For the past two months, working from home has been the ‘new normal.’ Some executives might agree that having a remote workforce can somehow be more intense than having most everyone in a traditional office setting. That is why managing through this time of crisis has been quite complex. There is so much to consider – from protecting your customers and their data, to protecting company data, ensuring security and privacy, maintaining business continuity, and of course, maintaining employee trust, productivity, and engagement. There is a seemingly endless list of concerns, especially as CEO.
Despite this, remote working has provided us with valuable insights about remote working that we need to use, as we begin to move forward. For one, it is possible this crisis improved the communication and collaboration among my staff. Of course, our first and most important priority during this time has remained the health and safety of employees and their families — and remaining in service to all of our customers. But after that, a CEO’s priorities take on a more defensive posture. It turns out, this is not so much about security, as it is about trust.
To invite Big Brother, or not?
Amid the upheaval of quarantine, there has been suggestion in the industry that remote monitoring capabilities should be instituted to manage a dispersed workforce. Remote monitoring would act as oversight, to ensure employees are using company assets like laptops, networks, etc. for the company’s purpose only. I can think of some instances where – or why – this approach might be useful. However, I prefer a management model that centers around the implicit trust I have in my team. When it comes to the security of a workforce and its systems, the confidence you need in a crisis is closely tied to this trust, but also how you measure productivity.
To share a personal example, when the orders to shelter in place were first made in March 2020, there was a brief pause to our daily business because everyone had to make a physical transition to their homes. I would venture to guess that for many CEOs, myself included, there was a surreal moment of suspension, wondering about the potential impact this order might have on business and workforce productivity.
Use security practices to an advantage
Fortunately, a large segment of our workforce was already remote. Therefore, many already developed the daily routines and strict work ethic needed to ensure at-home productivity. This served us well and also helped reassure other employees that secure access to critical systems and information were well established. Essentially, the work we had already completed through business continuity planning gave us confidence that our systems were in place and our customer data is safe and secure.
As a security vendor, there is some ‘dogfooding’ with our security practices and controls. Surprisingly, not all security companies have those in place, but with every new contract we sign, we reaffirm that commitment to our customers. Practicing what we preach, relative to security, is one of the core tenants upon which we built this business.
We have also gone further to provide employees with office tools like privacy screens and secure access, so that even in shared workspaces, our company is protected. This is important with the potential to remain a remote-first workforce model, depending upon the guidelines set out for when COVID-19 is not an acute threat. We have proven we can run our business with a high-level of productivity in an emergency.
Allow technology to be an equalizer
Another example of increased collaboration is that, due to necessity, we have equalized how everyone is participating in meetings. Take my leadership team as an example. Our past meetings were held with half of the team physically in our Silicon Valley headquarters, and the other half joining via various remote tools, because they live in other parts of the world. With global travel now limited and people sheltering inside their homes, we have no choice but to use a single web conferencing platform to connect everyone. I believe using one platform does create a more structured and enriching interaction for all. Unlike when everyone is separated, it is no longer easy for teams to mute their connections and conduct side chatter that a portion of the team isn’t privy to. By everyone participating in the same virtual meeting technology we have democratized participation in the meeting. Now everyone is on the same footing and at the same level of engagement and representation.
Adapt to build new skill sets
There are other benefits to this all-virtual environment too. For instance, the general background noise and distractions of the traditional office has fallen silent during this time, and that has brought the purpose of our working lives into a clearer focus. Despite the fact that we are all missing the camaraderie, we have successfully transitioned those interactions into an online collaboration platform that makes it easy to share ideas within the workflow.
However, if this period has taught me anything, it’s that regular check-ins with your employees are critical to understanding if they are okay. While we have emphasized that we care deeply for everyone’s health and well-being, we are unable to physically see everyone each day. This is where using video options for meetings has been helpful, so we can get a visual sense of how everyone is doing and suggest days off where needed to avoid burnout. I suppose this could be considered a type of remote monitoring – but in a much less nefarious sense. I think of it more as establishing a more empathetic and genuine connection during a stressful time. To be balanced we have also let employees know it is acceptable to have video turned off for some meetings, but to let you colleagues know why. For example, “I need to listen and participate in this meeting while I eat lunch so I am going to have my camera turned off”.
In fact, managing the stress of our workday has remained a critical part of our new normal, too. We want to continue fostering acceptance of our employees just as before, and tolerance for the challenges they may be facing at home. If you are reading this, there is a good chance you’ve recently witnessed a child, a partner or someone’s pet disrupt a meeting or a presentation. Of the skills we are building during a pandemic, some of the best worth practicing are acceptance, tolerance and patience!
Maintain connections, plan ahead and value people
In our ‘previous normal,’ the company would occasionally enjoy activities outside the office setting, like community service projects, mentoring and other social interactions. This would help our employees get to know one another, and build personal bonds and trust. Of course, we are finding new, virtual ways to continue these efforts, which can also contribute to reducing individual stress levels. For example, we’ve instituted a virtual snack bar, to encourage connections, conversations and positive shared interactions that also nurture office friendships. It’s common sense that when people have personal connections, they work better together.
Recently, I have been considering plans for returning to our office building and how different it will be from before. One question that continues to come up is who will return to the office, and who might remain working from home? This global health crisis has truly removed the “HQ-centric” philosophy to business, and I have come to embrace the reality that an organization is really not the headquarters location. An organization is your people, and the solution and services that you provide.
