Strategies for improving the employee experience and successfully adapting to work now

The seismic impacts of the global pandemic required organizations to rapidly adapt to the changing nature of work. Pandemic-driven shifts in working norms, including remote working and an emphasis on employee health and safety, will continue to shape the future of work in 2021 and beyond. Organizations navigating new working norms must evolve workplace strategies to help employees stay healthy, engaged and productive.

Moving into 2021, companies are taking a more holistic approach to the employee experience, embracing strategies geared toward improving employee well-being and boosting their engagement. This work is not easy but will be necessary if organizations are going to adjust in a post-COVID-19 era. Now more than ever companies must embrace the notion that caring for employees wellness can pay off when it comes to their bottom line.

Supporting employee wellness and mental health

The pandemic has taken a toll on mental health, significantly elevating stress, anxiety and depression. October 2020 data from the Kaiser Family Foundation, found that 37.7% of adults in the U.S. reported symptoms of anxiety and/or depressive disorder, up from 11% in 2019.

Employers recognizing this are increasingly investing in mental health initiatives that address issues such as employee stress, burnout and anxiety. Analyst firm Gartner noted that the COVID-19 pandemic brought well-being to the forefront making employers more aware of the impact of mental health. The firm found that by late March 2020, 68% of organizations had introduced at least one new wellness benefit to aid employees during the pandemic.

Read more: 10 companies with the worst employee burnout

These mental health and wellness programs include providing counseling resources, offering mental health days, hosting virtual yoga, Pilates and meditation classes, increasing healthcare benefit programs and allowing flexible work schedules.

Employee mental and physical health has bottom-line implications for organizations, impacting everything from job performance to productivity and retention to employee engagement.

Gartner’s 2020 ReimagineHR Employee Survey found that “employers that support employees with their life experience see a tangible increase (more than 20%) in the number of employees reporting better mental and physical health. Supportive employers can also realize a 21% increase in the number of high performers compared to organizations that don’t provide that same degree of support to their employees. In 2021, employer support for the entire employee life experience will become table stakes in employee benefits.”

Expanding flexible working policies

Employers are rethinking strategies for how work gets done, providing flexible working arrangements that allow their employees to care for children and elderly family members, eliminate commute times and reduce commuting costs.

Remote working is expected to remain in the way work gets done long after the pandemic. In fact, a report by Verizon Business found that 78% of business leaders expect to increase remote working moving forward.

Job seekers who experienced the benefits of pandemic-driven remote working now expect flexible working policies to be a part of the employee experience offered by potential employers. Employers are responding by adopting flexible and remote working arrangements, with 44% of employers now having official flexible working policies in place, up from 24% pre-COVID-19, according to a recent ADP Research Institute study.

Gartner projects that flexibility will shift from location to time noting that “while enabling employees to work remotely became commonplace across 2020 (and will continue this year and beyond), the next wave of flexibility will be around when employees are expected to work.” Gartner’s 2020 ReimagineHR Employee Survey revealed that “organizations that offer employees flexibility over when, where and how much they work, see 55% of their work force as high performers.”

Creating activities that connect and engage employees

With remote working reshaping working paradigms, organizations are finding a need to develop activities that help ensure employees remain motivated and productive at work. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), during the pandemic, 35% of employers grappled with changes in employee productivity.

Read more: Employers have hit a wall with remote communication and engagement

Providing opportunities that allow coworkers to interact are helping organizations create a more connected, engaged and satisfied workforce which can translate to better business performance. Gallup estimates that highly engaged business units realize a 41% reduction in absenteeism and a 17% increase in productivity and result in 21% greater profitability.

Companies are fostering a sense of community and connectedness by hosting virtual happy hours and scavenger hunts, setting up office-wide wellness challenges and establishing mentoring programs that connect more senior staff with less experienced colleagues. They are also encouraging company-wide volunteer and charitable activities that can be implemented virtually such as making cards for hospitals to distribute to their patients or shopping online for school supplies to donate to children who need them.

Organizations are using these and other activities to help employees feel less isolated, create a positive company culture and increase employee engagement.

The global pandemic is having a transformational impact on the workplace that will last well into 2021 and beyond. To successfully move forward and adapt to the future of work, companies will need to invest in employee mental and physical health programs, meet employee expectations for flexible working policies and provide the connected experiences that increase employee engagement and productivity.