Catherine Mattice's Blog, page 26

4 Reasons Why You Should Create Employee Resource Groups For Your Workforce

Article written by: Victoria Hortman

If you’re not leveraging Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) in your business, you’re missing out on the potential your diverse employees can bring to the table.

ERGs support employees with upskilling and leadership opportunities, assist leadership in optimizing long-term strategy, and can be the central pillar of your DEI strategy.

Here are the top four reasons why your organization should leverage ERGs.

Train Tomorrow’s Leaders 

Joseph Wilson started the first Employee Resource Group in 1970. 

As the founder and CEO of Xerox, he aimed to support his Black Employees who faced discrimination in the workplace. Building on that, today’s ERGs today have evolved into one of the best ways to train young talent and create tomorrow’s leaders. 

Why? Because ERGs provide employees with access to learning and development opportunities, leadership coaching, and ownership of special projects.

ERGs also create visibility between employees and senior leaders. And visibility is crucial for career advancement.

By offering access to employees through an ERG, you’ll continually develop diverse talent to lead your organization into the future.

Develop Products for A Diverse Audience

Our world is moving fast. The companies of the future that will stand head and shoulders above their competitors are those who continually innovate their product offerings. 

Today, ERGs have become vital for gaining deeper insights into the ever-evolving global consumer. 

According to the Society for Human Resource Management, 70% of organizations rely on ERGs to create better products and gather authentic feedback to spark new ideas, leading to greater innovation down the road.

Continual innovation is the only way a company can grow. And you can leverage ERGs to offer fresh perspectives and unique insights that ensure that the products your company is creating are inclusive.

Increase Inclusion in Your Workplace

Inclusion should be a central strategy for your company.

An inclusive workforce fosters a sense of belonging and creates high-trust relationships. High-trust relationships allow employees to feel psychologically safe and accepted. This is where ERGs can shine brightest.

Resource groups provide a safe and inclusive environment for employees. Employees have an opportunity to connect with others who share similar backgrounds and band as one voice to advocate for organizational changes.

This sense of community will reverberate throughout your organization.

Recruit and Retain Top Diverse Talent

When diverse talent considers job opportunities, they look for a diverse, equitable, and inclusive culture in the workplace.

One of the best ways to showcase your DEI efforts during the recruitment process is by highlighting that you have employee resource groups. 

Celebrating DEI will make it easier to attract diverse talent, and inclusive culture will make it more likely for your top talent to stick around. 

ERGs are the key

ERGs are one of the most effective ways to include your diverse teammates in your DEI efforts. If you leverage them well, you will unlock your employee’s greatest potential.

Bio

Victoria Hortman is the Global People Operations Manager at Mogul, a talent acquisition platform that works to help employers foster diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Mogul is proud to be the founder of International ERG Day. We created International ERG Day (November 17) to celebrate and amplify the voices of ERGs across industries.

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6 Common Accidents at the Workplace

Author: Farlyn Lucas

Workplace culture has a significant effect on how well we do our work and go about each day. A toxic work environment can negatively impact overall team morale, productivity, and work quality. What “toxic” means, in this case, varies. It can be managerial drama, micromanagement, dishonesty, backhanded comments, or even more, and it is not exclusive to any industry. Jobs of all kinds, such as those in an office-setting or even construction can suffer from it. With a hostile or unhealthy work environment, it’s no shock that this can affect other parts of the job, such as workplace safety.

Some of us have office jobs, others have jobs that require physical labor or dangerous tasks. Some work in retail, while others work in construction. Regardless of the type of job you have, there is always the chance of an accident or injury occurring, and no one is safe from that risk.

For this article, we will discuss 6 common accidents that occur at the workplace. Each one comes with its own set of dangers and concerns.

What are the Common Types of Work-Related Injuries?

There are many different types of work-related injuries, and to better understand them, we need to break out the top 6 common accidents that occur at the workplace. They are as follows:

1 – Burns

Most burns happen when there’s a fire close to proximity. This usually happens during industrial processes such as those that involve melting metals and other materials used in industry like plastics. It may also happen when something flammable is spilled on an open flame like grease or oil which can cause a fire if not properly extinguished. You should always wear the appropriate safety equipment and read the safety guidelines.

