We are not yet coming out of the pandemic age. However, the corporate world has started returning to normalcy amid the gradual easing of the lockdown situation. In such a scenario, most entrepreneurs give attention to the return of their employees. They need to ensure that the office space is COVID-secure and employees feel comfortable. Along with this, it is essential for entrepreneurs to maintain the high productivity of their employees.
In this article, we are going to see the top tips to ensure the productivity level remains the same as it was before the outbreak of COVID-19. Here, the task management software can help in scheduling tasks, managing resources, and allocating work in a centralized way. What’s more, it is easy to communicate and collaborate with the team members whether they work from remote locations or offices.
Let’s understand some effective ways to improve the productivity of your staff when they attempt to start working from the office in the post-COVID era.
Five Points to Consider for Maintaining Productivity in Post-COVID Era
1. Revamping Workplace
It’s necessary for you to make your workplace ready to follow 6 feet (2-meter) social distancing norms. Your staff may find the workplace very different than before on returning, but this is what it should be for securing their health. What’s more, it is necessary to put a thermal camera on the entrance with mandatory temperature check and keep desks at some distance. Also, you need to ask them for rescheduling lunch time to avoid unnecessary crowds in the pantry.
However, it is fair to mention that many workers will like working without distractions and concentrating on work. Employers can consider various ideas for redesigning their offices. Whatever idea is taken, it is necessary to maintain safe distance between coworkers and overall hygienic practice to maintain productivity.
2. Improving Communication
You have motivated your staff effectively during the WFH or remote working. Now, it’s time to update them about the business activities that went on during the lockdown. Many organizations could not get time to make necessary preparations as the pandemic spread suddenly and the lockdown was imposed hastily. The lockdown has a negative impact on employers and employees alike, so when your employees are returning to the office, it is necessary to reassure and clarify your objectives in the post-COVID-19 era. It is necessary for you to create an environment of trust so that any employee should not have a feeling of being left out.
What’s more, every company has to rethink their working approach as the global economy has got affected by the pandemic, and normalcy seems far to date. It is, therefore, necessary for entrepreneurs to find out the way so that employees work productively while embracing the changes in the changed business scenario. Effective communication makes this possible for employees.
3. Enhancing Transparency
Along with effective communication, it is necessary for entrepreneurs to become more open and transparent with employees. The pandemic has brought testing times for every one, and therefore, there is no point in hiding the company’s financial position and economic uncertainty from your employees. Whether it is a huge decline in revenue or gaining less orders from clients, reducing profitability or the number of employees, when your staff comes again to the office, they should know all these stuff accurately.
The more transparent an employer with their staff, the more motivated the staff will remain. It is necessary to revive the organization and take it to the new level after the pandemic stage.
There is no exaggeration in mentioning that big and false claims cannot take the enterprise anywhere. Because of such claims, either employees remain overconfident or become lazy while joining office again. Therefore, employers should avoid any unrealistic claims as employees return.
4. Listening Patiently
The employee’s life after coming back to office is not easy, especially when they have spent a long time with family at home. There, personal life took over work to an extent, and now, they have to adjust in the office environment again. Here, employers can set an example and assist employees to feel comfortable, so that they remain motivated. It is possible by listening to their requirements and enabling them to work in a way they like initially. For example, if one of your employees wants to continue WFH for a short time due to some personal reasons or family commitment, it is better to allow. It will reflect the employee’s productivity and efficiency.
Finally, if some employees still do not feel comfortable returning into the office, it is better to give them the freedom to work from home for the time being or address their concerns by keeping the office space kept secure.
5. Practicing Cleanliness and Hygiene
Clean office environment can work wonders when it comes to productivity. How about giving your employees an office free from clutters when they return to work? It is better to remember that we are still in the middle of the pandemic, and therefore, your teams should have confidence that they are secure in the office. From following all standards given by the authorities including social distancing to maintaining best hygienic practices, you should feel all the employees comfortable as they return to the office. As a result, they work proactively and show high productivity.
With this, hand sanitizer and antibacterial gel can give employees healthy experience and confidence that they will remain secure against the infection. Such hygienic experience can make your employees more relaxed and productive. In a way, you can improve your staff’s productivity a bit.
All these tips can make the workplace comfortable and free from clutter. It can keep your employees ready to embrace the changed business environment in this troubled time and even beyond pandemic age.
Concluding Lines
It is not an easy task for employers or entrepreneurs like you to make your employees ready to work with the same efficiency and productivity. However, transparency, patience, and honest means of communication will certainly help entrepreneurs to maintain the staff’s productivity when they return to the workplace.