Collectivity Salon Series: the Evolving Workplace
We are thrilled and grateful to the community leaders who attended our 2nd Quarterly Salon Event, to discuss The Evolving Workplace last week. It was wonderful to hear the perspectives of several nonprofit & social business leaders. Please enjoy the summary of the 2nd Salon Session, and please save the date for our next salon!
The Evolving Workplace
Extending Grace to a Still Traumatized City
During the conversation, the topic of unresolved trauma in the Twin Cities arose, particularly in the wake of the murder of George Floyd and subsequent civil unrest. Participants discussed the need to extend grace to our peers as we continue to grapple with the additional trauma of the pandemic and social uprising. They emphasized the importance of acknowledging the ongoing impact on mental health, and providing resources to help individuals and communities heal. Participants also highlighted the need for systemic change to address the root causes of trauma in order to prevent further harm and promote healing in the city, as well as prioritizing healing even before future work begins. The city of Minneapolis and its Truth and Reconciliation process was identified specifically by multiple members for not going far enough to address the necessary collective healing, and for actively choosing not to partner with communities who had stated a desire to be included in the process. Overall, our conversation underscored the importance of compassion and understanding as the Twin Cities works toward recovery and rebuilding.
Growing Pains: How Leaders are Adapting to the Evolving Workplace
Participants shared their experiences of how the pandemic has caused them to rethink the way they work and manage their teams. Workers are requiring more flexibility in hours and work settings and supervisors have had to learn how to manage and motivate their teams in a hybrid setting. Flexible, transparent, altruistic, and intentional are all becoming baseline characteristics of what will be considered a “good organization to work for”. Leaders have been actively seeking new ways to build team cohesion and camaraderie; for example Malika Dahir - Executive Director of RISE - instituted a wellness stipend for her team. Overall, they emphasized the importance of being agile and adaptable, as well as taking advantage of the evolving workplace in order to build a more resilient organization in the future.
Strategies for Success: Real Life Methods for Improving your Organization
15-minute Daily Standups (Collectivity) or "Huddles" and Friday "Wins" every week (RealTime Talent)
Supervisors learning about trauma responses and how to best support folks who may exhibit them (Redesign Inc)
Adjusting organizational practices to meet changes to how work is done at the organization to ensure continuity & consistency (Collectivity)
Enhanced focus on new staff members with intentional check-ins, onboarding, and training time (Redesign Inc)
Senior leaders opening their calendars up to have more face-to-face time with folks in their organization (Seed. Grow. Bloom LLC)
Investing in communications tools (Slack, MS Teams, Google Chat, etc.) but always ensuring that they suit your organization and are chosen strategically (Seed. Grow. Bloom LLC)
Giving employees one day a month to volunteer elsewhere (Seed. Grow. Bloom LLC)
Offering “self-care stipends” for employees to use specifically on massages, manicures, haircuts, etc. that promote self-care (RISE)
Bringing in trained facilitators for large group discussions with sensitive topics or priorities (Seed. Grow. Bloom LLC)
If your organization lacks a definitive social mission, find ways to emphasize the altruism and direct social impact of your work (RealTime Talent)
Thanks again for all of those who attended the 2nd Collectivity Quarterly Salon Session. With diverse backgrounds and experiences (and tasty food :) we can build each other up, collaborate, and drive system-level change only made possible by working together