2 – Falls

Falls usually happen when you’re working near heights or on uneven surfaces. It may also occur during the transportation of heavy objects using lifts and cranes. To prevent it from happening, make sure that you read labels and safety guidelines before doing your job. You should also always have another person to help you carry heavy loads because working alone is dangerous in case something suddenly gives way.

3 – Injuries Caused by Moving Machinery

If your workplace has machines or tools that move at high speeds, the operators may likely be hurt if they accidentally touch them. Thus, reading manuals and following all safety precautions like wearing protective clothing is necessary to avoid getting injured in a workplace accident.

4 – Overexertion

Working for extended periods may cause you to get exhausted and make you prone to accidents while doing your job. Make sure that you take regular breaks during work so that you will not collapse from being overworked. In case someone collapses due to exhaustion, immediately call for medical assistance and get the person some air while waiting for the ambulance.

5 – Electrical Accidents

Using high voltage electrical tools or equipment may lead to electric shocks. To avoid this from happening, make sure that you read all labels before operating a device or tool so that in case something happens, you’ll know how to avoid getting hurt.

6 – Exposure to Harmful Chemicals

When chemicals are improperly stored then they can easily mix and cause spills. If you work at a place where chemicals are stored, make sure that the area is properly labeled with hazardous materials signs so that if there is ever an emergency, you can evacuate to a safe zone without injury. Chemicals intended to kill harmful insects and pests are usually very toxic. Handling these chemicals or accidentally ingesting them may lead to serious health complications that could be life-threatening.

Who’s Responsible if you get Injured at Work?

Mostly, the law requires an employer to provide a safe working environment and required safety equipment to its employees or workers. The injured worker has a right to receive compensation from his or her employer for any injuries he or she sustained because of his or her job and is entitled to be treated at the best hospitals wherever it may happen since medical treatment is already included in their plan.

If you get injured in your workplace then it’s your employer’s responsibility to take care of you. This is because the Occupational Safety and Health Act dictates that employers are responsible for providing a safe work environment to their employees. However, if the injury was caused by something that happened while you were off-duty then it might not necessarily follow what the act says. If this happens then you have to talk with an attorney so they can help you file a case against your negligent employer.

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Meet the Team at Civility Partners

In the past few months, we���ve had some new additions to the Civility Partners family and we figured we should make some introductions!

Each of us brings a unique perspective and background to the work we do!

Catherine Mattice

CEO/Founder

As you may already know, Catherine founded Civility Partners in 2008 as a result of working in a toxic environment, and has since led the Civility Partners team in serving a huge array of clients with consulting, training, and coaching services. She���s written three books, one of which Ken Blanchard called, ���the most comprehensive and valuable handbook on the topic��� of workplace bullying. Catherine���s also been cited in such media outlets as Forbes.com, Inc Magazine, Entrepreneur, and USA Today, and appeared as a guest on such venues as NPR and CNN.

Rebecca Del Secco

People & Culture Consultant

Rebecca started out as a part-time intern while she was getting her Bachelor���s degree in Business, with a focus on human resources, from San Diego State University. Within a few months, Catherine saw her potential and made her a full time employee. Years later, Rebecca continues to knock it out of the park designing training programs, unique performance management systems, mentorship, and onboarding programs. She also recruits like a boss for one of our rapidly growing clients, having hired 21 people so far this year.

Kathy Grey

Culture Change Consultant

One of our newest members, Kathy Grey, is an engaging and passionate leadership coach, facilitator, and conflict mediator. Catherine and Kathy met about a decade ago when Kathy was building a 30+ training team for No Bully, a nonprofit organization focused on building positive school environments that minimize bullying and harassment in the K-12 arena. Kathy is one of Catherine���s heroes, and she continues to support school communities as a respected thought partner and Senior Education Advisor for Power of Zero, a London based charity.

