A beginning of a new year is a time when many of us think about resolutions and resetting. The start of this year feels a bit like a re-set in itself after the turmoil of 2020. A vaccination program is on the way and over summer many of us have experienced what a ‘COVID-normal’ world may look like.

After a year where so many businesses were forced into a purely reactive mode, we wondered what businesses could resolve to do better in 2021. We came up with 5 simple resolutions.

1.     Invest in your people

Last year businesses were given the opportunity to see the resilience, adaptability and commitment of their staff. This year, why not pay that back? Listening to and then supporting your teams is a great way to recognise and invest in your people.

This year, investing in employee wellbeing – both physical and mental wellness – will help people continue to cope with the impacts of the pandemic.

For example, many employees are expressing a desire to continue working from home, but others are missing the social and collaborative nature of working together. Some are calling for a mix. Why not listen to what your people really want and cater to their needs? Your workplace may support the continued need for remote working, or facilitating a return to a professional on-site environment safely or a balance between the two.

What are the other ways you can invest in your people? While most organisations invest in professional development programs focused on delivering performance outcomes, organisations that find other ways to support staff benefit from improved employee engagement and loyalty.

YakTrak’s software supports on-the-job coaching – even while people are working remotely – leading to improved employee engagement and higher performance. We’re also supporting wellbeing at work with 5 Ways to Wellbeing – the Royal Melbourne Hospital’s new wellbeing program.

2.     Mix up your people development program

When it comes to people development it might be tempting to return to the programs you’ve run year after year. However, by rigorously assessing those programs, you may find that they don’t deliver on their promises, or that they’re not set up for a post-COVID workforce.

While traditional people development programs have worthy aims, their reliance on a ‘set and forget’ approach sees people learning in the training room …only to forget in daily practice.

For people development to deliver sustainable results, undertake training where it happens – in the workplace.

Read why traditional professional development programs fail.

Resolving to frankly assess your people development activities and invest in solutions that focus on the workplace can offer a true transformation.

Read how EnergyAustralia transformed their employee training culture with YakTrak.

3.     Accept that there will be change

Businesses don’t operate in bubbles, and organisations can be vulnerable to a range of threats. This means the ability to respond to changing circumstances is crucial. However, the ability to be agile requires planning and preparation.

Accept that there will always be change and prepare your business for it. Enterprise risk management (ERM) can help businesses make plans for a range of future events and risks. ERM can help prepare for financial, strategic, environmental, reputational, HR and technological threats.

Resolving to undertake an enterprise risk management process in 2021 will help your business prepare for the unexpected.

Take a deeper dive into ERM.

4.     Get your house in order

Businesses, especially those in highly regulated industries, are addressing the need for increased governance and compliance. Along with that comes paperwork ­– and the need to have records for auditing purposes.

Being able to respond to conduct breaches with sound remediation processes can help to mitigate conduct risk. Backing this up with documentation for auditors is also key. This year ensure that your remediation processes include ‘click-of-a-button’ workflows to simplify the compliance process.

Watch how YakTrak’s compliance workflow and audit trail works.

5.     Use support systems that work

Get help so you can stick to your resolutions. By making sure you’ve got the right technology and a supportive team in place you’ll be able to see improvements throughout the year.

This year many businesses will have the additional pressure of balancing working from home and at the office. A support system that can travel wherever the team member is and helps leaders to keep in touch with frontline teams can resolve that pressure.

YakTrak powers the development of employees while providing a company’s leadership team with the insights they need. YakTrak is easy to use, integrates with other systems and supports teams and leaders wherever they are working.

We work closely with some of Australia’s biggest brands to improve the outcomes of their call centres. We commit to delivering the right solution for each business we work with and providing ongoing support, so you’ll get the most out of YakTrak.

Contact us today to find out how we can support your business resolutions.

Image by Time Mossholder via Unsplash.