This week has been a milestone for many businesses as the Covid related lockdown eases further and customers and visitors are welcomed back for the first time in months.
While businesses of all types have been focussed on how to keep customers and visitors safe, a new project has set me thinking about how to also ensure that our colleagues are in a good place and able to perform to the best of their abilities.
In a recent conversation with the sales director of an SME (Small and medium-sized enterprise) client, I learned how his working life had been affected by the pandemic. In January 2021 he started a new job, three months later the business went into receivership and he was made redundant. The entity was bought out and he was re-hired.
The intention of the new owners was to transition the business with little or no impact on its customers. New members of staff were hired and a fresh injection of energy and ideas came to life. Over the following months, my coaching client continued to deliver, achieving impressive results. His commitment to the project and knowledge of the product enabled him to re-engage quickly with clients smoothing over the ripples caused by the disruption of previous months and continue to drive impressive sales.
However, as winter approached and we found ourselves in yet another lockdown, he begun to flag. At the point I met him, his spirits were low, his confidence in his own ability was flagging and his talents were being truly undermined by the fatigue of working remotely. This entire rollercoaster journey had been experienced from his spare room.
Our work together begun with three detailed ‘GROW’ model coaching sessions, giving us the opportunity to conduct a full appraisal of his situation, recognizing the challenges posed by a cycle of events all of which been experienced virtually. GROW stands for:
*Goal
*Current Reality
*Options (or Obstacles)
*Will (or Way Forward)
Through the session the impact of his working situation became clear. He was in a place where he would be unlikely to get back on track without help. After acknowledgement comes re-appraisal and after that comes the reboot.
This coaching assignment has evolved into a mentoring relationship with my subject and another of his colleagues. Assisting with their day-to day management, encouraging better collaboration with the wider organization is providing everyone with the opportunity to focus on the bigger picture.
I have a wealth of experience interpreting these dynamics, and finding resolutions, and look forward to connecting with you to see how best I could help.
I am keen to connect with people in small companies who find themselves in rebuild mode now that things are getting back on track. If you or someone you know has issues of de-motivation within your work force arising from remote working and Zoom fatigue, I would love the opportunity to discuss how I could take responsibility for your workforce reboot, leaving you with the time and headspace to focus on broader business strategy.