Toni Herndon

Training Guru & DISC Facilitator

Toni Herndon, EdD., is our very enthusiastic facilitator, conflict mediator, and certified DISC�� trainer. She prides herself on bringing the opportunity forward for learners to engage in transformation, and transform she does. She consistently receives rave reviews from clients as she leans on her decade of experience as a facilitator, life coach and court mediator. (She was also a zoo keeper in a previous life, which might help too.) In addition to her work with Civility Partners she provides training for the National Conflict Resolution Center and Moxie Institute.

[image error] Sameen Maali

Marketing & Client Relations Coordinator

Sameen just recently graduated from San Diego State University, too. Rebecca, Sameen and Catherine say, Go Aztecs! After starting out with us as an HR intern, Sameen soon found her passion to ultimately be in social media and marketing, which led her to take on her new role as Marketing & Client Relations Coordinator. She manages all of our webinars and conference presentations, creates marketing content, and works on client projects. She is learning so fast and we are so proud to support her in her new career goals!

Clara DePre

Executive Assistant

Clara is our newest team member and our Executive Assistant, Project Manager and Director of Getting Stuff Done with nearly 15 years of diverse experience spanning luxury retail, management consulting and leadership development. She supports Catherine and the team in the daily operations of the business. We learned a long time ago that Catherine needs a keeper to keep things moving. Clara is based on the East Coast and is also a proud mom of two young boys.

Now that you���ve gotten to know our team a little better, we hope you feel a better sense of connection to the Civility Partners fam. Don���t be a stranger and reach out to us if you would love to learn more!

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Are you still engaged in #BLM?

As you may know, every Thursday at 9:30 am Pacific I host “Catherine’s Corner” – my LinkedIn Live show where I invite distinguished guests to share their expertise on the working world today. One of my favorite shows was in the beginning with Eric Ellis, the President and CEO of Integrity Development Corp and a leading consultant and strategist on matters related to Diversity & Inclusion. Eric came on the show last year to help HR and employers navigate an intense call for DEI as a result of #BLM. But because our Black colleagues are in a cycle of injustice, where they are seen through bias as less professional and less capable, and thus when promoted through the ranks are set up to fail, the push for more inclusive environments must continue – hence our resurrection of this show. Acknowledging the challenges our Black colleagues face is a major first step in facilitating a safe space for your diverse workforce. It’s so important for employers to go beyond performative leadership and hold themselves accountable to making change. During the show, for example, Eric discussed a review of your internal and external structure to recognize biases within your organization’s processes, such as analyzing recruitment strategies and the diversity of your clients and vendors. Once you have recognized the problem areas within your company, then you are able to identify ways to measure your success and progress to ensure the organization is holding itself accountable. If you’re curious on where to get started, feel free to send us a message to learn how we can partner with you in creating an inclusive workplace. To check out more impactful conversations, head on over to my LinkedIn every Thursday at 9:30 am PST to learn about company culture, inclusion, employee engagement, HR, and much more! Sincerely, Sameen and Catherine, Civility Partners Team

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We���re Mad as Hell: Frat Boy Culture in the Gaming World

The sexist culture in the gaming industry doesn���t start and stop with Blizzard.

According to this article in Forbes, ���In 2020, 41% of video game players in the United States were female. Yet the vast majority of game protagonists are male��� According to the 2020 Global Gaming Gender Balance Scorecard, roughly 84% of executives at the top 14 global gaming companies were men.”

Blizzard certainly deserves the attention it���s getting, though. Just imagine your daughter, wife, or friend going to work and finding her male colleagues on the floor doing ���cube crawls���. Drinking and crawling their way through the cubicles while spewing sexual banter and joking about rape.

You think ���she���s got to be kidding���, right? Not at all. Not according to over 2,000 Activision Blizzard employees. Not according to a lawsuit filed by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing.

And it didn���t stop there. Nude photos of a female employee were passed around at a company holiday party. She tragically took her own life while on a company trip with her supervisor.

As long as I���ve been doing this work and hearing these types of stories, I���ll never get less angry about them.

Unfortunately, many leaders don���t have a reaction unless monetary costs are identified. Riot Games, for example, agreed to a $10 million settlement in 2019 to a class-action lawsuit around sexual harassment and gender discrimination.

