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How to re-engage employees as they return to the office post pandemic

sharon@kangaroouk.com (Sharon Keevins) — Tue, 26 Apr 2022 09:18:01 GMT

As full-time remote working comes to an end, returning to the office can be a daunting prospect for many. Keeping employees engaged and motivated will be a key challenge for businesses in 2022.

We have received an influx of questions from employers looking for advice on how to re-engage employees as they venture back to the workplace post-pandemic.

Employers must reconsider how to re-engage staff to help prevent high staff turnover, competition poaching employees, high levels of absence and reduced productivity.

Reintroducing employees who have been used to working at home brings with it a new set of challenges. As workers have become accustomed to a different environment its extremely important to engage with them effectively on return to the workplace – the impact of this transition can be reduced by following our one-to-one advice.

According to Gallup, 202% of companies with engaged employees outperform those without therefore, the team have outlined five key areas that businesses can focus upon to ensure staff remain confident and thrive in 2022.

1. Communicate the overall business strategy

It’s vital that on return to the workplace staff understand your business position and strategy clearly following the impact of Covid-19. It can be a worrying time for employees, with questions around how the business is performing and in turn how that may affect their position and flexibility.

Be transparent, effectively communicate any changes and share any future business plans or goals. This will directly correspond to how their role adds value within the wider commercial setting and allow the employee to feel respected and involved.

2. Relay role expectations and opportunities for progression

Outline clear responsibilities to staff, monthly expectations, and if appropriate, re-communicate clear KPIs - allowing performance to be measured effectively by both the business and individual.

Communicate any career opportunities and consider providing training. This should help to re-establish motivation, clarity and confidence within the workplace.

3. Have fun

After such a long period, it can be a daunting prospect for employees to accustom themselves to a sociable office environment and work alongside colleagues again. Putting together a calendar of activities and events will aid an employee’s adjustment.

Think about activities that will unite your team – perhaps a common interest such as a Friday cake club or a team day out. It will help boost team morale and can be a great incentive for employees to socialise and talk about things other than work.

4. Create a safe space to share

Many employees have become accustomed to the benefits of working from home such less commuting time and more autonomy, therefore staff will require levels of flexibility and support returning to the workplace. Creating a safe space for employees to share any concerns or needs they may have, will be essential in 2022.

Consider sending out anonymous surveys or creating a staff forum where workers feel able to share their worries.

5. Adapt and update the working environment

Adapting to sitting at a desk daily when it’s become a norm to work from the comfort of your sofa could encourage a shift in how we perceive the office environment. Consider adding a ‘breakout’ area for individuals to work on laptops and ensure there is a space to eat lunch away from their desk. Factors such as increased interruptions and noise could be unsettling, so provide quiet areas for working. Also consider allowing employees to wear headphones if this wasn’t in your policy previously.

We are offering free 15-minute consultations for employers to talk about how best to deal with re-engaging employees back into the workplace. Call us to book your 15 minute consultation.

Can employers refuse sick pay for unvaccinated staff required to self isolate?

sharon@kangaroouk.com (Sharon Keevins) — Thu, 27 Jan 2022 16:48:14 GMT

While there isnt a strict yes or no answer to if employers can refuse sick pay for unvaccinated staff required to self isolate, it seems some big name businesses have already took their stance on the subject.

Next, Ocado, Ikea and Morrisons have all implemented the no sick pay, if not vaxxed rule.

Check out the links below to have a read.

There seems to be alot of conversation around this, along with many mixed views. On the flip side you have John Lewis and Waitrose who have said they will continue to pay sick pay to those who are unvaccinated but required to self isolate.

See below for more details.

Breedon Consulting's Monthly Top 3 Topics

Thu, 27 Jan 2022 13:47:19 GMT

Want to know what has been keeping us busy?

We have decided to share with you our Top 3 topics each month:

December

Internal movers and new starters
Probation reviews
Resignations

Following the economic uncertainty over the past 2 years, due to COVID-19, when employees were staying put in their roles, it is clear that employees are now feeling more confident with the situation, enabling them to re-focus on their careers.

