The Gradual Easing: How to Make Decisions for Your Workforce to Walk Back Into the World

This morning in the car ride to school I engaged in yet another conversation about masks with my teenager. Not too different than the six client conversations last week about this very gradual and cautious reopening of the world. My teen - like lots of your employees - is not quite ready to take off the mask and just resume. They were asking for data and numbers and we talked a long time about risk. I am hearing this is a conversation that parts of your workforce are having as well.

As a leader - what exactly do you do?

Early in the pandemic our family and our business adopted the Safe, Safer, Safest framework. At all times we strove to be Safer. Safest to us looked like not leaving the house - safer looked like good high-quality masks, limiting indoor exposures, and constantly asking if there was a safer way to do something that still managed to preserve our sanity and project results. Safer changed once we were a fully vaccinated staff - yet our team has 4 kids still too young for vaccines. So we created a massive matrix of risk for each decision to come back to the office, to retreat with your team, and to unmask around each other. I'll acknowledge, that it is exhausting - but as leaders of others this is what we sign up for - this is our duty. We wrestle with uncertainties and risks and benefits and put forth thoughtful strategies.

Universal Answers

I am confident there are no universal right answers. I am also confident there are culturally competent answers. Culturally competent answers take into consideration the lives and livelihood of your employees, the way you accomplish your work, the nature of your work, the impact on children and the immunocompromised family members of your workforce, vaccines, surges, data, and your overall risk profile.

So folks - time for more energy put into decision making and always - the most flexibility you can muster.