Perhaps
you've already been planning for the effects of COVID-19, or perhaps the uncertainty
has made it difficult to know exactly how to respond. Either way, we are in a
rapidly changing working environment and adapting to this is vital.
So
as you take on and assimilate the guidance from government, here are my
thoughts on how to adapt to new ways of working as efficiently and effectively
as possible, and leading others through this unsettling and uncertain time.
Remote
working
How
familiar are you and people within your team and organisation with remote
working?
It’s
a different style of working…
It
can be lonely and isolating.
It
can offer sustain periods for focused activity.
It
can be easy to get distracted with a whole host of other activities and chores!
Procrastination
can become king…
Recognising
everyone works differently and works best in different environments, means
there is no right or wrong way to sustain remote working.
As a
leader and/or manager it’s worth considering the following
- How
can you provide virtual social interaction?
o The
informal coffee chats that keep people in-tune with each other and feeling
motivated and committed to work
o The
times where ideas are sparked because of a conversation with someone else,
perhaps a problem someone has been mulling over
o Sharing
the difficulties of remote working, and what different solutions people have
tried to keep focused and enthused about their work
- How
will you keep in touch with people?
o Formal
virtual meetings can replace face-to-face meetings. Along with the technical
means, how will you run/chair these types of meetings? Are there new ground
rules to be set to ensure that everyone has chance to contribute? My own
experience is that it takes some readjustment to keep everyone on the same page
and also listening and reaching common agreement, and ensure meetings are productive rather than frustrating.
o What
about your informal networks of knowing how others are doing, progress made,
issues and difficulties that suddenly arise? How will you keep in touch?
o What
changes to your usual methods of communicating will help people stay informed,
and enable them to feedback concerns or queries? Remote working may lend itself
to ramping up email correspondence. However, are there other ways that you
could talk to a wider group of people?
- What
are your expectations?
o Perhaps
business continuity planning has focused on key priorities and other activities
have been pushed to one side for the moment. What does this mean for your team
and organisation?
o Are you expecting people to achieve what you
anticipated they would before circumstances changed? What barriers might arise
from new ways of working?
o How
will you become aware of unexpected challenges that people may be facing?
o With
a rapidly changing environment, how will you monitor the changes and assimilate
this into your key priority areas?
- Looking
after your own and others wellbeing
o These
are challenging times. Dealing with fast moving changes can take huge amounts
of time, effort and focus. And then suddenly the uncertainty can erupt into
anxiety, sleepless nights, uncomfortable unsettling gnawing doubt. And this can
be amplified if you’re isolated through remote working.
o So
what activities help you look after your health and wellbeing? How can you
incorporate them into your day so that you’re able to balance workload and
wellbeing? Would keeping to normal work times help? Or would adapting your
routine help you become more effective?
o What
does this mean for the people you lead and/or manage? How can you support them
and their wellbeing? Perhaps it’s worth a conversation with each person you
work with directly, a check-in to make sure they are okay, as you might do if
you were back in the office.
Don’t
forget to keep talking. An information vacuum heightens how people are feeling,
particularly if they are anxious. And you may be feeling anxious too.
As
someone leading and managing others, acknowledging how you and others are
feeling can help retain the trust people have in you. Importantly, focus on
what actions, steps, solutions you’re putting in place. Demonstrate empathy for
others, and give them a direction to work towards.
And
no one person has all the answers, no one way will be the ‘right’ way. The more
diverse the input into decisions, the more rounded a view you’ll have as you
look to the future and move forward, and this will help you adapt to the continuously
changing circumstances.
