The reality today is quite different than it was 2 years ago. The pandemic situation has affected as many factors in human life as possible. The labor sector, in general, suffered record unemployment rates and, what was previously unthinkable for some companies today turns out to be the only option; remote work has become the solution.

Human Capital is practically the most important asset to companies, and having them happy and committed to the companies they work for is today a difficult goal to achieve. However, difficult is not synonymous with impossible.

Therefore, let's discuss some ways to maintain employee engagement in these turbulent times.

1.Get to know your employee’s situation

Resisting change is no longer an option. If companies want to keep their employees, and not in an unhappy and frustrated mood, but engaged and grateful, they must start listening to what employees really need and doing something about it. 

Considering that most people work from home since COVID-19 became a pandemic last year, the office environment was left behind, there are no longer conversations in the hallways and no coffee breaks. Besides, the balance between work and personal life has become a bit imperceptible. 

People have to manage their work schedules to deal with deadlines and at the same time manage interruptions in their personal lives. All these situations can affect the emotional health of workers, causing them depression, and therefore negatively influence their work performance.

What can you do about it? The correct answer is not just one. Each company must familiarize itself with the situation of its employees and make decisions about it. For example, Novartis stated that its company has focused since the beginning of the epidemic on the health of its workers and their families. They did not stop the production of medicines, but they identified the needs of their employees in relation to remote work, family care, and free time and achieved a balance.

2.Work together to achieve the same goal

It is indisputable that the more committed employees feel to the company, the greater their contribution to the achievement of its objectives. Empathy is essential in these cases, when you feel empathy and act accordingly, you are creating a close bond with your workers.

When Covid began, Microsoft analyzed the situation of their workers when they had to start working from home. Consequently, 95% of Microsoft employees started to work from home full time. But not just that, in addition, managers held meetings to find solutions to the need to establish a workspace from home, the necessary infrastructure, the flexible hours of workers with children at home due to the closure of schools, among others.

In order to support them to face the change, they decided to create the Pandemic School and Childcare Closure Leave (PSCCL) policy. This policy provided every caregiver with two weeks off after school closed. Furthermore, they were allowed to take 12 weeks of paid leave in order to give them time to set and organize their priorities while allowing them to stay connected and keep working.

As a result, they support their employees and at the same time, they continue to contribute to the economic development of the company.

3.Give them a voice

As we mentioned before, the working realities of millions of people have been affected in one way or another. The possibility of remote work has largely rescued many jobs and therefore saved numerous companies from closure. However, this modality of work also has its cons, since it affects the bond between employees and companies.

In an interview with Sharion Wei, Senior Solution Director at Microsoft she expressed that: ‘‘We can’t take for granted that employees will just know or tell you what they need. It’s a matter of building trust, exercising empathy, and having flexible solutions like PSCCL to address a variety of needs.”

What could your company do? The solution is to strengthen that relationship, and for this, you must not only be aware of your employees’ feedback, but you must also create the correct channels to receive those feedbacks.

After Microsoft implemented the Pandemic School and Childcare Closure Leave (PSCCL) policy, employees were encouraged to discuss with their managers the new schedules, workloads, and timelines in order to adjust in the best way the new commitments.

The final result is a win-win. Employees feel valued when they see the efforts made by the company to support them and therefore their level of satisfaction and commitment to the company increases.

Having workers committed to your company can make the difference between success and failure. These are turbulent times, but there has been no better time than this to show your employees how committed you feel to them. Solutions are never absolute, that is why each company must analyze its capabilities before establishing strategies to support its workers. 

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