Protecting your employees during the holidays is more important this year than ever before.
No matter what type of work your employees do, the holidays always add more stress to their personal and professional lives. This year, let’s add in our global pandemic, restrictions on social gatherings, and legitimate uncertainty about the future. Not great. Making that even worse, of course, is the fact that all the people your employees interact with are going through the same challenges. Congratulations, you have everything you need to slow your organization and its mission to a crawl.
In order to protect your mission, you must think about protecting your employees, especially during the holiday season. Here are some suggestions for how:
- Acknowledge that the holiday season can get stressful and voice your appreciation for their focus on their work
- Give them tools to help manage the stress of those with whom they interact
- Reach out to them and check in on how they’re doing and instruct your managers to do so as well
- Say “thank you” more than usual and acknowledge that the holidays can make their work even more challenging
- Consider bringing in someone to do mindfulness or guided meditation sessions
- Engage an employee assistance program, such as theeap.com or lifeworks.com, and
- Plan a celebration early in the new year, even if it’s still virtual, to show your gratitude.
Finally, leverage the power of your mission. Everyone at your organization is invested in what you do. Reiterate the importance of the work and why, especially during this particular holiday season, it matters.
Best wishes for the rest of December and where it takes you and your mission.
This post is an update to Holiday Branding Strategy: Protect your brand by protecting your employees.
