In this post, I wanted to share some thoughts about changes we will face during and after Corona and what it will mean for the workforce in moving forward.

1.   Digitalization

This crisis meant a big push on the digitalization front for our work environment. The change to remote work, video meetings, digitalized further education, and digital hiring processes are just a few of the things that have changed and most likely will remain in place. Especially for hiring processes, I believe that a lot more will be digitalized in moving forward.

But it also means positive impacts when it comes to sustainability and flexibility. The work environment as we have known it all along will no longer exist. Fewer Business trips for instance will have a positive impact on the environment and hopefully decrease our stress level so will flexible work arrangements. Not having to rush to pick up your kids from daycare or school or fly out very early mornings and having to deal with jet lags must be a relief for some of us.

2.   Leadership style Change

The Corona crisis is also a tough experience for our leaders. On one hand, we expect them to remain calm during this crisis, give us a clear direction, and to navigate us through all these changes and uncertainties. But this is also a new situation for them, and we all must learn to be patient with each other.

Moving forward leaders will have to learn to involve their employees a lot more into their decision-making processes than ever before to ensure everyone is engaged and working towards a common goal. Leaders will have to be more trusting and inclusive with their staff. Employees will for sure want to be more independent and embrace the newly gained flexibility around their workplace.

Therefore, transparent communication has never been more important than right now where face to face communication is so rare. The beauty of digitalization is that our leaders are now able to use a big variety of different platforms to engage with their employees – especially communication via video has strongly increased during these times.

3.   Working from home

Leaders need to learn to trust their employees more than ever before. Working from home means they cannot constantly control what people are doing and must trust their staff. Hopefully, this will not translate into more micromanagement than ever before as this will surely have a negative impact on the productivity of their staff.

On the flip side, employees need to learn to work more independently and result oriented. But I think this will have a strong boost on their productivity as workers that have more freedom in their job and more responsibility and flexibility are ultimately more engaged and productive.

4.   Freelancer|Contractor vs full-time employee

Companies will be more cautious with their hiring and will plan more carefully in moving forward. This might mean another shift to more contract work and more flexible work arrangements and partnering with contractors and freelancers to ensure more agility. This of course comes with its own challenges on the worker’s side.

If you need full flexibility on your hiring, please feel free to reach out for a discussion on how we can help your recruitment needs during these challenging times.