After the Biggest Working Upheaval in History, Employers Attention Now Turns to Remote Workforce Skill Transformation

There is no doubt that the current impact of COVID has created a world where we live with high levels of uncertainty that affect business planning, as well as the ability to manage employees closely and effectively.  This is here to stay and as a result organisations are faced with new challenges in managing KPI’s, accountability models, maintaining consistent standards of practice and impacts to the relational cohesion needed for positive team performance.

In a recent article from Mckinsey & Company this statement was made:

“Given the physical gaps and the psychological distance created by the pandemic, companies need new tools and approaches to engage & motivate employees.”

The demand on flexible work structures has created the need to upscale operations far beyond anything we have experienced in the past. This has created new challenges and management complexities, forcing us to find new ways to maintain core business functions. Many organisation’s surveyed claimed substantial increase in productivity in the initial stages of the pandemic, but as the flexible work life became the norm, this trend has now turned downwards considerably.

This means organisations are now forced to turn their attention to more training support strategies, for skill transformation for remote workers. In order to achieve positive levels of employee engagement and improve productivity, organisations are now identifying that there needs to be a repurposing with skills training and an adoption of a more customised capability assessment model, in order to close the performance and skill gaps.

Authentic and Transparent Leadership Strategies:

Employees will function effectively with leaders who are able to demonstrate authenticity and transparency. This will be a core hub of effective remote and hybrid teams. High priority given to building trust, along with strong and robust communication strategies, will create committed and motivated team members who feel valued for their contribution.

Leadership Roles Requiring Specific Hybrid Skills Sets:

Leaders will not be able to draw too much off traditional approaches. It will no longer be high transactional focus with a lower attention to employee needs. In order for the Hybrid/Remote model to be effective, leaders will need a focused skillset to empower productive and connected teams.

Output Measured Versus Employee Time Input:

The traditional approach of time given for a certain money value has to be reinvented for a remote model. With other environmental factors and responsibilities, distractions or work life balance issues that come with working in remote environments, employers need flexible arrangements to support effective workflow. This means that measurement of performance and value needs a higher importance placed on output metrics and not technical hours of agreed employement. This may also require training support for staff to understand how to create relevant, productive habits in a flexible work model.

Mental Health Support Strategies = Employer of Choice:

Human beings are relational creatures by nature and remote models can quickly produce fragmentation and loss of team cohesion. If there is little to no strategy to support the mental health of the team, morale can easily start to suffer, effecting motivation and performance. It will become common place for employees to view a prospective organisation’s mental health and well being plan, to assess whether they feel thay can thrive in a potential role/company. Mental health support plans will be a bigger part of becoming an employer of choice for many who are assessing their future job prospects.

Broader Access of Talent Resource:

The Hybrid/Remote model can expand your talent reach by considering workers you may not have considered in the past. Employers can throw a wider net to catch talent that may sit outside of their geographical location, in order to aquire the best skills possible for the role. This model can open up a variety of diverse access opportunities.

Employee Needs and Motivation Given Higher Priority:

The needs of the employee have to take on a much higher focus, to maintain engagement and perfomance output. What does the team need in order to create productivity, synergy and cohesion? This may differ from person to person and therefore require a more detailed strategy to support the team on a micro and macro level.

Flexible Methods in How Performance is Managed:

Given the need to support time flexibility in a remote model, a diversity of performance management methods may be required. Establishing the KPI’s in a remote job description may need to be adjusted to support the style and workflow of the employee.

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