November

Grievance
Contracts and Handbook
Learning and Development

There has been a real shift in employee’s opting to take issues further, whether that be internally via the appeals process or raising a formal grievance, or externally, by raising a tribunal claim. We believe that COVID-19 has had a significant impact on this over the past 2 years, with employees previously being more accepting of outcomes. Employers have recognised the long-term benefits of home working and hybrid working and are permanently changing their terms and conditions to accommodate this. Employers have recognised that the job market is a candidate’s market and are putting more time and effort in to developing their employees.

HR Series: Q&A with Nicki Robson

Thu, 23 Dec 2021 11:17:38 GMT

We are excited to share our new HR Series: Q&A with Nicki Robson, managing director of Breedon Consulting.

The aim of the campaign is to offer complimentary advice on frequently asked questions or concerns. Nicki will be anonymously answering via a recorded Q&A at the end of each month.

Check out some of the previous questions Nicki has answered!

If you would like to submit a question, please click the link below to our Instagram and send us a direct message.

https://bit.ly/3ASoqBK

January 2022: Working From Home

December 2021: Unsuccessful Job Applicants

November 2021: Tax Changes

Niche Business Awards 2021: Business Woman of the Year

Thu, 23 Dec 2021 11:17:32 GMT

As you may be aware Nicki was nominated for Business Woman of the Year at the Niche Business Awards 2021 and, she won!

Take a look at Nicki's feature in the Niche Magazine about her win. Or to read the full article, click the link below.

https://issuu.com/niche-magazine/docs/niche_magazine_issue_46

The Breedon Workplace Wellbeing Programme

Tue, 06 Apr 2021 08:31:03 GMT

You will be aware that over recent months employee wellbeing has become an increasingly important consideration as the effects of the pandemic start to impact on individuals at work. With this in mind, we have partnered with wellbeing specialists Elain and Sharon from Wellbeing for Life, to create a workplace wellbeing programme designed specifically for our clients.

The business case for supporting staff wellbeing is now well documented. UK businesses lose over £40 billion a year due to the impact of stress alone and yet a good, evidence-based wellbeing strategy that is aligned to business values, mission and goals has been proven to deliver a return on investment of up to £9 from every £1 invested. That translates to reductions in sickness absence, presenteeism and staff turnover and increases in productivity, creativity and retention which all equals business success.

We know that an embedded programme rather than one-off activities that simply tick a box are most likely to have an impact; they encourage staff engagement and deliver the message that employees are valued. The challenge is, that for many small businesses this is just too costly. That’s where the Breedon Workplace Wellbeing programme comes in.

What is the Breedon Workplace Wellbeing Programme?

The Breedon workplace wellbeing programme is underpinned by three themes:

Education that empowers individuals to take responsibility for their own wellbeing
Internal capacity, ensuring businesses have the ability to embed and continue to develop and sustain their staff wellbeing
Remove barriers to maximise potential and harness the multi faceted benefits of an integrated wellbeing programme

How to protect your business when staff are working from home

Tue, 06 Apr 2021 08:31:02 GMT

With many companies planning to introduce software to monitor staff productivity remotely*, HR experts have highlighted top steps to protect business owners when staff are working from home.

According to a recent YouGov survey on remote-working compliance commissioned by Skills Cast*, one in five firms has introduced or is planning to implement software that can track employees’ work remotely to monitor their productivity.

These actions could put business owners in breach of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and pose a risk to businesses if employees feel their privacy has been invaded as part of the monitoring process.

The Employment Practices Code** states that an employer is liable to pay compensation for damage suffered by an individual as a result of a breach of data protection law, arising from the actions of the line manager, if it is clear that the line manager has been acting outside of their authority.

As an employer, it is important to make sure that you have clear procedures and training in place to avoid breaching any data protection laws, and the HR experts at Breedon Consulting have outlined proactive ways in which business owners can ensure that they are compliant whilst staff are remote working.

