Fostering inclusion in the workplace has been a priority for HR since long before COVID-19 began. And as the global workforce continues to withstand unprecedented challenges from the ever-changing pandemic, a strong and sustained focus on organizational belonging is becoming more critical than ever.

With many employees experiencing an influx of stress as a result of extensive social isolation, cultivating an inclusive remote workplace can help bridge the disconnect between HR and employees and enable targeted efforts to bolster empathy and vital support.

Welcome to the season of doing. In an organizational sense, this can mean anything from employee reviews to compensation evaluations, end-of-year loose ends and next year’s strategic vision. All of this builds up to a never-ending pileup of personal endeavors, events and expectations. Everything from shopping to hosting, volunteering, attending, giving, receiving and all-in-all juggling the many responsibilities (and subsequent side effects) of the holidays. 

Here are 7 Ways to help you maintain balance (both personal and professional) during the busiest time of year: 

When it comes to planning for their retirement, how “in the know” are your employees? According to the American Benefits Council, more than 100 million Americans are contributing a combined $5.7 trillion in assets to 401(k) and other defined contribution plans and 97% of these plans use personalized communication to participants. Are your employees getting the message? 

Soon-to-be retirees are a growing workplace population that’s known to sneak beneath the HR radar. As many companies tailor their retirement communications to recent grads and employees new to the world of payroll contributions, this subset is left wondering how to actually utilize their funds. It’s important not only to include them in retirement planning communications, but to craft the kind of messaging that helps them make confident, well-informed decisions about how to retire. 

With more generations coexisting in the workplace than ever before, a pointed strategy for retirement benefit communication is an essential way to ensure informative enrollment and exit at every level. From recent grads carrying student loan debt to seasoned professionals about to sign out for good, a comprehensive communication tool provides a certain kind of inclusivity often overlooked by today’s HR teams. 

Karen Scattergood

I recently had the pleasure of attending the 2019 SHRM NYC Conference #ExceedingtheVision where the focus was on disrupting the HR world in a positive way that embraces company culture.

Company culture has long been a subjective concept that was often defined by whether or not your company allowed for casual Fridays. With work-life balance and flexibility being key in the modern-day workforce, culture is becoming less of a unicorn and more of a must-have for companies to attract and retain top talent. And with sites like Glassdoor paving the way for employees to speak about you as an employer, a positive culture is good PR and good business.