This has been a difficult time for businesses. From the start of lockdown many organisations have been engaged in crisis management, fighting hard to maintain viable revenue streams and making radical cost reductions to reflect reduced incomes. In parallel, with so many employees working remotely and many furloughed, there has been a strong focus for business leaders on the wellbeing of their people as well as the challenge of how to stay connected with both employees and customers.
Phew! Well done. You as a leader have probably made it through that phase. You have proved to be sufficiently resilient to still be here. Now you are already planning for and starting to manage the next phase.
In times of crisis people look to their leaders for clarity and direction, and you may have made a good job of providing this. Now as you seek to stabilise your business, helping people ‘stand back up’ in an evolving business climate, you probably need to re-calibrate your leadership style. You may wish to encourage more autonomy, or need more input and innovation, as you make adjustments and adopt new ways of working. In addition, although people have become accustomed to working from home during the pandemic, there is growing evidence that people feel disconnected from their workplace.
This may be the time for you to take stock and:
- Capture lessons learned during the crisis phase
- Review and reset the business strategy
- Agree (perhaps new) ways of working
- Assess what that means for leadership behaviours
Morgan Clarke can help you with research, insights, team facilitation and 1-1 business coaching.
Get in touch at clive.watkins@morgan-clarke.co.uk or call 07760160996.