There’s so much talk about what companies need to do for their employees these days.

It was already at a fever pitch -- as we say at Holistic, employees are more important than they’ve ever been, and that was before Coronavirus. Throw into that changing cultural norms around employee expectations, no stigma about job hopping, technology, and sprinkle it with a dusting of about three percent unemployment, and you get a very imbalanced workplace.

Ah, those were the good old days … remember them? Two months ago?

Guess what, though — the world changed, almost overnight. Unemployment went from 3 percent to 5 to 10 times that, depending on who you ask. Companies are facing pressures today that they never thought possible earlier this year. Taking care of your team has become harder and more important than it was even two months ago.

But something else has happened. Employers -- leaders and companies alike -- have also found themselves in a position where the balance of power, so to speak, has shifted. Now, companies are (again) in the driver seat. And companies, and managers, need to expect some specific things from their employees right now.

Here’s four things that companies and managers should be aware of, and should be asking for -- nay, demanding! -- from their employees.

Good Energy and Kindness

One of the heartening things in our research about the Covid Crisis has been the uptick in kind feeling around offices. NPS scores are off the charts, and people are truly giving their companies and one another the benefit of the doubt. This is absolutely critical and must continue; this is the first and primary thing that companies need to be looking for from employees right now. 

The truth of the matter is, you have absolutely no idea what someone else is going through. You have no idea how the quarantine doldrums are affecting them today or how they’ll be affected tomorrow. All of this is totally okay. What we can control, however, is our own behavior. People must be nice to one another. You must find every bit of good energy that you can, and bring it to work. It is essential.

Loyalty

I’m not really a person who believes that there’s any sort of inherent loyalty that needs to be in place between an employee and their employer -- every day you show up for work, you’re making a choice. It’s a business relationship, and you’re being compensated in return. That’s the end of it. 

However -- right now, given what is going on, I think people (both ways) are going to start to pay attention. Companies are taking out loans to keep jobs alive. Leaders are forgoing pay to keep employees from being furloughed. My bet is that employees will notice and that they will (or should) show some serious loyalty. I think you’re gonna see a lot less people going across the street for $2,000 more a year. And guess what? If someone is willing to do that, after all of this that we’ve been through, you don’t want them anyway. 

No Drama

Employees need to put their shit to the side right now. Seriously. The interests of the company go first and foremost. Your performance review got delayed? Wear it. It’s going to take longer for your promotion? So be it. You don’t like what you’re being asked to do? That’s what the money is for!!!!

This is the singular time where no manager can expect to have to deal with an employee’s individualism in front of the interests of the team. 

Hard Effort

Ultimately, there’s no substitute for hard work. There never has been, but in this do-more-with-less environment, people need to grind. On behalf of every manager, everywhere, we’re looking for people who show up with their game faces on and are ready to roll. That is what it is going to take to get through this quarantine and get our companies back on solid footing. Hard, hard work.

No one knows what the coming months or years will hold. Anyone who tells you they do is lying. However, what we do know is that, to the extent that we are able to make it through this trying time, we’ll have to do it together. And we’ll rely on our employees to bring their best selves to work in every possible way. The elements that I’ve mentioned above are indicators of a shifting focus in the workplace. A market correction, if you will. And this is okay -- necessary, even.

The question is: As a leader, are you prepared to meet your employees where they are and help them be their best selves? And as an employee, are you able to model this sort of behavior and organize yourself and your company for success? It’s a two-way street, but if it’s done together, there’s a ton of potential for success.