Take a good, hard look at what your company stands for. Don���t wait to address the culture of your company.

The core values should reflect the beliefs, ideas and traits shared by your employees and people held accountable to living them by engraining them in your culture. It is the organizations��� North Star and the anchor for your diversity and inclusion work.

You might be thinking, ���How do I start?��� and also, ���That Blizzard stuff will never happen here.��� I got news for you; the type of bad behavior seen at Blizzard isn���t going away any time soon. And your organization is not immune unless you consistently focus on keeping that behavior out.

Here���s a few ideas to get you on track.

 

Look at how the values of your employees are reflected in your workplace, if at all. Ask them what they value, how they���d like to be treated at work, and what they need from you to feel psychologically safe. Learn from them and then do it. Check out how we can help with an employee culture survey.Does your executive team reflect female and ethnic minorities? If not, hire them so you can gain their perspectives and improve your products, services, and work culture.Review your recruiting process and your sourcing strategy to gather talent from differing backgrounds and add more diverse perspectives to the organization.Be sure your job postings contain inclusive language.Create an internal posting board to provide visibility and career growth for your employees.Conduct slate interviewing to advance a pool of candidates that contain a large percentage of women and/or minorities.Create a mentorship program as a platform for underrepresented groups to advance their career goals and offer immersive experiences for them to access strategies and tools that support their progression.Institutionalize channels where any employee can report inappropriate behavior. We wholeheartedly recommend Speakfully, an online platform that provides a place for anonymous grievances, but also provides analytics related to company culture.Invest in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Start by providing training to your managers and supervisors on what inclusion is and how to recognize and minimize unconscious bias. We���ve got you on this one. Check it out at this link.Also, hire a DEI consultant to conduct an assessment. They���ll look at your marketing, products, culture and more to provide you with a list of action items for improving your DEI.Watch this series of free courses from LinkedIn Learning on the topics of unconscious bias, allyship, inclusive conversations, and more.Hire Civility Partners. We can help you focus on strengthening the culture of your organization and ensure everyone can thrive in a workplace that celebrates a culture of respect, inclusivity, diversity and collective wellbeing.

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We’re Mad as Hell: Frat Boy Culture in the Gaming World

The sexist culture in the gaming industry doesn’t start and stop with Blizzard.

According to this article in Forbes, “In 2020, 41% of video game players in the United States were female. Yet the vast majority of game protagonists are male… According to the 2020 Global Gaming Gender Balance Scorecard, roughly 84% of executives at the top 14 global gaming companies were men.”

Blizzard certainly deserves the attention it’s getting, though. Just imagine your daughter, wife, or friend going to work and finding her male colleagues on the floor doing “cube crawls”. Drinking and crawling their way through the cubicles while spewing sexual banter and joking about rape.

You think “she’s got to be kidding”, right? Not at all. Not according to over 2,000 Activision Blizzard employees. Not according to a lawsuit filed by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing.

And it didn’t stop there. Nude photos of a female employee were passed around at a company holiday party. She tragically took her own life while on a company trip with her supervisor.

As long as I’ve been doing this work and hearing these types of stories, I’ll never get less angry about them.

Unfortunately, many leaders don’t have a reaction unless monetary costs are identified. Riot Games, for example, agreed to a $10 million settlement in 2019 to a class-action lawsuit around sexual harassment and gender discrimination.

Take a good, hard look at what your company stands for. Don’t wait to address the culture of your company.

The core values should reflect the beliefs, ideas and traits shared by your employees and people held accountable to living them by engraining them in your culture. It is the organizations’ North Star and the anchor for your diversity and inclusion work.

You might be thinking, “How do I start?” and also, “That Blizzard stuff will never happen here.” I got news for you; the type of bad behavior seen at Blizzard isn’t going away any time soon. And your organization is not immune unless you consistently focus on keeping that behavior out.

Here’s a few ideas to get you on track.

