David is a veteran human resources leader and President of IQTalent Partners, an on-demand talent acquisition and executive search firm.
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Just 12 short months ago, no one considered changing behavior due to “an abundance of caution” or spoke about the “new normal.” Social distancing was just something we remembered from awkward middle school dances. Living through a global pandemic will bind our generation together more than any other life experience, and the lessons we have learned will resonate forever.
Because of the changes we made to keep businesses open and the economy alive, albeit on life support, the world of work is permanently altered. But now that cities and states are lessening restrictions on group gatherings, restaurants and business, does this mean many of us soon will return to the office? Creating a return-to-work strategy will be paramount in the coming months, and employees will expect their leadership teams to have a strong (and safe) plan.
Many corporate leaders pivoted early during the nationwide quarantine to remote work and engaged in remote hiring and recruiting strategies. Despite attempts to maintain our business, we unfortunately suffered through staff reductions and furloughs with a record number of more than 2.3 million layoffs nationwide in 2020. As Covid-19 vaccines roll out and we return to normal, here are four things to consider to stay ahead of the curve as you consider your company’s return-to-work strategy.
1. Will a return to work mean a return to the office?
This is a multi-faceted question, and the best answer is that we should be returning to the office in some sort of hybrid office-remote status. We have learned that working remotely works, and it works for many more positions than we realized previously. We have also learned that employees like it: According to a report released by Dice, more than 60% of today’s technical employees want to work from home at least 50% of the time. The pandemic has proven that remote work is as productive as in-office work, perhaps more so in some cases. In that same Dice study, 71% of workers listed remote work as the most important factor in considering a move to new company.
The last 12 months have opened the door to flexible work environments; as leaders, we have learned what works best in a remote environment and where remote work has its shortcomings. Creating a strategy for your workforce that offers flexibility around remote work while still maintaining an in-office environment that promotes teamwork and innovation while fostering a strong culture will be a workforce trend in the post-pandemic world.
2. Should we hire back full-time employees or start with contract workers?
Hiring has returned to many industries, but the future of the economy, as well as the pandemic, remains uncertain. It is a situation that makes headcount planning more challenging than usual. Full-time employees are a better choice for the long-term stability and overall culture of the company. However, the risk of an economic downturn is still a reality, causing talent leaders to be concerned about the hazard of adding to the headcount too soon. Contract or freelance workers can mitigate this risk in many roles, and some workers even prefer the freedom that comes with contract work. A hybrid strategy of full-time hires while leveraging a few contractors for the short-term may be the best option while we are still navigating the future of the economy.
3. Which hiring practices do I need to reevaluate?
Hiring today is much different than it was a year ago. Nearly every talent manager has hired at least one person via a video interview. The question is, do we continue virtual interviews and a remote hiring process or return to on-site interviews? If you choose to return to the office, hiring managers should consider screening candidates for Covid-19 (temperature check, written questionnaire, etc.) before he or she enters the office. In addition, HR professionals need to consider how to handle start dates and on-boarding if a new hire contracts Covid-19 during this process. It is likely one or more new hires may contract the novel coronavirus, so having a plan that addresses how to manage this situation ahead of time will avoid a stressful situation later.
4. Should we create an official Covid-19 policy?
If any number of employees are returning to the office, a Covid-19 policy will be invaluable. Decide if you will screen employees upon coming to the office. If you have a flexible work environment where different people are on-site every day, you may want to consider a system of tracking who is in the office in case an employee is diagnosed with Covid-19 and it becomes necessary to contact trace. It is imperative to create safety protocols and communicate how those protocols will be enforced. Your policy does not need to cover every detail and every possible situation, but it should outline the general policies, expectations and systems that employees can expect upon returning to work.
Hopefully, we will not always use terms like “new normal” and “post-pandemic.” Eventually, this crisis will be a part of our past, and it won’t affect our everyday work lives in the way it does today. Until then, creating a strategy for employees to return to work and actually return to the office will allow for a smoother transition and a safer world for everyone.
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