Connection, Engagement, and COVID19

By Ellie Hearne

Connection and engagement have never been more important - nor have they ever been tougher.

We’ve been working to help leaders engage their people amidst all that’s going on.

It’s a lot like the work we usually do, but delivered remotely and with sensitivity to the ongoing global pandemic. (To be fair, we’ve done plenty of remote engagements in the past - but the pandemic is new to us all.)

So, what does engagement look like in the era of COVID-19?

Trust, communication, and adjusting expectations. Those are the core elements; here’s why:

Trust. Working from home has always tested and usually enhanced the trust between a leader and their team. But the type of working from home we’re doing now is different. It’s not so much “working from home”, as it is “being forced to stay at home during a major crisis and trying to get some work done while we’re here.”

The former involves predictability, routine, and (usually) better mental health. The latter is uncharted territory. Trust at work is usually bolstered by familiarity and connection - but those are harder to come by right now.

Communication. It’s always been important, but now it’s only more so - and it’s different than what’s come before. We used to benefit from chance meetings in the office kitchen and face-to-face interaction throughout the day. Even for us introverts, those points of connection were valuable for understanding human dynamics, fostering innovation, and allowing us to bring our whole selves to work. But now, those parts of our days are gone - and mastering the basics of workplace communication without them is a primary focus for many.

Then there’s the tools involved. We used to use video calls, emails, and instant messaging - but now they’re the whole ballgame, so to speak. They’re helpful, but we all know their limitations. And we all by now recognize the end-of-the-day “Zoom fatigue” that comes with working in 2020.

Adjusting expectations. Do any of these sound familiar? Inability to think creatively. Tired all the time. Struggling to plan long term. Feeling inconsistent - or just plain flakey? These aren’t personal failings - they’re caused by your brain’s reaction to the sort of “slow-burn stress” the pandemic has caused.

Throw in other related challenges - like extreme isolation or trying to juggle some homeschooling -and you start to see why this isn’t your typical working-from-home situation. Adjusting our expectations and how we communicate are vital to connecting and engaging through the COVID era.

By now, leaders have realized that how people work is as important as what they work on - now more so than ever. We’re partnering with each of our clients to help them invest in and support their teams when they need it most. Talk to us to learn more.

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Ellie Hearne is a leadership-communications expert and founder of Pencil or Ink. She has worked with Apple, Google, Kate Spade, Marriott, Morgan Stanley, Oracle, Mastercard, Pfizer, Piaget, Spotify, Starbucks, and Twitter, among others, and has coached numerous individuals and teams. She holds a Master’s from the University of St Andrews and is studying Organisational Leadership at Oxford University’s Saïd Business School.