How Coronavirus Will Change Our Way of Working

The coronavirus crisis began a few weeks ago. Some people, particularly those in professions considered essential, continue to go to the office or their workplace. Everyone else is confined at home, working from the kitchen table, from bed, or from a home office if they're lucky; sometimes with children in the same room. Some of us are going crazy, while others have adapted quite quickly. The consequences for the economy are becoming increasingly visible, and entire sectors have been hit hard. For others, the consequences will probably come a bit later. The coronavirus has taken the world hostage—that's clear. Yet, as restrictions begin to lift, we'll gradually return to normal life. Office towers and buildings will fill up again, and we'll be able to meet our clients. Hallelujah. But we know that ordinary life will never be quite so ordinary again. The consequences of the pandemic will remain visible, and our way of living, working, and doing business is likely to change forever.

What rules after the crisis?

Once we can and must return to work, the virus won't have completely disappeared yet. Individual protection measures will remain in place for months and probably for years. I'm thinking of social distancing, handshakes, hand washing as often as possible, and other hygiene measures such as disinfecting premises… These measures will have an impact on our way of working, and old protocols and internal policies such as codes of conduct, hygiene rules, etc., will be replaced.

Old habits die hard

So, how do you ensure that employees apply the right practices as soon as lockdown ends? That the usual hugs or handshakes don't take over again? The risk of this happening in no time is obvious. Something has to change—it won't be fun, but it will be necessary to ensure business continuity. Internal policies and protocols will need to be changed, and we'll need to ensure they're understood so they can be applied. New rules will be added to existing protocols, and this behavioral change must be firmly anchored. Above all, individual awareness must be integrated into our daily lives without delay, even before we return to the office. We'll need to create new habits or transform those that already exist.

Building awareness among employees

You must therefore ensure that these new rules are accessible to everyone and that everyone retains them. The Learning & Development department should be involved from the very beginning in your planning. They'll help make this transformation effective. This seems logical but isn't so easy, even less so than before. In-person training is impossible to organize, e-learning modules can't be created in a few hours, and reaching every employee via Zoom isn't feasible either. Why not a message on the company intranet or an email to everyone… we're talking about profound changes with long-term impacts on our daily lives. We need to remember them at all times. It's better not to get it wrong.

Behavioral change at scale

There you have it—new rules are in place and must be respected. Our habits are often very hard to change. We can't replace them as simply as we say. In addition to awareness, we must change our behaviors permanently for everyone, and therefore at scale. We can achieve this by repeating the messages often. Don't imagine sharing an e-learning or a test just once—you'll need to insist and repeat the importance of the new policy and ensure it stays top of mind for everyone, that it remains a constant concern. When an employee faces a situation and must behave appropriately, thanks to management and colleagues who set the example, it will be easier for them to reproduce these good practices and transform them into new habits.

A new standard

Choose a solution that allows you to repeat the subject of change regularly and effectively, of course. Nobody wants to read and reread a manual. It must be digestible and understandable. It's even better if you can easily make adjustments, add new information if needed, emphasize habits or codes that are slipping, or—worse, but let's hope not—in case of a new crisis. Updates must be simple and quick to implement, or you risk starting over and repeating the same work every time. Rely on quick and effective solutions to share knowledge. Promote knowledge retention and behavioral change through the power of spaced repetition to prepare your organization for new ways of working after corona.