Building Your 2021 Return to Work Strategy

Now that nearly half of US adults are fully vaccinated, businesses and people alike are itching to return to a sense of normalcy. For many companies, this means it's finally time to log off Zoom and head back into the office. After more than a year of adjusting to remote work, this won’t be an easy return for most teams. Navigating the transition will require patience, creativity and above all, clear communication. Let’s take a look at what challenges the return to work will bring, and how you can create an efficient, communicative strategy in response. 

Office Problems: The Challenges of this Change

Despite increasing excitement around lifted CDC restrictions, many adults still have a number of concerns with the return to in person work. From safety concerns to scheduling fears, understanding and addressing your workforce’s worries will be key in making a smooth transition to an in-person setting.

Even with COVID-19 cases steadily dropping across the country, healthy safety remains the top concern for employees considering returning to work. This fear can take many forms, ranging from discomfort while at work to fear of infecting family upon returning home. Many adults have also developed anxiety surrounding perceived unsafe environments, such as a crowded conference room or a mask-free office kitchen. Even with careful safety precautions in place, offices can easily become trigger points for intense post-pandemic fear. 

Comfortable social distancing hasn’t been the only benefit to a home office. While technical difficulties and noisy families made the initial transition to remote work difficult, it didn’t take long to become the new normal. Many employees began to enjoy the freedom and flexibility that came from streamlined meetings, more independent work time and no commute. Now, 40% of surveyed US adults would prefer to continue working full-time from home. Hybrid work models may help ease this transition, but many employees are going to be skeptical as to the true benefits of leaving the comfort of their homes. 

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How to Build Your Return to Work Strategy

In order to make a smooth transition back to the office, employees need to feel that these concerns are both heard and addressed by their company. By building a return to work strategy focused on safety, flexibility and transparent communication, your office can provide a comfortable work environment for your employees to thrive in for the first time in over a year. 

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1. Safety First

Whether you’ll be requiring vaccinations, putting up plexiglass, or rearranging desk layouts, meeting CDC requirements should be your number one priority as you begin inviting employees back to the office. Reviewing this checklist can help your team identify which areas of your workplace may not be currently up to par with health guidelines, such as common spaces without regular sanitation or customers in close proximity to at-risk employees. Be sure to also prioritize mental health by regularly checking in with your workforce about how safe they feel in the current office environment. 

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2. Go With the Flow

During the past year, many employees have lost modes of transportation, childcare, and other essentials that once made working in person a simple daily routine. As many struggle to reorganize their life around a structured workweek, providing additional flexibility can help reduce stress. Try providing employees with a range of possible days and times to begin returning to the office. By allowing each individual to select a schedule that works best for them, they’ll be more likely to focus on high quality work rather than worrying about who’s picking up their children. 

Need certain employees back full time ASAP? Work with individuals whose roles require them to be in office immediately to provide additional financial support for necessities including public transportation, gas, and daycare fees. 

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3. Communication is Key

Above all else, the difference between a smooth shift and a conflict-ridden change will come down to communication. If employees find themselves lost, confused or blindsided when it comes to company wide decisions, your return to work is likely to be met with pushback at every step. 

Provide constant updates to any relevant changes in schedule, safety policies, or work expectations, with a simple way for employees to voice their concerns, ask questions and get direct answers. Additionally, be sure to clearly outline workplace expectations, changes in role responsibilities and team structures, as many of these may have become blurred during the past year.

Communication methods should be as flexible as possible during this transition, able to reach employees both at home and in office. Prepare for any technology changes during this time; if a virtual training on COVID safety is only easily accessible on office computers, your remote employees will need a more accommodating learning method. 

Not sure how to guarantee each individual employee stays up to date with your return to work plan? Try rolling out a Return to Work SMS course using Arist. Our courses can be directly delivered to personal devices, at the most convenient time of day for each employee. Our course dashboard will allow you to track your employees progress, and see responses on key feedback topics such as office anxiety and team conflicts. By making Arist a part of your 2021 Return to Work strategy, you can ensure a safe, seamless transition to a new normal.