March/April 2021

BACK
Back to Work
How to re-engage your team post lockdown
THE EXCITEMENT is palpable. There is so
much pent up demand, and still lots to do
before reopening. But…
How long have your team been on
furlough? Whether it’s 12 months or only
four, it’s still a long time to be away from
work. And it would be naïve to think they
can just pick up where they left off.
Not only is it going to be a bit of a shock to
the system getting back into a routine from
a physical perspective, but there’ll be some
emotional needs to address too. One of the
questions I’m most frequently asked, is “how
do I keep my employees engaged?”. And
that’s in ‘normal’ circumstances, let alone
after everything Covid has thrown at us in
the past 12 months.
There will be plenty who are just itching to
get back to work, to see their workmates, to
get back to some kind of routine. But this will
no doubt be tinged by other emotions. While
many are simply relieved to have a job to
come back to, they may still have concerns
for the long-term future of their role. And, if
you’ve had to make any redundancies, some
of these people will also experience some
“survivors’ guilt”.
Some may be uncomfortable about
changes to their role, and others anxious
about their safety, either within work, or on
their journey to work. Many have discovered
new interests and other priorities in life, so
will they be sad at the prospect of losing the
time to continue these? Some may be even
questioning whether they want to come
back to the same role or come back to work
at all.
If we ignore these concerns they can
have a big impact, not just on the individual
concerned. When this gets picked up by
colleagues, it can have a domino effect
on how they feel and how engaged they
are too. Which ultimately has an impact
on productivity and on your customers’
experience.
But there is still plenty to look forward to.
Here are two areas to focus on before you reopen
so everyone is looking forward to their
return and is prepared - both mentally and
physically - for their role.
BACK TO WORK
ONE-TO-ONE
A confidential one-to-one meeting with
each of your team members is the first step
to help plan for their return. Assuming you
are conducting these virtually, choose the
medium each person feels most comfortable
with.
Unlike a regular one-to-one (which are
always important to engage employees at
any other time) these won’t be so much
on reviewing performance, but will focus
on looking forward. Here is the seven step
'CLEARER' framework I’ve created:
› CONNECT
Your goal here is to relax people so they feel
confident to be honest with you about how
they are feeling. One of the easiest ways to
do this is to ask about - and show an interest
in - what they’ve been doing during their
time on furlough.
Keep this conversational, it’s not an
interrogation. Ask casually about: What
have they been up to? What’s been good
about their time at home? What will they
miss most? Have they taken up any new
hobbies or learnt any new skills? Have they
discovered or rediscovered things that are
important to them or activities they enjoy?
Have any of their priorities in life changed as
a result of time away from work?
› LISTEN
It’s important to discover how they feel
about being back. Be prepared for the
fact that they may not even want to come
back to work, or to come back in the same
capacity as before. What concerns do they
have, what questions do they have about
their role, about changes to the way you’ll be
working, about the business?
Some people are very good at putting
on a brave face; listen to their tone and any
hesitation. If you are on camera or face to
face watch their body language. Be mindful
of what they don’t say too. Bear in mind
there may be things that to you are quite
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