LOCKDOWN 2: HOW THIS TO THRIVE THIS TIME

After a period when life (particularly at work) edged towards normality, in the UK we find ourselves back in Lockdown; and for at least the next 4 weeks, life may feel very similar to back in the Spring… although perhaps without the surprisingly good weather.

With this in mind, it may seem that for businesses a return to what worked well in the first lockdown will mean that navigating this second should will be easier, but is this really be the case?

The change from office-centric working to purely remote working in March was enforced, at largely at short-notice and highly unprecedented; with an initial hope that it would be a short-term scenario, people braced themselves for short-term struggles, in the hope that this would not last. 

Technology became central to everything that people did both in the personal and work lives with Zoom/Teams/Cisco critical to almost all activity, connecting people who in some cases were close enough to walk to each other for a meeting and with it, the workplace became Virtual.

There were some, who found enforced Work-From-Home beneficial; those who were having to home-school for example, were able to balance this with Zoom calls etc. making time for family walks to the park between online meetings and deadlines; we have heard from people who used the time as to connect better with their family, and perhaps now have closer relationships than ever before.

At the same time however, working from home, particularly if coupled with shielding meant for some, a level of isolation that took a heavy toll. Even those young and physically healthy may have found it difficult, plenty of workers fresh out of university and living in big cities live in house shares; often these properties have limited communal making room to work, and space for confidential work calls a premium, for many this would have meant that their bedrooms became their offices, their beds, their desks, and their commute literally seconds; they spent most of their time in the same space, be it awake and working or asleep.

You may or may not have had members of your business turn to you for support with issues relating to their mental-health, but even if you didn’t, the anecdotal evidence of the toll taken was widely covered in media; people have been frank about how difficult it was for them and in many cases, these people were happy to be front of the queue to get back to their offices when they reopened in the summer.

So now, with the memory of isolation still raw in some people’s minds, the country is back in lockdown and once again, businesses are being asked for their employees to work from home if they are able to do so. Businesses need to ensure that they are supporting staff in a way that will benefit both employees and employer and there are a few ‘key’ ways in which they can do so.

Virtual Bubbles

One successful policy that we heard of from lockdown 1 was the use of virtual ‘bubbles’ a little bit like the support bubbles suggested by the government at the time. The purpose of these was to create small groups within the business who were in regular contact with each other but were not necessarily direct colleagues. We heard that a particular benefit of this approach was that conversations were not necessarily focused purely on work as people were not in just one team, meaning that people had the ‘water-cooler’ conversations that had fallen by the wayside when Zoom made other calls more focused.

In lockdown 2, the government are allowing people to meet another person from outside their household in an outdoor location; this time it may be worthwhile buddying people who live close to each-other so that they can meet in a park for a walk, or on the high street or a takeaway coffee.

Either way, while this will give people an important outlet and some contact, be it either virtual or in-person, there is the possibility that with it, information could be shared and ideas born.

Objective Refresh

With around 8 weeks of the working year remaining, there is still time to achieve a lot; now would be a great time to revisit objectives with your team and perhaps change the targets for an achievable end to 2020; doing this may need some additional support to ensure results happen, but if you do so, the buzz going into 2021 (which otherwise could feel very uncertain) could be significant. 

The prospect of further lockdowns looms on the horizon, whether they are regional or national, we have to be realistic to these occurring and it is inevitable that such uncertainty can take its toll on people and their performance. Reminding them that particularly at times like this, wins are possible is useful, but more importantly, the rewards for achieving them will be all the sweeter.

Be Flexible to Different Circumstances

As mentioned before, the bigger the business, the more diverse people’s experiences; with the second national lockdown of the year, everyone will have different experiences and concerns. 

At such an emotive time of year, now is the time to offer an open door to your talent, and an open mind on how you can support them. In many UK businesses, there will be plenty of employees who have relocated, both within the UK and from overseas; these people may need additional support this year, particularly if international travel is banned or comes with restrictions upon return. 

Supporting employees will likely improve their ‘wellness’ and in doing so, they are likely to achieve more, offer greater loyalty to the business and help your business to thrive coming out of this time. 

Don’t Forget to Celebrate

For some a highlight of the year, while others see it as being as discomforting as getting teeth removed, the company Christmas Party season is nearly upon us; not only is this period critical for the hospitality industry, it is also proven to be important in maintaining company culture, and/or at its simplest, being a way of saying Thank You for employees endeavours over the last 12 months. 

We can be pretty clear that company or even team-wide parties are going to be very difficult to achieve for all but the smallest of businesses this year, but there may be ways of having a party anyway.

We have heard from a number of businesses planning this; some are looking to give staff an allowance to go out in small numbers for a lunch (lockdown allowing), but one of the more impressive suggestions I have seen is a business that has arranged individual ‘Christmas Picnics’ to be sent to all employees.

These are scheduled to go out shortly before a business-wide Video call, followed by team-call lunches, in the hope that even with people physically apart, there will still be a shared experience of a ‘Party’.

Take time to celebrate the wins of 2020, they may not have been as planned or of the magnitude expected, but they are perhaps even more worth commending.

In summary, if you have learned the lessons of lockdown 1, you will be well positioned this time around; and if changes are necessary, doing so now could put some vital life into your business before the close of the year.

We would love to hear how your business is tackling the second lockdown, drop us a line or comment here, and for a conversation about how intelliHub Consulting can support your business both during and beyond the COVID-19 crisis, drop us a line today.