President & Founder of Mekky Media Relations, a boutique PR agency based in Chicago with clients nationwide, delivering powerful publicity.
getty
It’s been a challenging fall, as political divisiveness and the pandemic have raged on in our communities, creating a perfect storm of fear and uncertainty. Unfortunately, these difficult times are made worse because so many of us continue to feel isolated from our families, friends and co-workers, with our normal support systems now confined to socially distanced interactions or Zoom.
As the leader of my team at Mekky Media, this is something I think about a lot. We are a close-knit group, thanks to the positive culture we’ve built over the past few years, and I worry about the effect of not being together for these long months. I’m sure many business leaders can relate, especially in the current climate when tensions are high and there’s no immediate end in sight.
Of course, working remotely has its benefits, and I think many employees enjoyed it in the beginning. But as the pandemic continues, it’s clear that those of us who manage teams must step up our efforts to lead, support and inspire during this time that is turning out to be less of a short-term interruption and more of a new culture.
But how can we do this from afar? The most important thing is to make time for your team; don’t let team building or personal attention for your staff get buried on your to-do list. I know this is tough, especially now when we’re already stressed. But I made a promise to myself that this will be a big priority for me throughout the pandemic. And the efforts have paid off with the results I’ve seen.
MORE FOR YOU
With some creative team-building programs and an open, positive attitude, leaders can enhance the team’s bond so everyone learns to collaborate better together. When you see this start to happen, it feels great, but it’s also a major win for the business.
Here are three keys to making this happen:
Consistent Communication
My company is in the business of communications, so it would seem obvious that we need to communicate well with each other, especially when we’re all away from the office. I make sure to set a good example by frequently sending all-team emails to make everyone aware of big-picture goals, recognize agency wins or individual accomplishments, offer tips and best practices, or just update them on what my day looks like. We also meet every Monday via Zoom, and each person has a chance to share one thing they’re proud of and one challenge (whether work-related or personal) from the previous week.
I believe it’s important to gather together consistently each week. For some team members, this might be their only opportunity to “see” their colleagues and have an exchange with them. I recommend reviewing every client and project together as a team and brainstorming ideas to address any obstacles. Also, rely on communications tools like Slack. This can help your team stay connected throughout the day and quickly exchange information and ideas, and it makes up (a little bit) for not being in the office together. Consider developing a channel dedicated to the hard work of your employees, where anyone can give a shoutout for a job well done. Appreciation is the secret to motivated employees.
A Culture That Welcomes
We’ve been fortunate to grow our client base this year, as many organizations are realizing the importance of PR in this challenging business climate. This has enabled me to bring on some new staff. The challenge is getting them up to speed and making them feel welcome when we’re all working from home. To do this with new employees, be sure to spend a lot of time talking to them and answering their questions — more than you would under traditional circumstances. Remember, they won’t have the benefit of picking up on the cues that come naturally in the busy office setting. It’s also a good idea to revamp training programs to be entirely online. Make sure each new team member spends some time virtually with veteran staff members to learn the culture of the organization, as well as processes and procedures. That’s the easy part. The hard part is getting to know each other and developing a connection.
For my team, this has been a memorable part of some of our fun Zoom calls, where we’ve all answered questions about ourselves and played trivia games. We’ve also enjoyed making personalized videos for each birthday, guessing celebrity lookalikes and hosting a Halloween costume contest. These are things we should all keep doing once we’re back to normal. I think in general we’ve had to work a little harder to connect with others and have found that some of our new approaches are worth continuing in the post-Covid-19 world.
Workplace Wellness
Many leaders and their employees would agree that what we need more than anything during these trying times is to focus on our mental and physical well-being. I established a series of wellness workshops where we could gather virtually to learn about or enhance our knowledge of things that could bring us peace and better health. If you want to champion wellness for your team, you can do yoga together, meditate, learn about mindfulness, have a cooking class, even a wine tasting — all through the magic of Zoom. These opportunities might require some investment, but the payoff in my experience is well worth it. I’m now exploring where to take our wellness series in 2021.
Inspiring and leading in these troubling times can seem overwhelming, but it truly doesn’t have to be. We just need to spend a little more time on building our team and keeping everyone connected, and we might need to get more creative than we have in the past. But this is a time when having a strong team matters most, so the effort you put into leading will pay off in the end — both in terms of business success and better, more fulfilling relationships in the workplace.
Forbes Agency Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
Go to Source
Author: Michelle Mekky, Forbes Councils Member
