Applying the Change Curve to "Return to the Workplace"

It has been a full year since the work arrangements as we knew them were abruptly disrupted.  And in that year, most people have adapted in ways that worked for them. They are no longer the same people with the same habits as they were before the pandemic. People have evolved and become comfortable with their new arrangements. We would be naive to think that everyone wants to go back to the "previous normal." We would also be naive to believe everyone will want the same "new normal."
These are ways that people's views and experiences with work may have changed over the last year:

• People may like the way their personal and work life boundaries have blended, and may not welcome rigid work hours again.

• People may be accustomed to lower work-related expenses such as gas, parking, bus fare, lunches, day care, business clothes!

• For some people, shelter in place may have led to relocation and they may want to stay remote in their new place.

• For some, mental health issues may have surfaced or escalated over the last year and there will be anxiety to return to work.

• For anyone who developed new habits to adapt in 2020, they will need to learn new habits to adapt to 2021's return to work.

There's so much to consider as we try to understand where people are on their change curves. Like any other type of stakeholder analysis, we need to listen, understand, and plan accordingly. 

To watch the recording of May's chapter event, use the link and passcode below:

https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/_BO4z9LoWvhXbGw6Rf4Hij3ipW8sltuO9latPCveHrSZTGAS8Q6_xxkU4SALzPjw.Bm8EICPq2IaazpFD 

Passcode: c6%!@#9B