With a sudden shift to remote working , optics company Essilor Russia introduced an online initiative to boost employee motivation and facilitate connection , explains HR Director Nadezhda Brainis .
When COVID-19 came to Russia ( a little later than it hit Europe ), our first priority was to ensure the survival of the business and to support our colleagues in dealing with such an unprecedented situation .
We instructed all of our staff who were able to work from home to do so . We didn ’ t give them a choice as we were worried about the health implications of the pandemic . But we understood that a huge downside was the fact that people wouldn ’ t be seeing each other in the way they would do in an office environment . So we decided we needed to do something to give them some support and help facilitate connection across the organisation .
We decided to set up a common virtual space for informal communication between employees , which facilitated the exchange of information and opinions from different spheres of life , as well as helping colleagues share useful skills and knowledge with each other . We wanted people to discover their potential and creative possibilities outside of their day-to-day professional activity . This became known as our # NotJustJob project .
Colleagues were invited to join a series of virtual webinar sessions on a range of topics , including developing skills , cooking , fitness and other sports , hobbies and learning foreign languages . Managers supported and inspired their people to participate and also created their own webinars . More than 25 webinars were launched between May and August 2020 , with 120-plus employees taking part .
We wanted people to discover their potential and creative possibilities outside of their day-to-day professional activity
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Feedback was really positive because as well as learning new skills and finding out about different topics , people had the opportunity to network , interact and communicate with colleagues from different parts of the business .
As we emerge from the pandemic , there are definitely elements of the # NotJustJob initiative that we want to retain . We are all still operating in a climate of uncertainty , so having something which contributes positively to employees ’ mental health and wellbeing is critical to us as an organisation .
We want our people to operate with a positive attitude and an open mind . It is easy to be impacted negatively by situations which are beyond your control and when you are operating with a certain degree of ambiguity . This , in turn , can cause stress and anxiety . So if we can support our employees in developing the soft skills they need to operate effectively in the ‘ new ’ world of work – such as thinking creatively – this will hopefully equip them to deal confidently with uncertain situations and be motivated to do their jobs well .