It’s time to start preparing for (work) life after lockdown.
For now, government guidance is to remain working from home where possible. While the roadmap out of lockdown in the UK doesn’t specifically address the reopening of office spaces, with all restrictions to be lifted by June at the earliest, it looks as though we could be set to return to our desks in the next couple of months.
It would be easy to think that allowing employees back to the office would be a return to ‘normal’ but, in reality, homeworking has become the norm for many during the past 12 months.
Even if you’re planning to have a hybrid approach to working – a combination of workplace and remote working – it's important to remember that this will be a period of change for employees.
Now is the time to start planning for the transition to the office and how to make the journey as smooth as possible. Let’s look at what should be included in your employee wellbeing strategy.
A flexible approach
Flexibility needs to be at the heart of your employee wellbeing strategy. A pandemic poem by Damien Barr says:
“I heard that we are all in the same boat. But it’s not that. We are in the same storm, but not in the same boat.”
Throughout the pandemic, each of your employees will have had different experiences, so a ‘one size fits all’ approach isn’t an appropriate way to look at wellbeing. Offering flexibility allows you to support your staff, regardless of their needs.
In practical terms, a flexible approach might include flexible hours and ways of working. Research by Brighter Horizons found that 57% of employees want hybrid working once the pandemic is over. This method makes balancing work-life easier and helps employees to create a schedule that works for them. Whether it’s childcare obligations, disdain for commuting or anything else, giving your people choice over how they work will improve their work day and, in turn, increase their engagement with your business.
Research suggests that employees want to choose where to work from
Along with the increased wellbeing of your team, embracing a flexible approach can improve employee satisfaction and loyalty, helping your business reap the benefits too. 65% of people who have flexible working options report being satisfied with their job, compared to 53% who work on-site only and 57% who work exclusively from home.
2. Pulse surveys
Thoughts and feelings change fast but never more so than during a pandemic. Pulse surveys help you keep track of what your employees are feeling, as they feel it.
The biggest benefit that pulse surveys offer over standard employee surveys is that they’re quick and easy to complete, meaning you get more responses and increased honesty. As they don’t impact on your team’s day, they don’t resent having to fill them out and you get quality data to work with.
As you transition from restrictive pandemic working to whichever approach works best for your business, you can monitor the impact on staff and identify any areas that require improvement. As you’re getting the information straight from the source, it’s easy to pinpoint the things that matter to your staff and make impactful changes that allow the post-lockdown return to work go as smoothly as possible.
You can read more on the importance of pulse surveys in the post-lockdown workplace here.
3. One-to-one meetings
Pulse surveys give a fantastic insight into how your staff feel as a whole, but what about on an individual level? That’s where one-to-one meetings come in. To quote project management tool Asana:
“The most important element in a successful 1-1 is creating a space where individuals feel comfortable to discuss the issues and concerns on their mind. These meetings are primarily for the employee and their participation is vital. ”
These more intimate meetings allow your staff to feel truly heard and listened to. A proactive approach results in increased productivity, improved staff retention, reduced absenteeism and more.
One-one-meetings build strong relationships
A one-to-one setting, whether online or in person, allows your employees to discuss topics they may not feel comfortable doing so in a more public arena. Giving them a safe space to talk about concerns encourages a stronger relationship between managers and team members.
4. A wellbeing resource centre
Employee wellbeing covers a wide range of topics and even the largest organisations might not have all the answers. Rather than trying to provide solutions in areas where your business doesn’t have expertise, you could create a collection of resources to direct your employees to, should they need guidance. Among other things, this could cover:
Financial wellbeing
Social wellbeing
Bereavement support
Physical wellbeing
Mental health support
Conflict handling
Providing resources on a range of topics empowers your employees to get the help they need. It displays your support in the day-to-day aspects of the role and supports them through their struggles.
Returning to work after lockdown will be a big change for most people, so include resources on adapting to change. Store everything in an easy-to-access online location to keep their use private, without forcing staff to discuss anything they don’t want to.
5. Wellbeing goals to achieve
Every good strategy is built on goals, and employee wellbeing is no different. Everything you include in your strategy should be focused on what you’re trying to achieve.
When you first start out, you might not know what to aim for. You could run a survey first to identify areas to improve or collate ideas from the HR team in general. Some popular wellbeing goals include:
To increase employee satisfaction levels
To decrease staff absenteeism
To decrease staff stress levels
Remember, whenever you’re setting goals, you need to make them measurable. Outline exactly how you plan to monitor the success of each goal so you’ll know whether you’ve achieved it or not.
If you need help monitoring employee wellbeing levels, book a consultation with We Love Surveys to see what we can do for you.