The workforce sector has undergone several major upheavals that have transformed it entirely. These foundational changes began with the realization that COVID-19 will not simply disappear and that governmental efforts must be enacted in order to contain the spread of the virus and prevent it from claiming even more victims.
Following the social distancing regulations, organizations of all sizes and industries were suddenly forced to shift their employees to a fully remote work model. The pandemic also caused many employees to reconfigure their priorities in life. This change in mindsets has led to mass resignation as people became less and less willing to put up with stagnated wages, poor work conditions, atrocious work-life balance, few options for upwards mobility, and other factors that made them dissatisfied with their current employment.
Companies suddenly realized that they must accelerate their digital transformation processes and initiatives while also listening to and acknowledging the voices of their employees. Worker retention has become one of the top goals for any business that wishes to keep its valuable employees while preventing a potentially high turnover rate from disrupting its operations. However, what has remained equally as vital even in a completely digital work environment is making sure that only the best possible candidates get hired.
An essential step in the process of picking the right person is doing a background or a DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check with a professional service such as uCheck. Depending on the specific position, the experts can perform different levels of checks that will uncover relevant details about the candidate. The DBS check will also ensure that the company doesn’t hire individuals who have been prohibited by law from taking such jobs, saving the company from potentially devastating legal troubles.
The Importance Of Listening to Employees
The disruptive processes in the workforce sector are still active, and companies must prepare themselves for the trends that will shape the sector for the foreseeable future. For that purpose, business organizations are starting to implement employee listening strategies. Instead of relying on a single annual employee engagement survey, businesses realized that they must make timely decisions based on accurate and relevant data.
The key to this process is to listen to the workers on an ongoing basis and get their insight on several high-priority topics. Are employees satisfied with the flexibility offered by their current work model? Do they feel as connected to the company’s mission and culture even when working remotely? Also, do they have enough opportunities to socialize with their colleagues and team members even in an online work environment?
For the employee listening strategy to be successful, however, the acquired feedback must be acted upon and realized as practical solutions that address the identified issues and concerns of the workers.
Keeping Everyone In the Loop
Providing everyone with convenient and immediate access to the information they require may be one of the bigger challenges that companies will face. After all, when one part of their workers are in the office, others are working from their homes. Some may be halfway across the world and not available for an impromptu video call, it could introduce additional lag in the information chain and cause unwanted bottlenecks.
One potential solution to these types of expected issues is to utilize business communication platforms. Such a platform will provide a centralized place where employees can see the latest developments around the company, seek advice from their more experienced workers that will not be locked in a one-on-one chat session, or share their own solutions for solving a particular problem.
Remote Work Is Here To Stay
Despite initial concerns about diminished productivity and failure to meet expected results, the received data has confirmed that remote workers are as effective, if not more, as when they were in the office.
On the other hand, employees have realized that a remote work model has provided them with tremendous benefits by eliminating the wasted hours spent commuting, giving them a more flexible daily schedule, drastically improving their work-life balance, and having a positive impact on their mental wellbeing.
As a result, many workers are looking for job openings and positions that will meet their new requirements. Surveys even show that some people are willing to accept a marginally lower salary offered by a different employer if the remote work conditions there are more expansive.
At the same time, businesses that have expressed ideas of bringing their entire workforce back to the office may encounter significant pushback. It appears that in most workplaces, a hybrid work model will be implemented where employees will have to be present in the office at least one day a week but would otherwise be allowed to work from home.