Designing the experience of work
Photo by Octavian Rosca on Unsplash
As we start to enjoy the warmth of the sun in the northern hemisphere and feel the grip of COVID possibly loosening with vaccines being more accessible (at least in the USA), I’m watching courageous leaders navigate the tension of supporting teams grappling with the real impact of COVID burnout and bring intentionality to the opportunity inherent in a post pandemic world.
All too often, our experience of working within an organization involves an acceptance of what is already there, or what emerges over time.
It’s very seldom an experience we intentionally design.
And yet, if there was one gift in the tragedy of the pandemic, is it the idea that ‘how things need to be’ was rather upended.
Pre-COVID workplace beliefs
Pre-pandemic there was widespread belief that:
Employees can’t be trusted to work at home, unsupervised (proven to be false with productivity remaining high as we switched to working remotely)
A workplace full of perks (think pool tables, free lunch, dogs in the office, etc.) was enough to attract and retain great talent
The role of leadership is to have all the answers and provide all the solutions.
All of these beliefs have been challenged in the last year, and persistent thoughts about ‘how things need to be’ continue to be challenged as more and more workplaces start the transition back to work post-pandemic.
I have the privilege of being on the inside of so many conversations about workplace culture and really appreciate the opportunity to talk with leaders committed to change. These leaders are taking this opportunity to bring some intentionality to the experience of their workplace, going out to their people to find out what’s working and what’s not working, and then experimenting with ways to fill those gaps.
These companies are shifting to new ways of working
Like a local tech company connecting the Not for Profit world with philanthropic dollars. Hearing from the team that they were missing the casual ‘water cooler’ conversations that develop trust, they started hosting ‘randomized coffee dates’ that connect two individuals from the company with the intention of deepening connections.
Like the education provider that changed the monthly meeting format from an information dump into a space for questions and discussion after hearing people were looking to connect and go deeper.
Like a creative agency that heard some of the challenges within their culture related to giving and receiving feedback. And realizing the impact it was having on their innovation and growth, started to explore how they might redesign some of their cultural architecture to better support an ongoing feedback conversation that was both top down and bottom up.
Like an architecture firm that has begun to explore how they might design a hybrid working culture that serves both the needs of those wanting more flexibility to work from home with the needs of an in-person studio design culture.
The common thread here is leaders who see the uncertainty created by the pandemic as a huge opportunity to bring some intentionality into ‘the way things work’. They see an opportunity to examine things that have simply emerged over time and understand where there are opportunities to design and co-create a more equitable, inclusive experience of work.
And creating valuable employee experiences
These companies have a desire to create an employee experience that allows everyone to:
Have the flexibility they need without compromising the outcomes of the business
Be supported to grow in ways that energize and empower them
Feel connected by rituals that bring people together in meaningful ways, and
Experience reward that honors the long term impact they have to the culture and success of an organization.
And what can be truly inspiring and transformational is when leaders use the intentionality of emerging stronger to support their team to weather the very real COVID burnout experienced by so many.
Do you have more inspiring stories of leaders using the uncertainty to bring intentionality to the experience of work?
Or have questions about the next steps on this journey for your team? I’d love to hear them!
And our e-book: Emerging Stronger has heaps of tips and practical tools to help you get started on this journey!
