Many office workers are enjoying not having to commute to work during the coronavirus crisis. But ... [+]
Governments in the U.K., the U.S. and elsewhere are starting to take tentative steps to restart their economies, but it is clear that it will be a long time before it is anything like business as usual for the vast majority of companies and their employees. Indeed, for many office workers the relaxation of lockdown rules will have little impact on their lives since the over-riding message is for them to continue to work from home as much as possible.
Kerry Fawcett is head of digital growth at BusinessComparison, which compares products and services for U.K. small and medium-sized businesses and which has recently produced a remote working report. She believes that the virus will change the way that organisations will work forever. Many businesses were shifting towards more flexible working practices already, but the crisis has speeded up the process and forced a “digital upskilling” so that employees can make the most of the technology that is available.
Meanwhile, another survey indicates that the vast majority of the U.K.’s workers would prefer being able to continue to work from home even as restrictions are lifted. A key factor was avoiding wasting time commuting. But the second most cited reason in the COVID-19 Remote Working Survey was the more relaxed working environment at home.
Nevertheless, it is clear that working from home — even for the comparatively short period of the crisis — is not without its issues. As Aaron Hurst writes in the MIT Sloan Management Review, this is particularly true for those who count on the routine and social atmosphere of an office or work site.
Helping workers to reduce stress and stay focused and productive is vital. Fortunately, he says, the means for doing this is at hand — in the form of employees themselves. He advocates “peer coaching”, which involves employees spending time in pairs, “speaking with each other about their challenges, stresses, fears and hopes. They listen and talk equally, and support and encourage each other’s vulnerability.”
This is not to say that managers are not involved at all. They need to set the right conditions in terms of time and tone. They can also use the approach themselves to develop crucial leadership skills, such as problem-solving, empathy and collaboration, says Hurst, co-founder of Imperative and author of the book The Purpose Economy.
Empathy also figures strongly in the advice on managing remote workers offered by others. Leadership team coach and author Mike Goldman alerts leaders to three warning signs that employees may be struggling working from home. They are subtle personality change, a change in the frequency of contact and a decrease in productivity. First in his recommendations for dealing with it is talking to them. “Confront your suspicions quickly, but with empathy,” says the author of Breakthrough Leadership Team. He also advocates increasing the frequency of communication, being clear on accountability and also acknowledging that you are struggling with the change in working routine as well.
According to Jeff Cates, chief executive of employee engagement specialist Achievers, “Now more than ever, business leaders must practice empathy and a deeper understanding of how they can best support their employees. Practicing empathy will result in a greater employee connection and engagement, and could help decrease some of the concerns, anxieties and disruptions employees are facing.”
He adds: “Empathy and listening go hand-in-hand, and today’s employees need a safe space or channel to voice their concerns and feedback. Active, continuous listening should be a part of everyday business instead of periodically checking in on employees by issuing stale annual surveys. This creates an open environment for employees to give regular feedback.” He points to his organization’s research showing that 90% of workers said they were more likely to stay at a company that took and acted on feedback. “As a leader, you’ll be remembered for not only how you listened to employees, but also how you interpreted that feedback and put it into action,” he adds.
For Alex Kvamme, chief executive and co-founder of Pathlight, a company that helps businesses measure employees’ performance, a key issue is keeping team morale as high as possible during the crisis. He sees three key ways that managers can help ensure this while not losing sight of productivity goals.
- Help employees stay focused on their goals. There are a variety of tools that can provide managers with real-time data on how employees are meeting goals and key performance metrics. Managers should openly and consistently communicate this data to employees, rewarding top performers when possible and giving those who fall behind the proper coaching and encouragement they need to succeed.
- Empower employees during one-on-one meetings. With Zoom and other forms of video conferencing, face-to-face meetings might happen more frequently, but they don’t match the effectiveness of in-person one-on-ones. When you're not in the office, it's much harder to get a pulse check on employee morale because you miss all of those in-person cues. You really need to use one-on-ones to check in and make sure people have everything they need to be successful. Rather than spending too much time on basic status updates, it helps to give employees a sense of importance by letting them know their role in today's rapidly evolving market. End meetings by showing confidence in team members and by encouraging them to ask any questions they may have when they arise.
- Encourage your employees to "own it." In this relatively unprecedented time, businesses now more than ever need employees to step up to help meet both business-wide and personal professional goals. Encourage team members to volunteer to lead a project when an opportunity presents itself, which will then benefit everyone involved as their leadership skills develop. This practice helps build trust between managers and employees, further boosting team morale.
Kvamme, too, is wary of the mental health issues involved in remote work. He suggests that employees can help themselves stay productive by establishing a routine, blocking out focus time — at Pathlight staff have two three-hour focus times blocked out on their calendars. “No slack, no email, no distractions.” Everyone shares what they plan to work on prior to focus time and there is built-in accountability in this process — and watching for signs of burnout, such as not sleeping well and being constantly tired. He recommends taking time off and ensuring at least one day a week is free of phones, computers and even television.
