Managers were looking forward to 2020 as a year of new ambitions and projects, but the coronavirus epidemic has affected all of that. The crisis has impacted the whole industry segment. A lot has changed for employers, remote work, decentralization, work culture, and methods of communication all being affected. More effects of the pandemic are likely to happen.
It perhaps has not been this difficult to be an effective leader. Leaders should always show successful leadership traits, which aid them in accomplishing more major objectives. Anyhow, it has become more challenging to lead during the epidemic period. Maintainable success for an entity hinges on leaders evolving from the previous leadership styles to the ones that today’s environment demand.
Which are the traits that leaders must have to be successful during this time? This may be a tough question to answer. Do you have the ambitions to lead your entity in this period? If yes, you would have to possess the following traits in order to manage a team now and become stronger, plus be more reflective and compassionate.
The Capability Of Looking Beyond The Global Crisis
The coronavirus has been affecting companies around the globe over the last many months. This means it is time for all leaders to step outside the scope of crisis handling and plan ahead for their entities’ future. The key trait that leaders should possess is the quality of being prepared to look beyond everyday company issues. For example, low worker engagement may cause an increase in employee turnover rate. A leader who anticipates issues will know the danger of turnover, and they will take measures to improve worker engagement to keep it from being a major crisis.
Over-Communicating
During a crisis period, leaders must not only convey matters, but they should communicate more than normal. Leaders should avoid expecting workers to make an effort to communicate with them; rather, they should initiate talks. Individuals seek information and must be empathetic, so being a leader you should share information about your company’s daily situation. Besides, you should also ask workers how they cope and offer to support them in any possible way to help remove the desolateness and disorder that may happen quickly.
At the same time, you should give opportunities for employees to express their opinions frankly. For instance, before finishing a Zoom call, you may say, “I expect to have valuable recommendations from you”, or they may ask, “Does anybody have a question?” It will not only make employees feel that their opinions are valued, but it will also let you know which areas to get better.
It is also an ideal opportunity for human resources to aid you in ensuring that you do what you promise to do while caring about their workers’ welfare. The HR department should aid leaders in discovering ways of keeping relationships and developing some fresh resilience. This is the right time to care about workers and their family members, who adapt to life in the coronavirus period, besides the entity. A little gesture from your part will suffice.
Amidst every uncertainty due to COVID-19, communicate the things you know while being frank regarding these and about the things you do not. Stan Sewitch, the VP of the San Diego-based WD-40 Company’s Global Organization Development, says that the most pressing need is proactive communication. “Say what you know, what you don’t know, and what you are committed to doing. That’s as good as it can get to create confidence in leadership,” Sewitch stated.
Taking Part In Microlearning
During this period, leaders should ply their trade by using technology as their main interface and this form of learning as their lone way forward. The internet-based learning portfolio and on-the-job (OTJ) training may include podcasts, blogs, e-books, and videos. Leaders will find it challenging to keep not just training sessions interesting but also learners engaged.
The above will require game-like elements, added to non-game environments, and other ways to interact with people for an entertaining experience. Leaders should now consider their existing expertise and which skills they will require for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, companies have to aid workers in developing by teaching them new skills and additional skills. Leaders also have to contemplate the mental space of the learner for telecommuting and consider the different parts that workers are supposed to play.
Acknowledging That Everybody Plays A Significant Part
A company comprises individuals at multiple levels who work toward a common objective. They not only share a single trait but will also put in their best efforts when leaders acknowledge and encourage them. A leader can intervene in the present state by recognizing that every person should contribute to making a culture that acknowledges each worker’s integrity.
Being More Human
Leaders and companies around the world work to create a fresh paradigm and return to normal life, but a factor remains elusive in the increasingly uncertain period. That factor is the certainty in workers who handle difficult decisions between business-related commitment and family security. Anyhow, leaders and workers can do many things to aid staff in navigating the telecommuting circumstance.
With the growing anxiety and fear in workers, leaders, especially HR-level leaders, should have a fresh approach to create a steady and supportive environment where employees will thrive. Leaders should become more human, plus they should begin to share concerns and to create new ways of helping workers handle their fears. Their priority must be feedback and recommendations, open discussion, and communication. A revived emphasis on employee benefit programs, mental health initiatives, wellness initiatives, and similar other services are likely to make a supportive setting for staff to turn to.
