In-person work made it easier for managers to spot the signs of a struggling employee, or for employees themselves to seek out resources. So with most of us still working remotely, businesses need to consider every option to help workers navigate these unprecedented times, according to Bradley Scheffer, a serial entrepreneur focused on raising company profiles via brand and reputation management. He believes that it’s paramount to support people adjusting to the ‘new normal’ hybrid model of work, mainly because employees require increased communication – real-time feedback – to thrive. Technology may be the best tool to aid in these efforts, because Scheffer concludes if you fail to increase communication, you will eventually lose the trust of your employees. “You might save costs in the short-term, but as time goes on employees will start to feel neglected at a time where they need information more than ever.”
Sean Chou, CEO of Chicago-based no code workflow automation platform Catalytic, recommends companies turn to tech to identify and help. The first step, Chou says, is implementing company-wide “pulse checks.”
“Pulse checks across your workforce provide visibility to the issues employees are experiencing in terms of their mental health,” Chou says. “If you’re doing pulse checks with several people regularly, you’re generating a great deal of data, which is burdensome to sort through manually.”
Chou advises turning to artificial intelligence to identify patterns in the employee experience. “Machine learning and natural language processing can sort through qualitative insights in a fraction of the time. They have the added benefit of spotting trends and flagging any especially concerning responses that human analysis alone may have missed.”
Once trends are extracted, businesses and leaders can then act.
“If the majority of your workforce is experiencing feelings of isolation, you can offer resources or institute programs that address the issue,” says Chou. For example, if employees miss work’s social aspect, consider organizing virtual bonding activities or more frequent team touch bases. For feelings of burnout, encourage PTO usage or send gifts expressing your appreciation.
Chou adds that data does more than measure a problem; it can also help make a compelling argument and measure progress on achieving improvement. “Having those data-powered insights to say to the C-suite, for instance, ‘Our survey shows 30% of employees are exhibiting symptoms of seasonal affective disorder, and 70% are mentioning feelings of burnout,’ is powerful. You can then make a business case for a certain course of action and monitor via additional pulse checks if it’s making a difference in the lives of employees.”
According to Chou, technology can help employees eliminate mundane administrative tasks from their day-to-day – such as data entry, data extraction, and email communication – allowing them to focus on more meaningful and motivating work.
“Take the HR professional who has to analyze the pulse check mental health survey you initiated manually. I wouldn’t call combing through spreadsheet data, especially morale-boosting; in fact, they’re probably dreading it. Using AI, that task can be entirely digitized, allowing the employee to use that time instead to create a mental health program, check-in with individuals, or achieve a better work-life balance.”
The benefits go both ways
The time saved by digitizing low-value but necessary business processes also gives workers more time for upskilling. With extra time on their hands, employees can develop competencies for today’s increasingly digital workplace, like mastering third-party applications or taking a certification course. Alternatively, that could be spent learning industry expertise or strengthening managerial and collaboration skills.
“That’s a win-win,” says Chou, “since employees become more valuable to themselves and the company while boosting employee morale and retention.”
Both managers and employees themselves should look for opportunities to automate the most time-consuming and less meaningful parts of their teams’ jobs to keep motivation and engagement healthy through the upcoming months. Workers who find their jobs meaningful are shown to invest more time in their role and stay at the company longer.
Catalytic is one such no-code platform that can help companies build smart workflows to automate tasks without needing a developer or computer science background, enabling employees to spend their time on more meaningful work such as client interactions, mentoring a junior employee, or upskilling.
The alleviation of mental health struggles and providing purposeful work is not just the right thing to do — it also impacts the business’s bottom line. When morale is low, productivity suffers. Unhappy employees are also less likely to invest in the client and care about their customer experience, which puts the company’s reputation and relationships on the line.
This year, business leaders must prioritize mental health to support their employees, who are more likely to experience burnout symptoms. Through technology, organizations can better identify sources of stress or dissatisfaction while also providing meaningful, rather than menial, work.
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March 10, 2021 at 08:00PM
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Leaders Must Prioritize Mental Health To Avoid Burnout. Here’s How - Forbes
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