Of the many challenges, you’ll face as an HR manager returning to work after the Covid-19 pandemic, helping managers motivate and engage their teams will be one of the biggest.
You’ll no doubt have faced many career challenges in the past, but none of us have ever lived through something like this. We’ve lost people. We’ve struggled with stress, anxiety, and a loss of purpose. We’ve felt lost and isolated and concerned about our health and that of the people we care about.
It’s little wonder then, that when employees return to work, motivation might be hard to come by. Everything they’ve been struggling with during the pandemic is still in the background, and now they have the added anxiety of returning to work and staying safe.
This period of time requires an adjustment of expectations on the part of managers. Motivation may be low, productivity won’t be what it was, and people will find it harder to focus.
Now is not the time to crack the whip, it’s a time for managers to show that they care and that they can be trusted to help their teams get through this difficult time so that workplaces are more harmonious and productive places to be when the world returns to some sort of normal.
How to increase employee engagement and motivation in a post-COVID-19 world
You can’t just wave a magic wand and make employees become more motivated. Increasing employee engagement and motivation is about creating the ideal conditions in the workplace so that their motivation to work hard and go the extra mile increases naturally once they have settled back into their ‘new normal’.
Demonstrate empathy
Managers will get more from employees if they show that they care and understand what they are going through. They should ask team members about their worries and concerns, what they can do for them right now, and what makes them feel even just a little bit hopeful about the future.
Listening to employees builds trust and when there is trust and mutual respect, this increases engagement and motivation.
Ask employees their opinions
If employees feel involved, this can help them feel more engaged and they’ll want to contribute more to the success of the business going forward. Managers should ask employees what they feel is needed to navigate through the challenges the business is facing. What adjustments need to be made to the way they work? What needs to change about the way the organisation does business?
If employees are consulted on things, they’ll feel valued and trusted, and managers will get far more out of them.
Keep them informed
Employees will have a lot of questions when they return to work and they’ll probably feel a bit ‘all over the place’ for a while. This is why it’s important for managers to be open and honest, and tell them exactly what they need to know. This should include things like telling them what has changed, what managers need from them, and what the priorities are in the short and longer-term. This will give employees a focus which will increase engagement and help them see the way ahead a bit more clearly.
Look out for their wellbeing
Employees who feel like managers care about their wellbeing will always do more than expected. Managers should make sure that employees are reminded of the support that’s available to them on their return to work and check in regularly to see how they’re getting on.
Reward a job well done and celebrate the wins
Nothing kills motivation more than a manager who people only hear from when something has gone wrong. It’s much easier to increase motivation and engagement when praise is given for a job well done and when the wins, no matter how small, are celebrated. Managers want teams of motivated, high-performing people who want to go the extra mile, and when they make a point of recognising and rewarding excellence, they’re far more likely to build a team just like that.
Business Owners: Do you need help turning teams around?
Once you return to work you’ll have more on your plate than ever before; from possible redundancies to changing policies, and that’s even before you get to the team issues!
You just don’t have time to sort out all the issues around managers and their teams, even though you can see that things need to improve if the business is ever going to recover and thrive way past the end of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Things can’t go on the way they are, and that’s where I come in.
I’m a safe pair of hands who’ll work alongside you to find out what’s really behind the lack of engagement and disharmony. I’ll come up with the solution you need to get things moving forward again.
Help managers build teams of engaged and productive people who go the extra mile.
Get back to loving your business and focusing on the strategic tasks that are going to make a difference and doing the work you love.
Imagine how different things could be.
Well, now you don’t have to imagine.
Book a call about how my team turnaround package can help you transform the business and feel great about what you do again.