Lockdown, suffering, losses on the one hand – creativity, flexibility, home office on the other. The faces of the Corona pandemic could not be more opposite. The positive side throughout: people became inventive, companies made things possible that they had vehemently rejected before March of this year. “The management had to change their mindset and find new ways to at least maintain the business as best as possible,” says Gelmi. He thinks: “Many have even managed to deal with the crisis quite well. And much of this should remain a learning effect for the management in the future, otherwise valuable insights will be lost”.
In many companies, for example, home offices were not up for discussion until now. The lockdown suddenly led to the fact that the conditions had to be created practically overnight in order for employees to be able to work from home. For example, in a large corporation an entire call center with 300 employees was relocated to the home office in this way.
Employee happiness went “through the roof”
But that’s not all: an employee survey carried out during this period revealed results that no one in management would have dared to dream of before. These values prompted those responsible to offer home office as an option even after the current restrictions. In future, employees should be able to decide individually where they want to work. “An employee who feels comfortable at his or her workplace – no matter where it is – is always prepared to think and act outside the box, which then makes the decisive difference for internal or external customers and can even be an important competitive differentiator in today”s markets,” explains Gelmi.
Initiative and commitment
“If humans feel appreciated in their value, they feel seen and their opinion is taken seriously, they gladly go the extra mile if needed”, knows the sparring partner for entrepreneurs and high-level leaders, who supports them in creating a climate of positive emotional condition and psychological safety for all involved. “Someone who is in a positive emotional state is more open for necessary changes and more likely ready to also sustain these changes. And change is now part of the new normal in companies worldwide.”
More information about Thomas Gelmi: www.thomasgelmi.com (https://www.thomasgelmi.com)