbeing. According to a new report published by Salary Finance, employee financial wellbeing is more than an HR issue. It’s also a DEI issue.
Financial stress is reported by at least 50 percent of women, Latinx people, LGBTQ people, and people with disabilities.
Black and Latino people are less likely to have financial security than white or Asian people in terms of saving for three months.
About half of Black and Latino employees (55 percent) are unhappy with their savings level (compared to 37 percent of the general population).
For income providers, you can assist with your team’s financial wellbeing by investing in savings management, debt guidance, and benefits like a pension.
Adopt AI and automation.
“Two ways businesses historically have controlled cost and mitigated uncertainty during recessions are by adopting automation and redesigning work processes, which reduce the share of jobs involving mainly routine tasks,” write Susan Lund, Anu Madgavkar, James Manyika, Sven Smit, Kweilin Ellingrud, and Olivia Robinson for McKinsey. “In our global survey of 800 senior executives in July 2020, two-thirds said they were stepping up investment in automation and AI either somewhat or significantly. Production figures for robotics in China exceeded prepandemic levels by June 2020.”
“Many companies deployed automation and AI in warehouses, grocery stores, call centers, and manufacturing plants to reduce workplace density and cope with surges in demand,” add the authors. “The common feature of these automation use cases is their correlation with high scores on physical proximity, and our research finds the work arenas with high levels of human interaction are likely to see the greatest acceleration in adoption of automation and AI.”
But, there’s an additional advantage that AI is presenting to employers. It can be used to hire, retain, and upskill their workforce. In turn, you can leverage AI to make unbiased reports by generating reports or setting goals. For example, if you want to build a more diverse and inclusive team, AI will prevent unconscious bias in upskilling decisions by not only picking the most outgoing employees.
