Leading Out of Lockdown

Depending on what part of the world you are living in you may be experiencing the end of the lockdown period and the reduction in COVID19 restrictions.

If you are like us, our kids are back at school and we now are not tripping over each other whilst working virtually from different parts of the house!  

I had a very good discussion with a Senior Leader about how they were going to lead their people out of lockdown.  It was great to hear that he had mapped a plan on what he was going to say and do as he transitioned himself and his team from working at home to starting to commute back to the office.

This got me thinking about how many leaders have not thought about how they are going to lead out of lockdown.  The last thing you want to do is try to appear that everything is back to normal!  Many organisations have split their staff into different groups and others cannot have all their staff working in the same office at the same time due to the requirements to maintain social distancing.

So what is your plan to lead your people out of lockdown? Here are a couple of ideas to consider:  

Take the Time to Meet with Others Face to Face.  We have had a lot of time looking at people over Zoom, MS Teams and GotoMeeting, but now is when many staff will want to see and talk to their leaders in person.  Take the time to check in with your staff individually (and face to face) to see how they are going with the transition.  I spoke to one person earlier this week and they were really struggling with the move back to the city and just needed someone to listen to them as they readjusted.

Provide Updates on the Way Forward.  For many businesses and staff there is still a large cloud of uncertainty about what the future may bring.  In Australia the JobKeeper program has saved hundreds of thousands of jobs, however when it ends this will create some anxiety for many people.  As a leader, share your vision of the way forward and how you will keep staff informed as your organisation starts to gain more momentum.

Skill Up Staff in Strategies to Get More Done in Less Time. For some organisations that have had to reduce headcount, the remaining staff have had to continue with tasks that were potentially being done by someone else before COVID19.  As we transition out of lockdown it is important to provide strategies and skills to help your staff get more things done in less time.  Look for ways to do this in virtual online sessions or in small face to face sessions.  

Later this month I will be launching my new Leadership Academy which includes a 30 day or 12 month online program that will enable leaders to access a number of courses and modules that include videos, downloadable resources and activity checklists that you can use to help navigate and stay effective as a leader. Many of the concepts are based on my recent book Leadership Hacks: Clever strategies to boost your impact and results. 

If you would like to find out more, please click here and we will reach out to you with more information.