The state of emergency is launched and several businesses must reduce or cease their operations. This situation involves temporary emergency measures such as imposed distance between colleagues, forced teleworking, the introduction of time sharing or layoffs.
Teleworking is a great possibility and represents THE solution for many companies to keep their activities afloat. But how is your remote communication going? Are you experiencing any tone issues? Is stress palpable when you, or your managers, express yourself?
Remote communication is essential and must be done on a regular basis in order to monitor projects and take stock of developments in the situation. But in circumstances like those we are currently experiencing, uncertainty and drastic measures can generate a certain level of stress and unfortunately communications can suffer. Did you realize this?
Whether by videoconference, telephone, email, text or chat, management and managers must avoid alarmist communications in the expression of their leadership, instead favoring a positive and reassuring tone in order to maintain mobilization among employees.
To promote good communication, we offer ways to generate individual and collective awareness:
- Start the next virtual group meeting by establishing a minute of silence, so that everyone can observe their individual behaviors in their communications and reflect on whether improvements were possible;
- Share a memo on good communication practices, paying attention to non-verbal language that cannot be interpreted in texting or chat;
- Offer a time for discussion to answer employees’ questions about stress-causing factors. Be concise and brief as much as possible, without creating ambiguity. Share the information, not the virus!
Constant and engaging communication will keep employees informed and reassure them in this context where the feeling of fear can quickly overwhelm us. It is imperative to control your stress when expressing yourself, to show more understanding and flexibility, while ensuring adequate leadership. Let’s finish by remembering to be available to employees.
For further advice or support, contact us via our immediate HR helpline:514-394-1094or by email atinfo@icebergm.ca.
Author
Sales Director, Co-founder & Partner
Approved speaker and trainer
Human resources consultant
