Business

Organisations are at a critical point in deciding whether to re-open their offices

Many businesses are struggling to navigate their way through the maze of Covid-19 guidance.
Many businesses are struggling to navigate their way through the maze of Covid-19 guidance. Many businesses are struggling to navigate their way through the maze of Covid-19 guidance.

IT appears that we have now passed the peak of the health crisis and the economy begins to re-awaken, and many organisations are at a critical point of deciding whether to re-open their offices and buildings.

Perspective and proportion are everything in this pandemic of fear that now consumes our attention and our daily lives. Many businesses are struggling to navigate their way through the maze of guidance to create a safe and hygienic working environment into which it’s safe to bring staff back.

Surveys tell differing, but broadly similar tales of many people wanting to return to work, but feeling insecure about actually returning to the workplace.

Many people have adapted surprisingly well to remote working and are now anxious about re-engaging with the workplace and the outside environment again.

Here are some of our thoughts for businesses and organisations as you grapple with the question of re-opening:

  • Fight the urge to rush back to business as usual – there is no such thing. There will be pressure to move forward quickly and re-coup on losses. Organisations and leaders in particular need to be mindful that things are going to be different (and difficult) and you need time to think about what needs to change.
  • The rise of permanent flexibility - flexible working as normal – people are making remote work for them and employees will want more choice in how their roles are designed going forward and a say in how their work gets done.
  • Covid-19 has accelerated practices around new and remote working and large parts of the workforce may never fully return to a standard five-day, office-based working schedule - either because the crisis has shown them a better alternative, or because bosses realise they can free up millions in rent by moving to smaller, more flexible, hub-like offices for around half their staff.
  • We'll see a new era of remote collaboration and creativity, with reduced travel bringing the opportunity to meet (virtually) with so many more people for more fruitful interactions.
  • Meeting in person will be important, but we'll find a better balance of remote and in-person contact. Through remote working, we'll save time, become more efficient, and reduce our environmental impact. But we'll cherish the face time we get with someone in the same room.
  • Work is going to be technologically enabled, but it will still be human led and the Covid-19 crisis has taught us that for all the talk of technological advancement and the capacity to implement automation and AI, Covid-19 has made us all reflect on the human aspect of organisations because it was above all a health crisis and the impact on us as human beings. So, going forward the challenge will how do organisations retain and develop that creativity and innovation displayed during lockdown and that ability to be resilient? How do organisations continue to grow and develop people in a post Covid-19 environment?
  • We need to think about colleague engagement and how you bring together an organisation that has been dispersed. How do you support those who have been retained in work and are now ‘exhausted’ and those who have been furloughed and anxious if their jobs still exist? How do you manage the anxieties, animosities, fears as well as motivating and bringing the whole back together?
  • The challenge of employee wellbeing – in recent surveys, employee wellbeing has now become the top priority of organisations in the face of ongoing health situation and possible future waves – how does an organisation prepare and support staff?

How do you then as a leader, lead through the next phase of this health crisis? This health crisis is undoubtedly a culture defining moment for our society, for us as individuals and for your organisation and if anything it has taught us that leadership must be based on the human touch – on compassion and care and with an empathy for your followers.

There are probably three traits that leaders need to display just now – empathy for their staff; trust - people have to believe that you know what you’re talking about when you’re saying something, and finally inspire and provide hope for a brighter future.

As a leader, it’s also important to reflect on what has been learned and what you want to keep. We would suggest that the learnings you take forward from this crisis regarding adaptability, the importance of human connectivity and remote working are the most important to build into your approach for re-opening and as you do so, be mindful of the words of Cristina Wilbur, chief people officer, Roche: “Be curious and mindful, learn and unlearn, keep energy high, maintain resilience and make impossible possible.”

Donal Laverty is a consultancy partner at Baker Tilly Mooney Moore in Belfast.