The aftermath of the epidemic that swept the world has changed the way we work. Remote work, work from home which was an exception before the epidemic, has become the standard way of working today. this has resulted in overlapping office hours with personal life and face has taken over the entire time available previously for personal life. The virtual meetings which seem to go on forever have put additional stress on employees besides the extended work hours. All these factors have led to severe stress and burnout and health-related disorders have become commonplace.
A survey conducted by Microsoft shows that more than 50% of employees around the world have prioritised health and well-being over work. The mass resignations witnessed last year are a fallout of this factor. Employees chose to quit jobs that do not prioritise their health and chose to look for alternate work where health gets an important consideration. However, it is a fact that people do want to work but surely not at the cost of their health and well-being.
However, work does not have to be so gloomy and the work pressure may not be the real cause. What people find demotivating is the lack of substance in the work they do, the energy they need to expend to get the work done and the tradeoff they need to make between their family time and the demands of their work.
Here are some ways in which the situation can be transformed and help employees feel energised and motivated to do their work.
Initiate career conversations.
Remote work has made employees realise the meaning of the work they do and they would like to be sure that the work they do would lead to career advancement and make a greater impact. Many would like to discuss these aspects with their leaders but choose not to initiate the conversation. team leaders must start this conversation with their employees and make it a regular practice. This would help employees discuss their career aspirations and also help receive feedback on areas they should improve upon.
Create rituals to foster belonging.
Remote work has led to the isolation of employees and this loneliness intensifies as the stress increases. Leaders should create team rituals that ensure that it creates a sense of belonging and mutual care among team members. When there is a strong bond and understanding among team members it does not matter if the team works remotely or in person. Moreover, this bonding helps re-energise the employees and also helps them share their difficulties openly without any reservations. It can be related to work or even issues related to their personal life. They also feel safe to ask for help when required as other team members fill in for any absences that may be necessary.
Help build relationships.
Remote work has narrowed the scope of employees knowing others in the organisation as most of their work is confined to their team members and they rarely get to know other members outside their team. this can increase their sense of isolation and monotony.
Team leaders should create opportunities for people to connect with employees outside their team by creating cross-functional teams. this would help team members gain new exposure and also learn new things both on the work front and on the personal front.
It is ok to be not ok.
Team leaders should be transparent about how they prioritise their health and openly discuss their experiences on how they managed their work-related stress or even burnout. Acknowledging their vulnerability makes it safer for team members to share their problems rather than hide them.
Switch to helpful prioritisation.
In remote work, team leaders lack the visual clues they had during in-person work. this has made it challenging to trust that the employees are doing their work and being productive. Employees also feel the pressure to prove they are productive and this results in behaviours that are toxic and unproductive.
Instead of worrying if employees are working enough, it would be better to invest time in helping employees focus on what is important. Trust that the employees are doing their best and help them prioritise their work. this would increase the trust quotient and make the employees more engaged in doing purposeful work.
intervene when the interest is waning.
Companies need to decide for themselves what an energised workforce looks like and look for signals when the energy levels start dropping. Look for simple indicators like missed deadlines, being late for meetings, loss of curiosity or no interest to learn or ask questions. When team leaders notice such anomalies, they should intervene immediately. Discuss with their employees, rearrange, and redistribute work to make it easier for the employee to cope with the work and even offer a shoulder to employees to share their concerns if he wishes. Reassure people, that it is perfectly fine to step away from work without any adverse impacts.
Today’s dynamic, volatile work environment can be de-energising for many employees. Team leaders should ensure that the team gets re-energised and keep the team’s energy levels high to ensure every team member does the work he is the best at.
6 Ways to Reenergize a Depleted Team
by Ron Carucci and Kathleen Hogan
HBR 2022/11
R2G 