Developing Employees Throughout The Pandemic And Beyond

How do we effectively reach and train our people in a virtual environment?

One of the human resources’ most noble tasks is building up employees now and in the future. Upskilling workers helps them know their employer values them and wants to empower their careers, and businesses know that investing in employees helps keep them engaged and equipped to handle their jobs. Yet, with much of the American workforce operating remotely because of Covid-19, a challenge continues for HR managers in 2021: How do we effectively reach and train our people in a virtual environment? These considerations may help.

In 2019, the president of Global Workplace Analytics went on record to say that by 2025, an estimated 70% of the workforce will work remotely at least five days in a month. Back then, that seemed like a significant amount of time for employees to be conducting business away from a workplace.

Fast forward to March 2021, a year after the Covid-19 pandemic started and the outlook for remote work has shifted. According to a recent PwC survey, over half of employees (55%) say they’d like to work remotely at least three days a week. As many executives determine how many days of remote work makes sense for their workforce post-pandemic, it appears virtual options for upskilling and digital development strategies may be here to stay.

Whichever digital tools you use, start by identifying key skills essential for all employees, regardless of level or vocation. Look for training courses and certifications that address these needs, such as Lean Six Sigma, project management, root-cause analysis or change management. Another more organic option is to identify employees’ skill gaps and connect mentors with mentees for a knowledge-sharing network. Both formal and informal education go a long way toward equipping employees with necessary skills and relationships to forge ahead.

The pandemic has elevated businesses’ engagement with employees without physical boundaries. As a result, teams can deliver more training more frequently without sacrificing quality and without the time or budgetary impact associated with travel expenses and printed materials. However, limited boundaries at home may mean shorter time blocks dedicated to training, so employees may benefit from different time options — for example, expanding a one-day training over two days instead.

While skills training demonstrates an investment in workers’ career growth, business and personal education topics can be equally meaningful. This might look like a virtual town hall meeting to hear about key initiatives from senior management or training on practical topics like navigating day-to-day life with children e-learning at home. Sometimes, business leaders may need to step aside altogether and tap keynote speakers to discuss subjects such as building resiliency during times of uncertainty or better managing stress and anxiety. These opportunities can communicate to employees that management keeps in mind the “human” part of human resources.

You can spend all the time and money at your disposal, developing top-quality training initiatives, but you won’t see a return on your investment if you have high employee turnover. Retaining top talent is crucial, and HR can help with increasing employee satisfaction and retention by building a competitive benefits package.

Consider the important role health benefits continue to play in workforce well-being and satisfaction. According to the 2020-2021 Aflac WorkForces Report, 35% of employees say improving their benefits package is the one thing their employer could do to keep them in their jobs — second only to increasing their pay. Since costs continue to be a barrier for employers, one option to consider is offering supplemental insurance — not only can it be offered at little to no cost to the business, but 60% of employers say offering it helps improve retention.³

Other benefits that have become important to employees include telehealth, which increased in the last year, as well as financial and emotional wellness programs. The pandemic has brought a variety of stressors, and employees may find value in having access to experts who can help with such topics as understanding and negotiating medical bills or who provide counseling services to talk through difficult times. Have a discussion with a benefits consultant about what makes the most sense for your business and work toward implementing an improved benefits strategy.

Just as we couldn’t have imagined what 2020 would look like, neither can we fully predict what the remainder of 2021 will bring. However, HR managers are in a prime position to invest in employees now and into the future by building a culture of learning and development, as well as boosting benefits to help retain happy workers. These are imperative to the success of every business of every size to help take care of employees so they can, in return, help take care of the business.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not a solicitation for insurance. Aflac includes Aflac and/or Aflac New York.

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