Businesses in Asia and across the globe are facing an unprecedented state of change and uncertainty as they work to address the economic challenges presented by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Employee health and safety is one of the most critical priorities during this time. For business leaders this objective is joined by maintaining business continuity and productivity with a large number of teams working remotely and disrupted supply chains from the containment measures implemented.
The COVID-19 outbreak represents the first time business continuity and flexible working programs have been tested at such scale, with new challenges and outcomes appearing daily. During this time it’s crucial leaders work with their IT teams to ensure they are able to seamlessly conduct two-way communications with employees. Being able to effectively listen to the voice of employees in this moment allows businesses to continue running as smoothly as possible, and to provide a safe, secure, and productive environment.
Of utmost importance for leaders should be to quickly and easily survey the entire workforce on their current location and recent and future whereabouts. These responses play a critical role in employee safety. Leaders can use them to make informed decisions that involve preventing possible exposure, such as implementing remote working policies, and for advising employees on what they must do in case they are travelling.
At a deeper level, businesses can support organisational performance by understanding how their continuity plans are operating in real-time, and how their networks and services are performing with increased remote demand. For example, if teams have been instructed to work from home, leaders need to quickly know of any issues employees may have in terms of accessing services or collaborating with team members. Similarly, they need to maintain strict security and data compliance.
Having in place systems that identify whether employees are empowered to do their job in their current environment allows business to rapidly address issues and continue operations as much as possible. The employee experience insights can be captured through digital intercepts that survey certain individuals at the point of engagement or through internal Help Desks. Responses requiring action should generate an alert in real-time, which is automatically routed to the relevant department to fix.
Analysing all data captured – including structured and unstructured feedback – also helps ensure business continuity and employee safety. It allows trends to be quickly identified so the appropriate guidance can be delivered. For example, if there is a known issue accessing the company VPN, a step-by-step guide can be created and shared across the company.
During the current state of change and uncertainty, businesses need to make data-backed decisions they can trust. IT is a key partner for HR executives and other leaders, providing the tools and platforms allowing businesses to effectively manage their workforce and improve experiences so that employees are safe, happy, and empowered to perform at their best wherever they are.
Source : hrmasia
