Media agencies: thriving beyond the crisis – prepare for your ‘new normal’ workplace

As businesses are starting to look at returning to work, it’s important to consider how that will work in practice. Everyone is talking about the new normal. This article – the second in our series on how the media sector can thrive beyond the crisis – looks at how the new normal will affect your employees and what you can do to smooth their transition.

Setting the new tone

Your business has been operating a certain way for years. It worked well, expectations were understood, your employees knew the policies they had to adhere to and line managers managed their staff confidently.

At the start of the Coronavirus outbreak, you reacted and did what you needed to do to survive. You might have furloughed some employees and are likely to have employees working from home.

Now you need to consider the various changes required for returning to work, such as working location, travel requirements, working hours, job functions, internal processes and so on.

People, policies and plans

Your employees are likely to feel uncertain about the future, as this has been a long time to be either off work or working from home. It is difficult to get teams together in these times but sending your employees updates and getting them excited about the prospect of a new normal can create a feeling of camaraderie. Keeping staff in the loop and making them feel included in the future planning will help motivate them and make sure everyone is on the same page from day one.

Once you have decided on how you are going to move forward after these times, contracts and policies will need updating. New policies will need drafting and others will need amending. If you choose to make contractual changes, employees’ terms and conditions will need to be updated. This may require consultation.

Your business plan and your employees’ personal objectives will need to be amended in line with the current climate. You will need to make employees aware of the new priorities and their updated objectives. As business leaders and managers, you should keep that communication open because as the world moves on and the economy recovers, business plans will continue to evolve over the next 12 months.

Managing remote teams

The role of the line manager is about to get harder because managing employees remotely is tough. One-to-ones will be more important than ever to ensure you are fully aware of your employees’ workload, performance and capability. While the process of managing performance does not change, it can become more difficult to capture a potential issue before it develops into a problem. Consider what processes you can put in place to support your managers and your staff development.

Recruiting and onboarding is also likely to be very different. Recruiting the right candidate is hard enough, but take away face-to-face interviews and it could affect a manager’s confidence in making a decision. Teams that have always been friendly and welcoming will need to make special effort when introducing a new colleague.

With that in mind, businesses should also consider how they will continue to encourage teamwork. Social channels and team-building exercises can reduce the risk of losing the team dynamic that you have worked so hard to achieve.

Allow some breathing space

One size does not fit all. Employees work differently when they are working in a new environment with unfamiliar working practices and line managers will need to adapt to this. Consider putting your line managers on management training that specifically helps them to adapt their management style to the needs of individuals.

Although Coronavirus has pushed your business to adapt, it is a great opportunity to make some real positive changes for your organisation and your employees. Flexibility is often the most sought-after perk, so making this a permanent fixture can make your business very competitive in the recruitment market.

Get help from the experts

At Moore Kingston Smith, our HR consultants have been working with businesses to determine how their new normal will affect their employment practices. We have been supporting them in being proactive about the wide-ranging changes they intend to make.