The pandemic’s impact on our workplace is clear to see, and its wider implications are only just beginning - the question is, what could your professional lives start to look like on our path towards the new normal?
As we journey along the government’s roadmap, a question of normality is a worthy one to ask. After all, does it make sense for us to return to the way things were before, or learn from our experiences over the last year as we move forward?
In this week’s guest post, Kayleigh Alexandra explores the following three lessons our workplaces must learn before entering the new normal:
Helping with employee travel expenses
Supporting wellbeing and avoiding burnout
Adopting cloud storage permanently
Working in a world beyond the pandemic is sure to feel different, however this needn’t be negative. Read on as we outline how workplaces can take the lessons they’ve learnt during the pandemic, and use them to improve the way they work in the long-term.
1. Supporting employee wellbeing and avoiding burnout
While supporting mental health in the workplace has always been important, over the last year our eyes have been opened to new anxieties, challenges and mounting pressures. The need to approach people at work with empathy and a willingness to support one another is vital for maintaining a happy, motivated workforce.
Alongside ensuring personal freedom through offering flexible hours, organisations need to consider providing additional support to help fulfil their staffs needs, wants, and desires in the new normal. People’s lives have changed during the pandemic, and your business might be in a position to lend a helping hand.
For example, if someone in your workplace is experiencing financial difficulties, your business has a few options to ease the burden:
Increase pay, where possible
Provide financial advice
Have an open discussion about other options
While there are various pressures people are facing in the new normal, we’ve touched upon finances because income has been a clear and present issue for many people’s households throughout the pandemic.
With that said, it’s important to also look out for telltale signs of burnout — such as exhaustion, cynicism, and loss of productivity — after all, it’s unlikely that everyone in the workplace will want to talk about their problems so openly. Therefore, having resources available to inform and support professionals on how to manage stress and reduce burnout is an important part of any work culture.
2. Helping with employee travel expenses
While many people are likely to continue working from home, others are looking forward to commuting to the office — or have been continuing to do so out of necessity for their job.
Either way, workplaces could consider lending a helping hand with travel expenses, both to ease the financial burden and help people to feel more secure in the wake of social distancing and pandemic anxiety.
If you expect people to return to the office and say goodbye to remote working, it’s important that organisations allow for a safe, affordable commute. After all, travelling to and from work is a physical and financial burden many people haven’t had to worry about for a long time.
Here are some ways workplaces can help with employee travel expenses:
Invest in a cycle-to-work programme
Investing in a cycle-to-work scheme is a good idea for those who care about the environment or who don’t drive, yet still want to travel to work alone or with people they know. It’s also a good opportunity to promote a healthy lifestyle and a positive mindset in a post-pandemic workplace. There are many programmes available to support this, like Cyclescheme, which helps employees afford quality cycles and improve their confidence in getting to and from work.
Introduce a vehicle leasing scheme
If people don’t feel comfortable in crowds just yet, providing a company car via a leasing scheme allows workplaces to cover people’s travel costs and avoid public transport. Plus, fuel cards could be a good way to reduce fuel prices and take the burden away from employees. Comparison provider sites like iCompario allow you to compare options and read impartial reviews, whilst receiving guidance on business functions.
There are lots of ways your workplace can help people with travel, and not all of them need to be a permanent solution, such as leasing for the extra flexibility. As post-pandemic nerves begin to ease, you could continue to support travel by supplying a public transport allowance.
3. Adopting cloud storage permanently
The pandemic continues to be a worldwide beta test for our digital capabilities, but few things have shone brighter than cloud storage — an online system allowing you and your team to remotely access files anywhere in the world.
Before the pandemic, many businesses were still yet to make the transition to cloud storage options like Dropbox and Google Drive, instead, relying on old school cabinets and storage lockers to keep important information under lock and key.
Why? Well, to some, migrating online felt too risky. However, all this changed when cloud storage became a necessity as the world starting working from home in March 2020. Cloud storage alongside task management tools and video conferencing software facilitated world industries to transition into the home office, allowing employees to continue working, so long as they have a reliable internet connection.
With the pandemic (hopefully) coming to an end, workplaces need to consider using cloud storage for the long-term - it helps to boost team collaboration as well as reduces your impact on the environment. Here’s how:
Go paperless
Put a stop to paper wastage by going digital, and permanently moving all your files online. This will prevent you from buying mountains of paper, and saves on the additional cost too.
Support remote workers
Multiple teams can work on a project at the same time, no matter whether they’re in the office or at home.
Worried about potential security risks? Most software providers offer two-factor authentication, encrypt your data, and regularly update the system to prevent cybercrime, which could even make this a safer option than using a lock and key.
Workplaces need to adapt
The new normal is bound to change how we once viewed our place of work — and this can absolutely be viewed as a positive change.
Over the pandemic, workplaces that have found the most success go the extra mile for their employees. From supporting wellbeing and helping with travel expenses, to improving collaboration via an effective way of storing work.
Although it’s been challenging, many valuable lessons have come out of the last year.
Kayleigh Alexandra is a writer for MicroStartups, your online destination for everything startup. She's passionate about hard-working solopreneurs and SME’s making waves in the business world. Visit the blog for your latest dose of startup and charity insights from top experts around the globe @getmicrostarted.