What Businesses Can Do to Help
Employees Through the Current Crisis
The pandemic has not been easy on any of us. Business and the people associated with them all found their lives turned upside down in a matter of days.
In such a time, business owners and managers must step up, recognize the suffering of their employees and team members, and do what they can to help them.
While as individuals, business owners can do a lot of help out their employees, there is even more they can do with their business. Your employees are, after all, employed by your business.
So, what can a business do to help its employees work through these tough times?
Let’s look at some of the challenges that your employees may be facing, and how you can help them overcome said challenges:
Provide Opportunities to Grow
One of the most radical changes that happened to normal office life was the necessity to work from home. As a result of being at home, many of us picked up new skills. I’m sure even you have seen at least one of your friends trying out a fancy version of beaten coffee on social media.
Besides cooking skills, the time spent at home, in isolation, is also great for picking up a hard (or soft) skill that helps one grow with their career. Things are bound to return to normal and when they do, walking out with a brand new ‘employable’ skill would be very helpful.
As a business, you can provide your employees with online learning opportunities. An online training initiative costs a fraction of the cost of a traditional one and with the right tools, can even produce better results. For instance, with a Microsoft LMS (Learning Management System) integration, you can provide your employees with a holistic training experience right within your Microsoft enterprise suite!
The best part is employee training is not beneficial just for your employees but for your business as well. With a more skilled and better trained workforce, the road to recovery for your business will be smoother and shorter.
Keep Things Social
As your employees continue to get work done from their homes, for many, their social life has taken a serious hit. A report published by Buffer in February 2020 showed that loneliness was one of the top two challenges for professionals working from home.
Things have become much worse since February and it wouldn’t be very wrong to assume that the problem has only grown.
In such a situation, businesses must not forget the value of employee engagement and team building. Such initiatives can go a long way in reminding your employees that they are a part of something big and are not alone in this crisis.
The other top challenge identified in Buffer’s report was difficulties with communication and collaboration. This problem can also be solved easily with the help of the right communication and collaboration tools.
When implementing these tools, keep in mind that it is best to have dedicated channels for quick, casual communications, formal communication, and communications that may be happening among collaborators of specific projects.
Promote Strict Work-Life Balance
Another challenge associated with working from home is the disruption of a healthy work life balance. With a sudden change in an otherwise set routine of going to the office, combined with continuous distractions in the work environment at home, the lines between work life and personal life can easily appear blurred.
That’s why, it is important for employers to promote a strict and healthy work-life balance.
We’re All In This Together
Working from home is a new concept to a significant percentage of the current workforce and businesses. It is important that both parties work together to adapt to the new ‘normal’.
