by Sam at Management 3.0
It’s something we never thought we’d be saying a year ago, ‘post-pandemic’, but as the fog starts to clear, at least in some parts of the world, people have started thinking about what the world will look like going forward, especially for businesses and leaders.
It’s such a hot topic that in just a few weeks, we’re dedicating several days to discussing: Leadership in a Post-Covid World: Practical examples and experiences to embrace global change for a happier workplace, with our Forward webinars. Between June 30 and July 2 we have three fantastic online sessions focused on learning from inspiring content and specific case studies to come away with tools and practices that you can implement in your everyday life. So, to get you in the mood, we wanted to delve into a few lessons-learned over the last year from speaking to thought leaders, experts and managers, in our blog and podcast about how Covid has and likely will, change the world of work and what leaders will carry with them.
Lesson #1: A focus on employee-care: Something that arose time and again was how Covid shone a light on the lack of focus on employee care and the need to make it a fundamental part of work culture going forward. Post-Covid, it appears that HR departments will see this less as an after thought and more of a must-have, while employees will also demand that self-care be included in contracts.
Lesson #2: People can be productive working remotely: The face of remote work has changed and likely for good. Companies that were averse to it pre-Covid, have embraced it and above all, organizations have realized that people can be and actually are productive working out of the office. While some companies will go back to in-person working, the likely trend is that organizations will adopt a mix of working from home and in office policies. But remote work is here to stay.
Lesson #3: Meetings can be more efficient: A lot of people remarked on how virtual meetings made them short, more to the point and more productive. While nothing can replace face-to-face interactions, companies will likely adopt some habits from virtual meetings. Less lingering at the beginning and the end, shorter presentations and targeted topics.
Lesson #4: The Importance of communication: This isn’t novel, it was important pre-Covid, but it’s even more important post. Leaders noticed how one small misunderstanding via text, email or even on the phone or video, could derail processes and create negative vibes. We take communication for granted sometimes when we’re face-to-face, but Covid’s forced us to be extra conscious of what we’re saying and how we say it and in what medium we’re using. One way to avoid a lot of miscommunication is to rephrase statements that are important to ensure that everyone’s on the same page.
Lesson #5: It’s OK to appear ‘human’: If dogs and babies jumping into ZOOM meetings taught us anything during the pandemic, it’s that we’re all human and it’s OK to show colleagues and even clients that we have lives outside of work and to let people into those lives. Pre-Covid, many leaders had strict lines between personal and professional lives, not wanting to merge the two or let employees get too close. But the pandemic has literally and figuratively given everyone a glimpse into each other’s lives and houses. This is something that will likely continue in the post-pandemic world.
What have been your biggest professional takeaways from COVID? Share your thoughts below or contact us.
