Should you encourage staff back to the office? If so, when? And how many at a time?
With experts divided on whether or not staff should return to the office, companies are mulling over these questions and some are choosing to bring staff back in phases.
A staggered return could provide a safer environment by keeping workplace occupancy low and reducing the chance of transmission. This is the recommendation put forward in a report from the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University, which advises companies to start by letting 20% of at-home workers back into the office. Start with a few days per week and then expand to five days as testing ramps up.
It recommends 3 key ways for bringing people back and keeping your workforce safer:
- Get on the same page: Identify and, if necessary, invest in reliable project management software to keep both your in-office and remote workers collaborating together, efficiently.
- Get communicating: A chat app, such as Slack, Hangouts, Glip, or Twist, opens up conversation in an easy online format. Most chat platforms provide other benefits too, such as video calls.
- Get videoconferencing: Most teams are now competent with video call software. If you haven’t already setup a company-wide videoconference system, now’s the time to do it. It’s especially important when you have a mix of remote and in-office employees working together.
