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In the weeks following the explosion of COVID-19 cases and subsequent work-from-home or stay-at-home orders, employee engagement issue has become even more critical. Perhaps concerns in the workplace are because the physical or virtual office itself isn’t really the problem. Could the issue actually be the health and happiness of the people inside your office that matters? Here is a list of 3 ways technology can humanize working from home during this uncertain time.

1. Improve Communications

With so many communication channels now available — email, chat, text, and so on — important information often gets lost in the shuffle. To make matters worse, everyone who is now working remotely must coordinate his or her efforts exclusively through digital means (and without the aid of face-to-face interactions).

Internal communications tools such as a modern intranet help cut through the clutter and serve as a single source of truth. Implementing a single location for all information is vital for companies. They deserve their own communication channel — one they can oversee and administer — rather than a channel that is produced for mass audiences.

2. Contribute Feedback

Good ideas thrive when information flows freely. In addition to having a platform for shared information, teams must leverage it to supply feedback and share constructive criticism.

Populating the intranet with content such as surveys or discussion threads will ensure that stakeholders have the means to express their opinions without fear of recrimination.

Decision-makers, in particular, must make it a point to solicit feedback. Nothing kills employee engagement faster than ignoring people — especially when they are talking about fundamental needs and wants.

3. Do away with Hierarchies

Companies must abandon the mentality that suggests information flows from the top down. Technology liberates information to flow in all directions — and it serves as a kind of community resource accessible to everyone.

When employees have easy access to things such as announcements, files, and reference documents, it increases transparency and keeps misunderstandings at bay.

Companies reflect the people within them for better or worse. It’s not a radical statement, even when it is coming from titans of industry — which means it is not a radical change, either.

Companies do not need to transform to fulfill their true potential. Rather, they must unlock the assets already inside the ranks. Technology has the key.

Read More: https://readwrite.com/2020/04/24/how-technology-can-humanize-workdays-and-why-that-matters/

If you’re like most CRE professionals, you have a lot of questions and concerns about navigating the 2020 recession. There’s no denying it – things look bleak. Yet as many leading lights in the commercial real estate industry are pointing out, there are strategic steps you can take to mitigate losses and actually strengthen your position for a dramatic comeback when the dust settles.

The Bad News

The bad news is we are facing an almost certain recession, and it could the sharpest correction most of us have seen in our lifetimes. We who make our living buying, selling, building, and managing commercial real estate have to face facts. The recession is coming.

Are we in a recession now? Well, not officially, no. An economic recession is defined as a period of at least six months of economic shrinking. While our economy has been dramatically shrinking, it’s only been since March. We won’t officially be in a recession until this continues through August. But experts agree that’s only a technicality – our economy is already shrinking rapidly.

The Good News

However, while it may be easy to give in to fear, economists and CRE experts tell us not to panic. Navigating the 2020 recession strategically will require calm thinking and perspective. After all, the 2008 recession was historically dismal, yet many real estate investors and CRE professionals came out of that crisis stronger than ever. And there are many reasons to believe this current crisis presents similar opportunities for those who are vigilant, aware, and strategically focused.

Top economists and CRE experts predict the damage will largely be short-term, and the turnaround will be quick. Indeed, many of the reasons 2008 was so bad are not in play for this unordinary downturn.

If you’re wondering what your top priorities should be right now to minimize ill effects and weather this downturn successfully, here are a few best practices to help. These tips and strategies will position you to come through a bad storm with a smile on your face and a bright future ahead.

Top 5 Considerations for Navigating the 2020 Recession

1. First, don’t get over leveraged. Properties with large debt ratios should be re-considered. Keep your expenses and overhead low. This should go without saying.

2. Next, focus on communication. Talk to your team. Talk to your investors. Talk to your colleagues. We’re in this together, and we will get out of this together. Now is the time to be in touch with tenants, lenders, and all involved parties. Keep those communication lines open to manage expectations and timelines. We’re all in the same boat, so be open and honest with others to build trust and understanding.

3. Don’t neglect your properties. Right now, it may be tempting to stop managing your properties. Going without cash flow for a couple months is understandable, but keep managing the property to keep it viable in the coming downturn. You want your properties to be as attractive and competitive as possible.

4. Stay in the game. Prospect and hustle like it’s 2019. Right now is when it matters most. Because things will be very slow in 6-12 months, and the early work you do right now to fill your pipeline will pay off when you need it most. Navigating the 2020 recession and coming out of it stronger in 2021 will require dedicated efforts to plan and grow when everyone else is crippled with fear.

5. Examine yourself and your priorities. Is your career path on the right track? Stress has a way of sorting out our strengths and weaknesses. This is a perfect opportunity to take stock of where you are and where you want to be. Take time to reflect on what you bring to the table in a crisis like this one – and whether rising to the challenge means making changes or doing more of the same.

Whether you work in investment, management, construction, or sales, keep your wits about you. As Mark Twain is rumored to have once said, every crisis is an opportunity in work clothes. So roll up your sleeves and start planning your comeback. This is when leaders are made.

Everyone is looking up at the CEOs, at the principals and directors, at the presidents and project managers, and thinking, “Uh-oh. They’re just as clueless as me.” And it’s true.

No matter how prepared some people may have been, nobody has ever done this particular thing before. For the past few months, everyone in power has been fumbling, trying to come up with a plan, trying to reassure the people around them, and trying to figure out what happens next. It’s scary to be a leader during COVID19.

That is a nerve-racking test, especially because leaders feel uncertain, frightened, exhausted, and alone too. But as uncomfortable as those feelings are, they actually serve as a guide for how to lead right now.

When you feel uncertain, you want a plan. When you feel frightened, you want kindness. When you are exhausted, you want recognition and motivation. When you are alone, you want companionship and camaraderie.

Those feelings and anxieties are universal right now. For leaders, that’s good news. While there’s no one-size-fits-all approach for leading through this crisis, this is a shared experience, and that provides a fairly clear-cut rubric for offering support to the people around you. Here’s a list of how to be a leader during COVID19

Create A Game Plan

Not a grand plan. Just a plan to get through tomorrow, and the next day. Pick one reasonable goal to accomplish, and then assign everyone you lead a task that will contribute toward it. Land one new client, finish one project, clean one room in the house—everyone (including you) will feel better with a single, simple objective. When one task is complete or one goal accomplished, find another.

Read More: https://www.fastcompany.com/90496726/how-to-lead-when-youre-scared-too

These uncertain times can be trying and scary, but can also serve as an opportunity to slow down and reflect. We encourage you to use this time to check in with where you are and where you want to be in life. Take stock of your career and your growth path. If you are not yet where you want to be, and we can serve as a sounding board to get you there, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Stay safe and healthy!

– Carly and Julia