 

Look at how the values of your employees are reflected in your workplace, if at all. Ask them what they value, how they’d like to be treated at work, and what they need from you to feel psychologically safe. Learn from them and then do it. Check out how we can help with an employee culture survey.Does your executive team reflect female and ethnic minorities? If not, hire them so you can gain their perspectives and improve your products, services, and work culture.Review your recruiting process and your sourcing strategy to gather talent from differing backgrounds and add more diverse perspectives to the organization.Be sure your job postings contain inclusive language.Create an internal posting board to provide visibility and career growth for your employees.Conduct slate interviewing to advance a pool of candidates that contain a large percentage of women and/or minorities.Create a mentorship program as a platform for underrepresented groups to advance their career goals and offer immersive experiences for them to access strategies and tools that support their progression.Institutionalize channels where any employee can report inappropriate behavior. We wholeheartedly recommend Speakfully, an online platform that provides a place for anonymous grievances, but also provides analytics related to company culture.Invest in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Start by providing training to your managers and supervisors on what inclusion is and how to recognize and minimize unconscious bias. We’ve got you on this one. Check it out at this link.Also, hire a DEI consultant to conduct an assessment. They’ll look at your marketing, products, culture and more to provide you with a list of action items for improving your DEI.Watch this series of free courses from LinkedIn Learning on the topics of unconscious bias, allyship, inclusive conversations, and more.Hire Civility Partners. We can help you focus on strengthening the culture of your organization and ensure everyone can thrive in a workplace that celebrates a culture of respect, inclusivity, diversity and collective wellbeing.

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1 Minute to Benchmark Your Organization

There’s been a lot of information going around about mask and vaccine mandates, return to work policies, and flexible work. There has been a whole lot less information going around about the most important topic: People.

We are curious about the people component of managing COVID and returning to work. With so much out there about physical safety, it’s important to understand the extent to which we’ve lost track of psychological safety.

We want to know what you’re up to. All you have to do is click this link right here, and answer 11 easy questions. It’ll take you 1 minute or less to complete.

In return, you’ll receive the results to benchmark your organization against over 1,000 other companies.

Yes, we are aiming for 1,000+ respondents, so please share this survey with your friends, colleagues and neighbors! The more feedback we get, the better you can benchmark how your organization does in comparison to others.

We appreciate your time and feedback!

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What Stories Are Floating Around Your Workplace?

Last week we wrote about the internal and external dialogue one might have when considering whether to report bad behavior. It had us thinking about what might have been going through the minds of anyone employed in Cuomo’s office, as they witnessed or were told about inappropriate behavior from one of the most powerful men in the country. Were they afraid to be a whistleblower, afraid of retaliation, afraid of losing their jobs, afraid of the wrath whistleblowers so often face?

 Speaking up takes immense amounts of courage and we need more people to do so. Or maybe you’re ready, but your organization isn’t. As Melissa Gira Grant noted in her NY Times opinion piece this week, “Andrew Cuomo Didn’t Do This Alone”. For example, there are allegations that Cuomo’s senior staff discussed discrediting the first brave woman to come forward. Can you imagine participating in that conversation? Now, to date, 11 more have spoken up. Indeed, Cuomo didn’t do this alone. He fostered a work environment that was riddled with intimidation and retaliation, and of course others followed suit. It became the fabric of the culture in the Governor’s office, and that behavior was normalized along with the excuses for it. That narrative, the one that Cuomo and many other people who worked there told themselves, worked for years – until it didn’t. We could go on about harassment prevention training, coaching abrasive leaders, and organizational culture change (and we will at the end of this blog post), but a good lesson learned is to stop and think about the narratives you tell yourself and your peers about your workplace. The reality of your workplace is socially constructed, and it develops through interactions with others. So, here’s an exercise to help you understand the socially constructed reality at your workplace, and what narratives need to change. Step 1. Journal (i.e., write narratives) about your workplace, both good and bad. You could even run an exercise with your team to discuss what narratives are floating around your workplace. Here are some brainstorming questions to get you started:What are the stories we tell about our history? (e.g., how we started, how far we’ve come, the owner’s personality, that time the COO did that one thing that everyone still talks about)What are the stories we tell about clients? (e.g., Do we celebrate them or complain about them? What client stories do we tell?)What are the stories we tell about our employees? (e.g., the one person in IT who seems frustrated all the time, the story about that one employee who told inappropriate jokes, the one employee who’s clearly the CEO’s favorite)Step 2. Marinate in the stories to see what you can learn from them, and where you need to consciously focus on changing them. Here are some more brainstorming questions:How long has the narrative been told? How has it morphed over time?What outcomes do these narratives present, both good and bad?What is their impact on me personally and professionally, on others, on customers, and on the organization?Where did these narratives originate from?Do others share these same narratives? Who, and what do we do now that we’ve recognized it?How can we lean into the good stories, and start changing the negative ones? Don’t wait to take a good hard look at the culture of your organization. The stories people tell influence your culture in a big way. Uncover those stories, analyze them, and determine how to use them or change them, and that’s a big giant step towards a positive work culture. Sincerely, Catherine and Civility Partners’ newest team member, Kathy Grey (So excited Kathy has joined our team! She’s dropped knowledge on over 400 international organizations, educational institutions, and conferences in the realm of systems change, diversity and inclusion, and bullying prevention. Before joining me here at Civility Partners, Kathy was the VP of an awarding-winning non-profit, No Bully, where she led a team of 30 trainers and consultants changing school district cultures across the country. She’s also the Senior Education Advisor for Power of Zero, a London based charity.) P.S. We are here to help you stay out of hot water. Check out our harassment prevention training, our coaching program. It’s designed specifically for leaders engaging in toxic, abrasive, and disruptive behaviors and our employee survey and culture change work. And if you missed the link from last week’s blog and want to be sure everyone at your company feels safe to be an ally, here it is again.

