The pandemic has been transformational in so many ways, and from our discussions across many sectors most people can identify and be grateful for at least some things that have changed for the better. There are undoubted demands on our teams from the myriad of changes in working patterns and practices that they have faced. Whether thriving or still facing significant challenge, it’s clear that most of us are learning to adapt and change to normalise where we find ourselves today. Around us we see many organisations building hybrid working policies to embrace new ways of working; the pandemic has been a powerful catalyst for change across everyday working practice.
The Thriving Pathway
Forward thinking leaders will appreciate that while the focus is always on driving improvements in business, customer satisfaction and profitability, it’s essential that our people are supported by the right skillsets to manage anything that comes their way at work and move along what we at MGI refer to as The Thriving Pathway – a progressive, guided and empowering route to move employees swiftly from ‘not coping’ to ‘thriving’, with embedded, long-lasting results.
During our diagnostic phase with our clients, it’s often clear that many people are currently operating below the middle of The Thriving Pathway and urgently need tools and strategies to help them cope with the many new demands at work. They need help to find a way forward and manage every situation, empowering them to look for solutions and alternatives with an optimistic mindset.
It is our experience that many frontline team members are feeling overwhelmed. If left unaddressed, employees can become desensitised to the customers’ needs and situations, especially if they are facing a high volume of demanding activities. The customer may be asking for something that requires an empathetic response, but because it’s so commonplace it can become just something else to deal with, leading to service that can feel impersonal and rushed; the opposite of what every customer services team should be striving to achieve.
A coping strategy to move up the Thriving Pathway
When we look into organisations with a strong mandate to improve service, we start by investigating what would motivate people in the organisation to engage with any training programme. Recently, it has become clear that first and foremost equipping team members to be more able to cope with the current demands on them is the priority, helping them to move up The Thriving Pathway. In focus groups people tell us that they are struggling to cope consistently and deliver at their best level every day. This could be due to systems issues, process challenges, new demands and requests from customers, sheer volume or ongoing stresses from working from home.
Putting the focus onto the employee and their wellbeing is the critical priority – giving them strategies and tools to cope better in the environment that might yet take some time to change. Simply recognising and offering help with these tools to cope better is a significant boost to help them see a way forward and a way of managing the work positively, knowing they are making a difference. By giving people tools to manage their emotions and behaviours in a challenging environment, focusing on what they can do, what they can influence and what they need to move on from and choose their response, can give them resilience and fortitude while other environmental issues are resolved.
Equipping people with communications tools that also focus on solutions and options starting with what is possible rather than what is not, will demonstrate a more optimal mindset to those around you. When everyone starts to communicate in this way, a positive momentum for change begins to galvanise people’s efforts, solving problems and creating a more productive, less stressful environment. This leads to an upward spiral of performance and moves people up The Thriving Pathway.
A unique Toolset for confidence and capability
MGI’s proven solution teaches people to develop an Optimal Mindset through our unique Mindset, Language & Actions Toolkit which provides a thorough set of strategies and tools to enable every learner to take a pause – to think clearly about what they can do in any given situation, to recognise when they need to reach out and ask for help and support from colleagues and leaders while developing their ability to seek their own solutions through increased confidence and capability.
Professional and positive, every time
People who have this strong, healthy mindset will express it through everything they think, feel, say and do. When we can ensure that our people are supported so that the first thing they ask is “OK, so what can I do … what is the best way forward?” and reflect that right from the start in their language and actions to their customers and colleagues, they will be empowered to give a professional and positive response every time, even in the face of adversity.
Find out here how MGI’s unique Mindset, Language & Actions Toolkit can empower your people to face new working environments and challenges with commitment and deliver outstanding service every time.
