Most organizations have faced disruptions over the past few years. Consequently, many businesses have developed operational practices necessary to keep serving customers and supporting employees during times of uncertainty.

Because of this, forward-thinking business leaders recognize that having a flexible strategy is an essential part of workforce operations planning. Flexibility is vital to your company’s resilience and long-term success, whether you’re facing natural disasters, economic shifts or other unforeseen challenges. By reflecting forward and planning ahead, your company may be more nimble and perhaps more likely to persevere through hardships.

Are your workforce operations ready for future disruptive situations? How will you adapt your mindset and strategies so that you can manage employee-related functions in a way that maintains your organization’s productivity, continuity and culture?

From business needs to employee expectations, below are a few things to consider regarding a flexible workforce strategy.

Keep a change management mindset

Central to your planning must be a commitment to acknowledging reality, particularly when it may have changed dramatically due to an outside force. Even if your workforce management plan involves returning to familiar ways of operating, you can’t simply revert to the past without addressing what’s been learned and experienced.

Consider the following realities your employees may have faced during recent changes:

• Sudden (and perhaps sweeping) operational shifts
• Increasing comfort with nontypical ways of operating
• Multiple change cycles as you’ve had to adjust your plans

Acknowledging these experiences is key to moving forward successfully. A thoughtful, mindful approach can help mitigate change fatigue and promote smoother operations.

Establish your guideposts

As a business leader or executive, you’ve likely learned that it can be a challenge to decide how to move your organization through a crisis in a way that:

• Stays true to your culture
• Ensures continued growth
• Shows employees their importance

At the same time, staying aligned with your mission, vision and values can help you keep a steady, firm grip on your workforce operations. Ideally, your organizational foundations should serve as guideposts as you assess alignment of new workplace practices and build a successful operations plan.

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