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Are you suurrre your workforce will report toxic behavior?

Recently I saw this article on HR Dive (a great enewsletter, by the way). It’s an interview with Wharton School professor G. Richard Shell, who recently released the book, “The Conscience Code.” Shell talks about the internal and external dialogue one might have when considering whether to report bad behavior. Keeping in mind that people who report unethical behavior are called whistleblowers, that leaves a person in this position to think, “Well, I have to be a whistleblower… or not.” It’s easy to decide, “Welp, I’d rather not” because whistleblowers are, by nature of speaking up against others in the group, disloyal to the group. They’re tattlers; a quality we all learned to stay away from when we were little. But they’re also courageous and ready to jump off a cliff. Shell offers up the term, “a person of conscience,” to replace “whistleblower,” to remind us that people who speak up should be role models and not given a bad rap. You can count on them to support your company’s values. You need them. Anyone who considers reporting toxic behavior to a manager or HR is indeed a person of a conscience. Whether or not they take the plunge is dependent upon the organization’s culture, however. In our experience running allyship training for thousands of people over the years, we’ve spotted five clear reasons people don’t report bad behavior to HR, or speak up within their own team to address the behavior at that level: They fear retaliation from the organization and/or the perpetrator of bad behavior.They fear reporting the behavior will make it worse for targets.They don’t know what to say or how to say it (paralysis by analysis).They see themselves as bystanders who should keep their nose out of other people’s business, or the target has asked them not to get involved.They believe their responsibility to report behavior starts with illegal harassment or discrimination. They’ve not been told that the gray area leading up to that – incivility, microaggressions, sarcastic and inappropriate jokes, unprofessionalism – should be reported too.So, consider what drives people to fear retaliation and how you as an HR professional or leader can overcome that. How can you convince people speaking out is acceptable and encouraged? How can you show your workforce they will be supported if they get involved? Consider what messages your organization sends, or doesn’t send, that signals retaliation is a real possibility. Do you have bullying behavior at the top? Does one person consistently get a hall pass for bad behavior because of their ability to bring in clients? Do people make inappropriate jokes that are brushed aside? If this type of behavior is not being addressed, your organization is inviting people to think twice before speaking up. Also consider how you respond to complaints of behavior that isn’t illegal. Do you downplay the issue by asking the complainer to work it out on their own? Do you stick to the legal definition of a hostile work environment, thereby downplaying the complaint because bullying isn’t technically a hostile work environment? Do you come across as dismissive because you have other pressing issues on your plate (ahem, COVID)? Unfortunately, HR has a bad rap among targets of workplace bullying and harassment and they have a long way to go to rebuild trust. Have a peek at this 5 min section of my keynote at the International Association for Workplace Bullying and Harassment, for example, where I highlight some research on this point. You could also peruse any workplace bullying support group on Facebook, and be ready to cringe at the commentary about HR. You’ve also got to teach people how to be an ally for themselves and others. It’s not a natural skill to jump into something that our instinct marks as dangerous to survival. Give your workforce clear and tangible tools for identifying even low-level unacceptable behavior and speaking up within their own teams. And set clear expectations around their getting involved. Help your workforce see that if they observe ugly behavior, they are in fact not inactive and passive bystanders, they are involved whether they want to be or not. They must either address the behavior in their team or report it to HR because they are people of conscience.  In the end, a culture of speaking up doesn’t develop with a few trainings. It is indeed an organizational culture issue and must be addressed as such. You’ve got to find ways to infuse psychological safety into the everyday lives of your workforce. We’ve had enough anxiety these last 18 months to last a lifetime, and it doesn’t appear to be ending anytime soon. Be a place where people feel comfortable and safe to be themselves, and you will have a loyal following in your workforce. Sincerely, Catherine P.S. Check out my LinkedIn Learning course, From Bystander to Upstander. I made it free for everyone for the next 24-hours so you and your team can watch it even if you don’t have a subscription.

