With the pandemic receding, people will be getting together in the coming months. Office buildings re-filling, subways and motorways re-crowding. And employees \u201cre-boarding\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some are referring to the process of getting people back to work as a re-boarding process, with obvious reference to onboarding, the process of including and welcoming a new employee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s not a good term at all, and here\u2019s why:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A typical onboarding curriculum involves the practicalities of the new job. Start date, how to get help with IT, documentation that needs to be read, important aspects of the new company\u2019s leadership, vision, culture, warm messages of welcome from new bosses and colleagues, etc etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
None of these elements have changed during the pandemic. And if we want to seriously address learnings and issues following more than a year of lockdown, the process of bringing people back to work will look nothing like on- or \u201cre-\u201cboarding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What has changed the most during Covid lockdown is the way we socialize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When getting back together, we can expect to feel rejected<\/strong> frequently (now that the handshake is no longer the default way of greeting).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Working from home may lead to us feeling excluded <\/strong>(especially when people that are now physically together \u201cforget\u201d the distance inherent in being the person attending virtually).<\/p>\n\n\n\n We may experience a feeling of uncertainty<\/strong> or even distrust<\/strong> of our colleagues \u2013 are they washing their hands properly? Are they vaccinated?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bringing people back to the office will have emotional consequences, and these qualities are what should be addressed as part of a \u201cre-gathering\u201d program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Psychological safety, the freedom to feel included<\/strong>, to learn<\/strong>, to contribute<\/strong> and to challenge the status quo<\/strong> is more important than ever before. How is your workplace doing for psychological safety? Can you freely talk about how you feel, and ask for what you need?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With the pandemic receding, people will be getting together in the coming months. Office buildings re-filling, subways and motorways re-crowding. And employees \u201cre-boarding\u201d? Some are referring to the process of getting people back to work as a re-boarding process, with obvious reference to onboarding, the process of including and welcoming a new employee. It\u2019s not … <\/p>\n