5 Ways Leaders Can Help Employees Navigate Uncertainty

Employees are more dependent than ever on their leaders to provide them with clarity, direction and support. COVID-19 has made it necessary for organizations to quickly shift priorities, change day to day operations, and make difficult decisions about people and finances. Successful leadership today is requiring for leaders to make tough decisions while maintaining trusting relationships with their employees. This is the crux of effective leadership. Below are 5 practices that help leaders provide support to their employees in navigating these uncertain times.

1.    DEMONSTRATE HEALTHY EMPATHY

Empathy is “the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.” Research has shown over and over again that empathy is a critical element for leaders to exhibit emotional intelligence, high performance, effective teamwork, healthy relationships, and clear communication.The most effective leaders understand how to balance being empathic while still making the tough decisions that are necessary for organizational success. Healthy empathy from a leader enables them to listen to other’s perspectives so they can make better decisions for the greater good. Leaders that demonstrate healthy empathy when making their most important, complex and relational decisions create a culture of trust and productivity.

2.    COMMUNICATE DOWN

It is the leader’s responsibility to be visible and to regularly share updates, decisions, and progress during uncertain times. Consistency and repetition in communicating is critical because uncertainty is a threat that impedes employee focus, security, and motivation. Employees need to hear ongoing updates from their leaders even if the communication is sharing "I don’t know" or that "it isn’t decided yet".

A central message in a leader's communication is clearly articulating the “why” behind the changes that are happening. Employees need to understand the reasoning behind changes so they can accept and become a willing participant in moving the change forward. 

3.    UPWARD COMMUNICATION

Communication shouldn’t be a one-way street. Creating unfiltered and safe ways for employees to get their questions answered and to provide upward feedback let’s employees know that you are listening. Below are the two primary types of upward communication.

Answer Questions

Leaders need to provide simple, safe and visible avenues for employees to get their questions answered. This can be providing direction for how to connect with subject matter experts and/or providing online forums where employees can anonymously post their questions.

Process to Provide Upward Feedback

Leaders need to hear honest feedback about how things are going because they are more likely to receive only positive messages from their teams and employees about changes. Since providing upward feedback can be a threatening experience for employees, it is important to provide simple and safe ways for employees to share feedback to their leaders.

One effective approach for gathering upward feedback is through Pulse Surveys. These short surveys ask employees 1- 3 quick questions about their perspectives on a particular topic over a period of time (for example, bi-weekly or once a month). Pulse Surveys shouldn’t take more than five minutes to complete and the survey results should be visible to all participating employees.

4.    INDIVIDUAL CLARITY ABOUT REFOCUSED DIRECTION

Leaders need to ensure that everyone has someone (usually the immediate manager) to answer questions about how these changes are impacting their role. Refocusing an employee's goals provides them with the benefits of clarity, focus and increased performance.

Below are questions that employees need answered to refocus and contribute effectively.

• What has changed? and What is still the same?
• How do I need to work differently?
• What do I need to do differently?

5.    PROVIDE HOPE

One of my favorite examples of effective leadership during difficult times is Admiral Jim Stockdale. Admiral Stockdale was a United States military officer who was held captive for eight years during the Vietnam War. He was tortured more than 20 times by his captors, and never had much reason to believe he would survive the prison camp and someday get to see his wife again.

Stockdale survived by choosing to face his adversity with a unique mindset that was coined the "Stockdale Paradox". This paradox says that successful leadership in challenging times requires that leaders to confront the harshest facts about their current reality and, at the same time, retain faith that they will succeed in the end. This contradictory way of thinking holds a great lesson for how leaders can help their teams overcome difficult obstacles.

Employees need their leaders to be pragmatic, yet positive!

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