How to Create Return to Work Excitement

By Linda Olejniczak, courtesy of SBAM Approved Partner ASE

A successful return to work plan is based on trust, mutual understanding, and of course, providing an environment that appeals to your workforce. How do you create excitement around returning to work when a majority of your staff may want to remain remote?

If you want to excite your workforce to return to work (RTW), start by addressing their concerns. This should include the commitment to protecting your workforce, complying with regulations and health guidelines, keeping sensitive information secure, communicating honestly, and taking accountability. You can’t just unlock the doors and hit the light switch. You are not ushering them back to the old ways of working, but rather creating the right environment for people to come back to, combined with the workplace experience that makes returning worth their while.

Think of it as onboarding new employees.  Host an open-house and allow employees to come back to tour the offices. Returning to the office is going to feel weird.  Office layouts may have changed and there are new office policies. Let your employees visit and get used to the changes in the work environment.  Have goodie bags for everyone. Include a gift card to a nearby lunch spot and other essentials to ease them back into working in the office.

Develop a hybrid work schedule. It is clear employees do not want to come back to the same work world they left behind. Embrace what is working and create a work environment that supports a more flexible arrangement.

Employees may be reluctant to jump back into the office and lose the control they established while working from home. Your workforce gained a degree of ownership over many aspects of their workday – from the way they dress, their schedules, and environment. Mobile space booking solutions may help build excitement and give them the control they seek. Here are a few to check out to see if they can work for your organization.

Our personal and work lives have been forever altered.  What were considered trends in the workplace have been amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. To be successful during these transitions we must embrace what we have learned and continue to move forward.