Sathya John General Manager for CMR Iberia gives some insight on what to expect if / when the UK go into Lock-down!
Preparation is key
CMR´s business model has been advantageous in the preparation of a “work from home until further notice” initiative as we operate already a 2-day work from home model. If you / your business is new to WFH a good starting point is to create a workflow for your workforce based on operating your business from home
Most organisations operate using some kind of equipment – Computers, laptops, iPad, mobile phones. Ask yourself & your teams – What does your workforce need in order to operate effectively
Ensure you have the right access, tools and forums, do you and your employees have WIFI / Broadband, if not, work on a solution to ensure you have this access. Most homes have Wi-Fi / Broadband, but some may not, contact your phone / internet providers, dongles can be provided to those that do not have internet access at home
Prepare to become a virtual workforce, assess your workflow – how can this be adapted virtually. Ensure your workforce has access to training and support in order to be able to adapt virtually.
Provide reassurance to your employees, customers & clients, engage with them, pick up the phone, facetime them, WhatsApp them, practice the use of virtual tools, behaviour breeds behaviour
What to Expect……
Restrictions to daily social activities means that you won´t be able to just pop out to the pub, go to the cinema, take the kids to the park etc. Think about what activities you can do at home, can´t go to the pub – have a drink in the house, can´t go to the cinema – watch a movie in the comfort of your own home, can´t take the kids to the park – let them play in the garden, if you don´t have a garden, make them a den? Find the alternatives
Here in Spain we can walk the dogs within 50 meters of our home, we can go to the supermarket / pharmacy and only one at a time. Public transport is operating at 1/3 of it´s capacity and is not recommended. Social distancing when needing to leave the house is being monitored by local police and the military, as is why you´re are out of the house, so make sure you have a valid reason for doing so
Confinement to one place or one area can be a struggle for some, so it´s ever more important to have touchpoints with friends, family & colleagues. Check in with people and see how they are doing. There´s never been a better time to reconnect with the people you don´t always have the time to speak with because life got so busy
Take care of you, mental health & anxiety can be a taboo for some, when your at home so much, your thoughts can take over and you can sometimes think of the worst, don´t let that consume you, it´s going to be really easy to believe everything you hear, read or are told about the current pandemic, not all of it is true so limit how much time you spend checking the news, reading propaganda etc. Follow reputable sources and limit how much time you spend doing this. Take the positive out of every negative
Your daily, weekly, monthly routine is going to change, adapt! Make sure you sustain a routine for you, your family, friends, employees. People are counting on you! You can be the sunshine on someone´s rainy day. We all have our part to play to keep hopes high and maintain engagement. So, get up, do some exercise to get those happy endorphins going and wake yourself up to start the day. Get showered get dressed and maintain as much of a” normal” routine as you can. My mum came marching out of her room and down the hallway this morning, bag on her shoulder, make up on, turned to me and said “good morning, I´m off to work” and off she went to the front room to get on with her day. We did laugh
You´re going to reconnect with yourself and others and do things you didn´t have time to do before, learn something new, read a book, take an online course, try new recipes, set yourself new goals & challenges. Create your end goal for when this is over because it will be. Nothings forever