Managing director of Breedon Consulting, Nicki Robson, said: “Throughout the pandemic, the UK workforce has experienced a rise in the number of employers using technology and spyware to monitor employees’ activities while they are working from home. This can be damaging and could negatively impact employee and employer relations.

“With good management, employers should be able to trust their employees and should have sound measures in place which demonstrate whether or not staff are working efficiently without the need for spyware options. Instead, employers need to support managers in managing the situation, as coming down heavy on employees is counterproductive.

“The HR side of Breedon Consulting has employment legislation at its heart, from compliance documentation such as contracts and handbooks, to dealing with employee relations issues in line with legislation - we can advise clients on what’s changing going forward and provide management training services to ensure that businesses are fully prepared.”

Here are the steps you can take to protect your business when staff are working from home:

1. Provide key training around the GDPR legislation

It is a key requirement for all businesses to train their staff on GDPR legislation. Ensure that you are providing adequate training for your team and have a data protection policy in place. Senior employees must be made aware that they need to be transparent with staff about how they are using and safeguarding the personal data of employees, inside, and outside of the business and should provide an employee privacy notice for this purpose.

2. Sharpen management skills

Implementing good management practices that employers can follow while staff are working from home can increase staff efficiency and trust without the need for micromanagement and productivity monitoring software. Management should be practical, supportive, and flexible while bearing in mind that staff working from home could potentially be dealing with homeschooling and anxiety.

3. Strengthen communication

Managing a team remotely can prove difficult and poor communication can make the situation more complicated. Make sure your business has robust communication mechanisms in place to keep employee/employer relationships strong. Remote working arrangements need to be structured with regular check in’s, 1-2-1 meetings and key performance indicators (KPI) & Service Level Agreements (SLA) monitoring. Set expectations so all team members are on the same page within your business.

4. Offer technology training

Staff members may not be aware of how best to use technology when working from home. Avoid assuming that it will be an easy switch for staff to leave the office and continue their roles in a remote working arrangement, it may be overwhelming for them to set up by themselves. Provide employees with the opportunity to take up technology training or computer refresher courses. Once staff members are aware of how to use their technology, they will also be less likely to accidentally breach data protection laws while remote working.

It is important that you comply with data protection legislation and have adequate policies and procedures in place. Your organisation can be inspected and could face significant penalties if your practices are in breach of GDPR.

Do you find others hard to read?

Tue, 06 Apr 2021 08:31:02 GMT

As I stared out of the window this morning after a zoom training session, it made me think on how difficult it can be to read others on Zoom/Facetime/Teams to name a few. This is normally a skill I pride myself on.

Working in learning and development for so long you pick up on people’s body language, how their writing notes down, eye contact, facial expressions etc. Every little facet combines to give me a viewpoint on whether something I am discussing is resonating or not. It allows me to change the way I’m delivering training or coaching. You can argue that I can still see the facial expressions which should give me a clue right…! Well I’ve found that’s not always the case. So, I find myself looking intently at the screen trying to not scare the participants!

For managers out there, this should be a little easier if you’ve been working with members of your team prior to lockdown but for those of you like me who may have only met people via zoom and only see the head and shoulders, here’s a little tip from our managers toolkit on Adaptability .

If you find it hard to read others, you need to pay attention to how they behave and tune in to what is going on inside. Pay close attention to what people say or do, where their focus is and what their style is. Everyone is different, so don’t try to fight their style but look and listen to cues and adapt your own style to suit.

Here are some questions you may want to keep in mind:

Are they passionate about something or do they emphasise certain things? Do they want detailed facts or are they better with high level concepts? Do you know what their profile is and consequently, have an idea of how they might react? Thinking about these aspects will put you in better control of the interaction and lead to better outcomes.

If you want to find out more on Adaptability or want to know more about our manager’s toolkit, call our office – 01530 447441 or email us – info@breedonconsulting.co.uk