How to Keep Up Employee Engagement in the Time of Covid-19:

This whole thing is overwhelming.

Organizations – the world, really – are re-shaping the way they live, interact, and do business. In the midst, there is so much uncertainty about what will happen not just about when quarantines are lifted, but about what’s to come this year and the next.

Businesses – small, medium, and large – are faced with making tough decisions, daily, that directly affect their employees, customers, and chances of pulling through this.

As managers (frontline and senior), you’re the ones who need to step up and give your collaborators a sense of calm in the chaos.

How? Manage the chaos and keep employees engaged.

1. Tap into your organization’s emotional culture. Right now, emotions are running high. It’s critical to keep employees engaged by decreasing stress and anxiety, working closely with HR to keep psychological assistance available, and helping collaborators manage their emotions.

2. Communicate, communicate, communicate. Take the time to connect with managers as well as ask frontline managers to conduct one-on-ones with their collaborators. These should be documented so senior leaders understand issues collaborators are facing – their biggest concerns and where senior leadership should be focusing its resources to get employees through this. Be intentional about conversations. Be honest. Be kind. Be clear about expectations and/or changes. Be PRESENT. Yes, the temptation to pick up the phone is great. Don’t give into the Pavlov response.

3. Take the pulse of the organization. An engagement pulse survey? Now? Yes. NOW. Any organization’s priority must consider all employees’ safety, assuring employees that they’re supported. A pulse survey gives you the tools to gather anonymous feedback and respond to employee concerns. CustomInsight offers a free Covid Pulse Survey and a Covid-19 team assessment.

4. Talk strategy. Everybody is asking, “what’s next”? The way the world is doing business has changed, so what strategies are your organization implementing to face these new challenges? Have a sounding board for all employees to give voice to their unique customer and department needs, like in the CustomInsight Covid-19 virtual comment box. Now is the time to focus on solutions, inspire creativity, and listen to possibilities. This gives employees a future mindset … out of the Covid-19 quicksand.

5. Be honest. Its no secret when things are tough. Don’t try to paint a rosy picture to calm anxiety when things aren’t looking so rosy. It’s condescending and causes mistrust. Be candid about what’s happening within the organization NOW and your hopes for tomorrow based on strategic decisions being made.

Keeping employees engaged is one of the biggest challenges organizations face on a daily basis. Add a pandemic to the mix, and now, more than ever, becoming strategic about employee engagement can be the difference between sinking and swimming.

Connect with CustomInsight to find out about the Covid-19 products we’re offering organizations to help you keep employees passionate, committed, and driving your business.