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5 Tips for Reopening the Workplace + 2 Fantastic Resources

As we transition back to “normal,” employees are going to need extra support to help them through the extremely disruptive experience of the last 18 months. So far, however, it appears there’s a gap in perceptions of how supportive employers have actually been.

These numbers show we have a lot of work to do, particularly because talent is hard to find and keep these days. Savvy employers will be mindful of employee needs as, “the ‘anywhere’ workforce can require leaders… to adopt more empathetic leadership models that prioritize employee well-being and to champion flexible and inclusive cultures” (Mark Foster, SVP, IBM Global Business Services). 

As I shared in my most recent LinkedIn Learning course on flexible work, for example, employees are willing to take some serious pay cuts to work from home, and flexible work is a way to showcase your commitment to diversity and inclusion.

I hear you asking what are some other ways to show empathy, prioritize well-being, and create an inclusive company culture beyond offering flexible work. Luckily we wrote an ebook on the topic the first time we thought COVID was coming to end in 2020, and we dug it up to share some tips here. It’s perfectly relevant this second time around.

Here are five tips to show employees you care:

Remind people they belong by engaging in some post-COVID onboarding. Employees will feel uneasy about their role in the organization post COVID-19, and a warm welcome can go a long way. Brainstorm ways to reconnect employees with the workplace and the organization itself. Get out your onboarding program and figure out how you can apply it to your returning workforce. Check out this article, fantastic resource number one, if you need some inspiration.Set an example by sharing your own emotions. Although everyone plays a role in establishing company culture, leadership has the power to set the tone. If you share your own emotions others may follow suit. Don’t be shy to talk about how it was to be remote, the challenges you faced, and your ups and downs. Employees will build camaraderie around this tough time they’ve gone through together, and will get to know each other better, which encourages collaboration.Hold regular check-ins with employees. Many leaders, managers and supervisors instituted regular check-ins with employees to ensure open communication while everyone worked remotely. Continue this practice in-person, as it’s effective to individually reach out to employees and makes it more likely for them to come forward about what they are going through. Use this list of questions, your second awesome resource, for inspiration about what to ask.Help employees remain cognizant and aware of their own emotional states. There are several emotional intelligence apps out there to assist individuals with their emotional wellbeing. The information isn’t for you to collect, but it’s important to encourage employees to stop and consider how they’re feeling from day to day. Invest in offering this or other types of apps such as meditation, journaling, or happiness, to show employees their mental health and wellbeing is important to you.Use your core values to inspire ideas. It’s important to take a look at your core values and identify how they may change as you reopen the workplace and develop a new normal. Mental health and wellbeing should be included in that conversation. Review your core values and let them inspire your mental health and wellness programs.

This is an excerpt from our Reopening the Workplace eBook.

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