This guest blog post was authored by a member of the Employee Experience Team, Steffi Graffis.
Difficult times have a way of revealing what’s truly important to a company’s culture, values, leadership, and employee experience. Times like these bring everything to the surface – the good and the bad; the weaknesses and the strengths. Covid-19 has acted like an X-ray for businesses around the world, with our hearts, brains, and bones suddenly visible and impossible to ignore – for better or for worse.
Here at Filter, we’ve been paying special attention to the heart of our business. Regardless of the inherent uncertainty, confusion, and fear that accompanies this situation, Filter has kept its heart top-of-mind through it all. All decisions and actions have been filtered (no pun intended) through the heart, with the value “Love. Yes, love” acting as our north star.
When all this started in March, Filter CEO, Joe Melanson, and our leadership team acted quickly, immediately prioritizing employee health and safety. And since then, employee health, wellbeing, engagement, and fun (yes, we’ve been prioritizing fun too) have been at the forefront.
Now that we’re a few months in, I’d like to share how Filter has responded to this pandemic. We believe it’s important to reflect on the actions we’ve taken to ensure that we are taking care of our employees.
Here’s a breakdown of how Filter has responded to Covid-19 so far:
1. Surveyed employees to understand the challenges of working from home
Providing a platform for employees to communicate their struggles has been instrumental in making educated decisions on how to navigate this time. We shared a survey to all employees to learn about their needs during this time. The survey also provided an opportunity for employees to ask questions to Filter’s leadership team and share suggestions about how Filter could better support its employees.
With this approach, figuring out what our employees needed didn’t have to be a guessing game. The results allowed us to identify key employee pain points from which we could craft a response plan based on true needs, rather than what we think employees need. (We borrowed this idea from one of the key principles of UX research – more on that here!)
2. Planned a calendar of virtual activities to stay connected
We’ve been acutely aware of how social distancing is emotionally and mentally impacting our employees. But even before the pandemic, creating a positive employee experience was always top-of-mind at Filter. All engagement events have now become virtual experiences, meaning we’ve had to flex our creative muscles to ensure our employees remain connected and engaged.
After giving myself the fancy promotion of “Virtual Experience Manager”, the Employee Experience Team and I have planned several different activities to keep employees connected. A few examples include weekly virtual happy hours, trivia games, daily photo themes for employees to share on our Teams channel, and virtual daily watercooler hangouts. Currently, we’re hosting a 31-day mental health challenge, where we’ve created a calendar with different daily activities focused on supporting our employees’ mental wellbeing. And there are more virtual activities to come!
3. Improved morale with new employee recognition programs
In the midst of social distancing, we launched a new employee recognition program: the Values Spotlight. This program recognizes two Filter employees each month who do great work – and display our Filter Values while doing it!
We’ll be selecting a Filter Value to serve as a theme for each month. Employees will have the opportunity to nominate their colleagues that demonstrate these qualities. From our pool of nominees, we select two winners who will receive an award and be celebrated in our monthly newsletter and social media channels (Don’t forget to follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram).
Additionally, we have implemented a new online recognition tool where managers can send members of their team small tokens of gratitude and acknowledge great work.
While we may not be together in the office, I believe our new programs will enable employees to feel more engaged and connected than ever before. Special shout out to Employee Experience Partner Jen Sawyer, the architect of these awesome new programs!
4. Implemented benefits to help parents with childcare needs
For many individuals, this time of social distancing will be characterized by memories of trying to balance working from home with caring for children. Parents who are trying to stay productive while also watching, homeschooling, and entertaining their little ones, need some extra support during this time. As a result, Filter is offering a temporary benefit that reimburses parents for paying family members/friends to take care of their children during the workday.
We understand that this is an especially trying time for parents, who are being stretched in all sorts of directions. As a company, we believe it’s in everyone’s best interest to make sure parents and kids are supported throughout this pandemic.
5. Provided opportunities to improve WFH setups
Keeping employees healthy during this time is not just limited to Covid-19 concerns alone – we also need to pay attention to how this sudden shift to working from home could affect employee health both mentally and ergonomically.
It’s important for employees to feel empowered and productive while working from home – and comfort is a crucial part of that. Filter is providing a stipend for the purchase of home office equipment and supplies, internet service upgrades, or items that may facilitate a better working from home experience.
6. Practiced – and encouraged – empathy
There is no denying that video conferencing platforms, project management tools, messaging apps, social media, and everything else the internet has to offer have made a profound impact on keeping companies running during this time of pandemic. But the real impact, the thing that truly keeps a company (and an individual person, for that matter) healthy and thriving is empathy. The emotional support being shown by employees and managers through regular check-ins, open communication, and acts of caring is where true compassion is being practiced.
Technology has kept the business-side of Filter functioning and its bones intact. But regular human-to-human empathy and connection are what has kept its heart strong. As we continue to reevaluate what’s important during these uncertain times, I hope that all of us will consider our “Love, Yes Love” value: Care passionately about what you do and everyone you encounter. Use your heart!
Now that we’ve shared the steps Filter is taking to improve the wellbeing of our employees, learn how Filter is helping our clients pivot from response to recovery.
