Lessons from Quarantine

Woman Working From Home With Baby

Please visit our COVID-19 resources page with more information for business owners and employees.

Transiting to working from home taught us many lessons, both personally and professionally. 

At Nextep, we’ve listened to the challenges our employees faced while transitioning to the new normal. We wanted to share what we’ve learned so far in hopes that it can help other businesses tackling the same challenges and preparing for the next crisis.

Communication is key

When the world and your workforce are changing rapidly and no two days look the same, overcommunication is the name of the game. Your people want to know what leadership is thinking, what plans they’re putting in place, and if they can expect more changes to their job. 

In light of the unpredictability, we implemented weekly updates from our corporate HR department. These updates include department shoutouts, company retention and hiring plans, and updates from government leaders on stay-at-home orders. 

Our CEO, Brian Fayak, also made himself available for Q&A sessions. Employees submitted questions, and nothing was off-limits. He answered them all!

It’s important to keep teams communicating with one another. When your employees are used to interacting and collaborating with their coworkers, it’s essential to maintain the same level of camaraderie virtually. Here are some ideas to keep communication flowing: 

  • Add team huddles to start and/or end the day
  • Block out time on your calendar to have an open video chat for anyone to join 
  • Have a virtual team lunch or happy hour
  • Provide constant communication from leadership and have an open-door policy 

Check on your employees

Without a doubt, the pandemic has negative implications for businesses across the country, but it also has negative human implications. Some employees had to homeschool their kids through the spring semester, others with compromised immune systems have had to take extra precautions. Whatever the situation, each person’s life has been changed in some way and deserves attention. 

Our teams have been busier than ever helping our clients navigate the changes. They accomplished so much and are serving so many clients, and our leadership sees it as their job to serve our teams. Leaders check on their teams frequently. Sometimes it’s a simple video chat, other times leaders are taking on tasks to alleviate the workload. 

Here are a few ways to check in with and encourage your employees to care for their mental health:

  • Give them access to mental health experts
    • Nextep clients can access free counseling services through our employee assistance program, Resources for Living
  • Encourage paid time off (PTO) and let your team leave early if their work is done 
  • Schedule a video chat to talk about how your team is doing 
  • Be flexible. Personal lives have been turned upside down, give them the time they need to care for themselves and their families

Embrace technology

For Nextep, it was important to ensure our employees didn’t miss a step when transitioning to working from home. Our clients need us to be available, and our tech-forward initiatives helped us adjust quickly and nimbly. 

First and foremost, employees need a computer at home and access to their work files. We use a cloud-based system, which makes it simple for employees to access everything they need remotely. Then, we started addressing the more complex needs including extra monitors or more powerful equipment.

Here’s what you can do now to be prepared for a remote workforce:

  • Ensure your employees have laptops for a quick and easy transition
  • Store your files on a cloud-based system
  • Set up a virtual network so your employees can access their work desktop remotely 
  • Invest in extra equipment, whether it’s spare monitors, adapters, or wireless keyboards, figure out what will help your employees seamlessly work from home

Incorporate new ideas

Much of what we’ve learned ignited new ideas we can continue to use moving forward. One of the biggest lessons for us was that many of our employees enjoyed the flexibility of working from home, and, quite frankly, they’re really dang good at it. This encouraged us to create a new policy that allows flexibility in working from home from time to time going forward. 

Beyond that, we’ll continue to focus on the wellbeing of our employees, having fun whenever possible, and celebrating each other often (even it’s it virtual). 

Whatever the changes, listen to your employees’ needs and keep up the great work! We’re all in this together.

Also on Nextep

The Answer Depends on Your State…For Now As we reported in January, non-compete agreements preventing employees from working for competitors are becoming increasingly unenforceable. The FTC is currently working on banning them at a federal level, but unless and until that decision comes, non-competes are enforced at a state (and sometimes even local) level.  As […]
Read more
When hiring workers, knowing whether they’re employees or independent contractors is essential. The difference between the two can significantly impact your business, including your tax liability, your liability for workers’ compensation claims, the worker’s rights and benefits, and your ability to control how your workers do their jobs. Read all about it here, and check […]
Read more
Employers Must Now Prove “Substantial Increased Cost” to Deny Religious Accommodation Recently, the Supreme Court ruled that employers must now demonstrate a substantially increased cost to deny an employee’s request for a religious accommodation.  This ruling, which comes in the case of Groff v. DeJoy, clarifies the standard for “undue hardship” under Title VII of […]
Read more
Here’s How the Recent Ruling Affects Your Company You may have read that in late June, the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions. Here’s the implication this ruling could mean for you as a small or medium-sized business owner. To be clear, the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action does not explicitly […]
Read more
NLRA Protections: They’re Not Just for Unions In the intricate fabric of company dynamics, employee protections exist, even in non-unionized companies, as granted by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). These protections give employees the freedom to engage in open discussions on various workplace matters, even those conversations that may make employers a tad uneasy. […]
Read more
Have you ever felt stuck in a job that doesn’t fully utilize your skills or expertise? Or have you ever been a part of a team that just doesn’t seem to have the right skills to do the job effectively? This is a common problem in the workplace, known as the skills gap. But don’t […]
Read more
Start planning for your future superstar. What would happen to your company if you lose a key leader or employee tomorrow? It’s a tough question, but necessary. You want to ensure your company can continue, even without the lifeblood that keeps it running smoothly today. That’s where succession planning comes in. Succession planning is identifying […]
Read more
Let’s talk about something that can make a huge difference in our work lives – Emotional Intelligence (EI).  Emotional Intelligence is like a superpower that helps us navigate our own emotions and understand the emotions of others. It’s all about self-awareness and empathy, which leads to better communication, stronger relationships, and improved decision-making. It’s like […]
Read more
Maximize Your Team’s Career Potential Ongoing employee training is crucial to any successful business. It’s the foundation upon which we build our success, the cornerstone of growth and progress. But here’s the catch: we can’t just train our employees once when they’re hired and call it done. We must all be perpetual students, learning new […]
Read more
How can you prioritize ethics in the workplace? Leaders play a critical role in shaping the ethics and values of a workplace. Here are 5 surefire ways that you, as a leader, can be modeling ethics from the top down: Lead by example: You set the tone for the rest of the organization, so it’s […]
Read more
Help support your employees in a tough economy Let’s talk about supporting employees in a tough economy. It’s a challenging time for everyone, but it’s imperative that employees feel valued and supported during tough times. Here are some ways companies can care for employees in a tough economy: Offer flexible work arrangements: Offer flexible work […]
Read more
Thriving in Turbulent Times Growing your business during an economic downturn can be challenging, but it’s not impossible. With the right approach and creativity, you can position your business for success, even in tough economic times. Here are some tips to help you grow your company, even when the economy isn’t looking so hot: 1. […]
Read more

Download Our App