Businesses today face a unique moment in which doubling down on safety and their workers’ well-being can serve as a turning point for trust and loyalty. New research from Deloitte Digital explores what safety and cleanliness requirements employees are looking for as they start to work from stores, restaurants, or offices again, and strategies businesses can implement in response, writes Charlie Buchanan, principal, Deloitte Consulting.
The compounding effects of COVID, civil unrest, and economic disruption are creating unprecedented stress for today’s workforce. With “normal†in the rearview mirror, the “new normal†means something different for every person.
And while collective uncertainty and hardship homogenize a population in many respects, it can also create a set of challenges unique to workers and employers that goes beyond general COVID-19 fears: from potential layoffs and reopening work environments to the rapidly evolving workplace landscape.
In April 2020, Deloitte Digital examined the human experience, or HXâ„¢, of over 28,000 Americans and the significant behavioral and emotional shifts that have taken place in the workplace amid the impact of COVID-19. From Deloitte’s Global State of the Consumer trackerOpens a new window , we learned that
- 63% of consumers are concerned about the health of their families.
- 40% are concerned about losing their jobs.
- 28% are worried about returning to their workplace.
It’s not uncommon for organizations to respond by going into survival mode in times of such stress –making bets on reopening regulations, cutting jobs, and employing a customer-first mentality – sometimes at the expense of employees.
However, times of upheaval and disruption can be an opportunity as much as a challenge – a chance to refocus internally and connect more deeply to cultivate trust with employees. Businesses today face a unique moment in which doubling down on safety and their workers’ well-being can also serve as a turning point for trust and loyalty. This isn’t just a time to survive – it’s a golden opportunity to deepen trust and lay necessary groundwork for the future.
Learn More: With or Without a Global Pandemic, Prioritize Employee Mental Health
Cultivating Employee Trust Has Proven Business Impact
Finding ways to strengthen trust between workers and their employers is critical, and not just because it’s the “feel good†thing to do – it is essential for the health of the business.
When our team drilled down into why an employee trusts their employer, humanity – genuinely caring for others’ experience and well-being – emerged as one of the four signals that can be an indicator for trust measurement. Employees who feel they are treated humanely are more than twice as likely to take on additional responsibility and feel motivated to work, according to Deloitte’s Trust researchOpens a new window . Meanwhile, during COVID-19, 82% of customers said they are more likely to purchase from a business that ensures their employees’ safety and well-being.
However, right now, businesses may not be doing enough. According to our HX in Uncertainty studyOpens a new window , businesses aren’t viewed as trusted leaders in this moment of crisis – by consumers or employees. From an economic perspective, nearly a third of consumers view a business or organization’s support of its employees as critical to their future relationship.
Employee trust is simply fractured, with only 9% of those surveyed saying they view their employer as a trusted source of information on how businesses should reopen.
It makes sense that workers are distressed and uncertain about their future if their employer is engaging in or contemplating layoffs. This stress can dramatically impact workers’ experience and therefore chip away at trust.
Customers are also paying attention: of those surveyed, 70% said they are more likely to visit a business, organization, or government agency that tries to keep as many employees on the payroll as possible.
With a moral and business case for building and repairing the trust between business and employee, where do we go from here?
3 Steps to Increase Trust Between Employers and Employees
In this moment of crisis, the opportunity is ripe for rebuilding trust. What worked pre-COVID-19 – cookie-cutter pulse surveys and inconsistent well-being check-ins – is likely not enough today because the stakes are higher and workforces under more stress than before.
But even while organizations are under outsized constraints, they can still increase trust if they take three essential steps.
1. Make the working experience more human
There is pressure for organizations to return to operational stability, though doing so without a human touch can seem tone-deaf and create additional dissonance.
So how can organizations react?
Approaching the employee experience through a lens of humanity and indexing more heavily to acknowledge the reality of where people are will likely go a long way.
According to Deloitte’s HX survey, 56% of Americans want their virtual interactions to feel more human, which has implications for HR support. To help employees feel such a connection touches such as using video call technology for well-being resources and offering work-from-home support or assistance for childcare during COVID-19 communicate that an organization prioritizes its people as well as its bottom line.
With all the changes that have occurred within an organization, there are opportunities to engage with employees more meaningfully by meeting them where they are. Creating an intentional space to reset the expectations for ways of working, verbalizing and listening to each other’s needs, and creating mutual commitments as work resumes can develop a sense of community and humanity that is also focused on business outcomes.
Although such actions can be challenging as big capital projects resume and organizations rush to retain some sense of normalcy, it’s essential to recognize that employees may find it jarring to pick up where they left off – especially in the wake of possible layoffs.
Part of being human is taking such measures the extra mile by ensuring more humane communication as work resumes. Work isn’t business as usual right now, and it can be powerful to say so.
2. Address short-term needs while investing in long-term business imperatives
There is an opportunity to retool existing solutions to address specific problems without over-investing time and resources into short-term needs. Leveraging technology such as ERP systems that don’t use full functionality or virtual teaming systems such as Teams or Slack, for example, can enhance collaboration. These are incredibly powerful tools in a remote environment. Still, it is vital to revisit meeting and working norms to prevent seemingly endless video calls from becoming one more stressor.
Rather than building long-term solutions to short-term problems, it can be impactful to creatively partner with other organizations to solution at a rapid pace and develop more dynamic short-term impacts.
Ask yourself:
- What does my organization need now but won’t when COVID-19 has subsided?
- What investments would benefit the business and its people in both the short and long term?
For instance, there may be immediate safety needs that shouldn’t be ignored but that may not require as much an investment in the long term as current health concerns subside. Looking to other organizations or partnerships to deliver on these safety needs might be a more financially prudent option than investing in a fixed organizational capability.
On the other hand, the ability to work remotely part or full time may continue to have its benefits long after COVID-19’s threat has dissipated. These choices will benefit employees in the long term by enabling more flexibility – and trust in their productive use of that flexibility will, in turn, reinforce employee trust.
3. Redefine what success and “done†means
If employees are being asked to collectively accomplish the same amount of work with fewer teammates and financial resources, consider redefining what success looks like. Much of the workforce is stressed, and many businesses are not operating or functioning at pre-COVID-19 levels.
Reevaluating the metrics of success amid these new circumstances can empower your workforce to recalibrate their efforts in this time of crisis. Reframing toward “good is good enough†allows organizations to display humanity and compassion.
Working together to redefine outcomes and overall work product can remove unnecessary obstacles and ensure working methods that optimize output and well-being.
Learn More: How HR Can Use Employee Experience Index Data on Engagement and Technology in 2020
The Employer-Employee Relationship Is Paramount
Now more than ever before, the employee-employer relationship is paramount. Not only is valuing employees the right thing to do, but the relationship directly impacts the bottom line. Customers respond to such emphasis as well. 75% of Americans say they are more likely to visit a business that requires gloves and masks for employees, according to Deloitte’s HX survey.
Customers look to employee safety to gauge their own safety, and employees treated humanely are twice as likely to positively rate/review their employer online, according to Deloitte’s Trust Survey.
Organizations that approach this delicate situation in balance to go past a transactional view and apply humanity will likely see that treating all customers, employees, and partners with respect allows the ecosystem to help lift the organization through a crisis and beyond.
What safety and cleanliness requirements employees will look for as they start to work from offices? Do share your thoughts with us on LinkedInOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , or FacebookOpens a new window .