LEADING AN AGILE WORKFORCE IN TIMES OF CRISIS


experiences, such as supporting local small businesses through curbside meal programs, gardening tips and family activity recommendations.


B


Leg falls asleep for sitting too long


Wear Pajamas All Day


Can’t login or access a system


Eat junk food for breakfast


3 or more


conference calls in one day


CT Virtual Bingo I


N


Kitchen Table is your new desk


TV becomes your new monitor


"Can you hear me?"


"Sorry, I was on mute!"


See someone other than a roommate or


family member in person


WE HAVE A WINNER


The Morale Committee organized several events to help employees stay connected during the pandemic, like virtual bingo. (Image courtesy of the Morale Committee, KCDC)


Behavioral Science to Support COVID-19 Pandemic Response,” by Jay J. Van Bavel et al., notes that people prefer leaders who promote a sense of togetherness rather than individualism. Addi- tionally, they prefer leaders to communicate their expectations and their trust in their subordinates, which enables greater success during times of pandemics. Tis article reinforced that the actions undertaken for communication within the organization were appropriate and relevant.


Te town hall meetings were held twice a week for about 30 minutes each during the initial transition to a virtual work envi- ronment. Tey were always conducted in a WebEx interactive video format, and even though participation via video was not mandatory for the team members, about half of the office chose to share their video streams during each meeting. Te face-to-face visual allowed for a better sense of connection while physically separated. During these calls, Miller would also share her personal


110 Army AL&T Magazine Fall 2020


Take a stroll to stretch your legs


Used an emoji in an email


Complete a


successful day without VPN issues


Video chat more than one


coworker in one day


Did household chores on your lunch break


G


Bed head for the entire workday


Submit a pic of your day to your team


Have a meeting


interrupted by a pet or family member


Complete a home project outside working hours


Spot a pet on a conference call


O


Say "LOL" and mean it


Joke about how long your


commute is while working from home


Participate in 5 or more video


conferences in the week


Jam/Dance to some music


Randomly tell


someone good luck


ROLL WITH THE PUNCHES Given the almost complete shutdown of businesses and schools, it was imperative that we understand how to support individu- als who could not work their traditional schedules because of new life challenges. For the first time, many schools conducted classes virtually, day care centers were closed and some individ- uals became full-time caretakers.


Te solution to this problem was instituting a new working sched- ule that allowed maximum flexibility in performing daily work requirements. Tis maxi-flex schedule permitted employees to work anytime between 4 a.m. and midnight, Monday through Saturday, with additional flexibilities to work up to 10 and a half hours in a day, and a maximum of 60 hours in a week. Tis not only accommodated the changing personal needs of our work- force during the crisis, but also allowed for mission execution to continue through difficulties with distribution of virtual private network (VPN) bandwidth.


Employee Joan Clarkston said, “I have loved maxi-flex. Being everyone is home right now, there are some moments that are quieter than others and it has allowed me maximize those oppor- tunities to give the job my best. Also, with social distancing, it has provided me the necessary flexibility to run to the store when it isn’t as busy. Normally, I would have to take leave to do it during a regular work day.” Other employees have reported that taking advantage of the maxi-flex schedule has allowed them to care for sick family members and adjust their work hours to meet compet- ing personal priorities.


Tis has ensured timely mission success without sacrificing quality, while also supporting employees’ complex personal responsibilities. “I have been able to achieve a better work- life balance than ever before, resulting in less stress and more


When the initial chaos of transitioning to a new normal had calmed, leadership let the team recommend how often to hold the meetings, resulting in a reduction to once a week. Tis deci- sion was based on a decrease in angst among the employees, the completed transition to the virtual work environment and feed- back received from the team members. Te face-to-face format allowed the entire organization to see each other facing the same work-life balance challenges while working from home during a quarantine.


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