As employers look to transition workers back into the workplace, here are six key post-covid workplace trends that have emerged post-pandemic, focusing on enhancing collaboration.
Understanding these post covid workplace trends is essential for adapting to the new normal.
1. Decentralized Decision-Making
For many companies, Covid triggered a shift to centralized decision-making. Executives pulled decisions into the leadership team without feedback from key stakeholders for speed and efficiency during the crisis. While this strategy may have proved successful in the short term, moving forward, leaders are going back to a more collaborative approach and are delegating decision-making outside of the leadership team and back closer to the front line.
2. Refocus on Company Mission
Research shows that internal communication across companies improved during Covid. Employees gave their leadership high marks for communication and integrity in the first six months of the pandemic. Managers needed to step up to keep their business going. Leaders will now refocus employees on meeting organizational goals and customer needs, in light of the evolving post-covid workplace trends.
3. Professional Development Digitized
In the past, 10% of an employee’s professional development was via a classroom setting. We learned from the pandemic that digital training can effectively meet educational needs at a reduced cost. Transportation time and costs will be recaptured and put into productivity and return-on-investment.
Online learning offers many benefits. It is not bound by geography, by time, or by day, and it allows for immediate feedback. Also, younger employees prefer online training.
4. Reengagement
In some cases, managers could not address employee engagement during the crisis. As the workplace ramps back up, employers will reconnect with employees to determine their levels of engagement. Managers need to consider the stress levels of their teams and the possibility of relationship conflicts caused by people returning to a close proximity setting, which is crucial in the context of post-covid workplace trends.
5. Diversity and Inclusion Practices
The display of racial injustice has significantly heightened the focus of diversity and inclusion for companies. All employees need to feel a sense of belonging from empathetic leaders. Employers are instituting various initiatives across their companies – from rolling out empathy training to revising their interview processes, reflecting the post-covid workplace trends.
6. One-on-one Meetings
When Covid hit, managers implemented one-on-one video meetings with their direct reports and additional staff. These weekly or bi-weekly calls produced “we’re all in this together” moments. Supervisors plan to keep these valuable time slots booked on their calendars to continue these developmental conversations. Informal agendas with open-ended questions help to promote active listening and productivity. Include simple questions such as, “How are you feeling?”, “What’s on Your Mind?”, “What are your top priorities this week?”
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