COVID-19: Nine Months In – Time For A Check-in Part One

Many organizations have had their crisis management teams activated since early in the year – January 2020 for many. Although a cadence has developed and most crisis teams are meeting only weekly, there is still a lot to do and manage. The United States pandemic response remains a mess, with states fending for themselves and case counts rising in some parts of the country while it falls in others. Testing and PPE remain in short supply in many parts of the country and parents are stressed about their children’s’ schooling and how to manage work at home.

Countries around the world who had successfully beaten down the virus are seeing hotspots appear, cases pick up and lockdowns be reinstituted. These are challenging times.

The pressures that everyone is feeling are real and for many are very challenging. This may be the first time that some people have felt this type of intense pressure 24 x 7, and with no relief in sight. How a company manages its crisis management process now is more critical than ever. Team members are potentially burned out at work and home and are experiencing intense changes to their entire life. And yet another crisis is already upon us: historic California wildfires and one of the earliest hurricane seasons on record are a great reminder.

Recognize What is Going On

The first critical thing to acknowledge – and I mean really acknowledge – is that “this” is our life. What do I mean by that? “This” pandemic is our life for the long and foreseeable future. Even if all of the ducks line up in a perfect row: a vaccine is approved early next year, there are no supply chain issues with vials, syringes and staff to administer the vaccine and everyone agrees to take it, we will not likely see any return to our old life until the end of 2021. I think there are many ways that scenario could fail to happen and be postponed, therefore I advise all of my clients and friends that you need to imagine that the way we have to live now – masks, physical distancing, virtual work and maybe virtual school – could be our life for the next two or three years. If we are lucky, a return to normal life could happen  sooner.

In other words…this is your life; this is our life. And if that is the case, we need to find coping skills to make that work for the long term, not just another few more months.

Your Employees and Burnout

There has never been a more important time for employers to support their employees in every possible way. After all, this is a long road we are on. Working with your human resource professionals to find new and creative ways to support your employees is essential. Here is list of 15 ways to help:

1. Empathic leadership by company senior leadership is key. Deep listening, empathy for the suffering of others and supportive language and behavior is essential.
2. Ongoing, consistent and clear communication about health risks, preventative measures and available resources is the best way for company leaders to keep employees safe and foster well-being during the pandemic. This includes modeling appropriate behaviors.
3. Flexible work or flex hours schedules. If the job doesn’t have to be done during the 9 – 5 timeframe, allow employees to work when it is convenient for them, including evenings and weekends. Focus on their deliverables, not the number of hours or time of day. This can be critical for those doing home schooling.
4. Create channels for sharing of ideas and coping tips. This type of “crowdsourcing” ideas can be set up on your internal collaborative tools (like Slack or Teams). This can also be a good place for reminders about existing resources available through the company's benefit plans, such as mental health, childcare, and other family care offerings.
5. Consider some low-cost perks such as a DashPass, a paid subscription to the DoorDash food-delivery service that waives delivery fees on takeout orders or gift certificates for home-delivered snacks.
6. Got kids? Consider hosted activities for your staff's kids who are at home to keep them entertained and busy, such as a magic show, webinars, and virtual lunches with characters such as Elsa from the Disney animated movie Frozen.
7. Offer web-based sessions on the most effective ways to work online. During these sessions, leaders can establish ground rules for the use of collaborative technology and build awareness of individual and cultural differences in communication, including preferences for email, phone calls and conference calls.
8. All employees making $100,000 or less in annual base compensation will receive a $1,200 tax-free financial assistance payment from the company to help cover unexpected costs related to working from home.
9. Continue to educate managers on how to support and manage their remote teams.
10. Foster positive coping skills in this new COVID world. In the old times, companies can offer a variety of ways to support employee mental and physical health, from social activities to gym memberships. But with workers at home and the many things that are closed, companies need to redirect their efforts to foster employee well-being. Fortunately, there are apps and websites that can help. Employers can help by directing their employees to the ones they’ve vetted – and companies can pay the subscription fees.
11. Encourage healthy coping options such as mindfulness – focusing your attention to be fully present in the moment – which can be especially beneficial to employees’ mental health, even among highly motivated workers. There are many online resources to support this effort.
12. Say out loud to all employees that “we don’t expect you to be available at all times or working all of the time.” Many feel pressure to respond to emails or texts at any hour of the day or night. Give them permission to turn it off.
13. Promote virtual counseling services (individual and group) to employees and their families through your Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
14. Consider training managers and your CMT in the Stress First Aid program developed by the Veteran’s Administration (VA)[1]
15. Adapt the one day at a time approach to life. It takes time to work through something this big and some days will be much better than others. Try to take each day as a fresh challenge and don't be too distracted by an occasional false start or seeming setback.

[1] For Leaders: Supporting Your Staff During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic https://www.ptsd.va.gov/covid/COVID_leaders_support_staff.asp#six

#maskup #maskupamerica #emergencyresponders #emergencymanagement #riskmanagement #crisismanagement #crisiscommunications #socialmedia #businesscontinuity #publichealth #hospitals #infectiousdiseases #healthcare  #reputationbrand #emergencyservices  #crisis #brma