They say it takes on average 66 days to break old habits or start new habits. On my count, many of us have been in quarantine for over 70 days, with many of those days spent working from home. As many businesses and organizations prepare to bring people back into the workplace, the question that should be on every leader’s mind is:
How has this quarantine changed the behavior, mindset, and work of my employees?
Undoubtedly, you yourself have been changed in some ways by the all-encompassing nature of quarantine, so it stands to reason that your employees will be different, too. But just HOW different is the biggest question that remains to be answered. While we may not fully understand the impact yet, we can first adopt the mindset that we cannot simply go back to exactly the way things were before. While this quarantine has shown that we humans are highly adaptable, we also are creatures of habit.
So what should leaders be looking out for when everyone comes back together?
I’ve identified three employee needs your people may have coming out of quarantine that you as a leader can impact. While every office and employee are different, these particular employee needs may show up more frequently than not. Here are the three needs your employees may have:
Continue reading “The 3 Employee Needs of a Returning Workforce”