Leaving No One Behind: Resilience at Work amidst the Threat of the Pandemic

by Kristine M. Velasquez, Erwin John Mascareñas, Gloria G. Tamayo, Melinda Fucio, Estrellita Aviera-Larcena, and Ponciano Gamboa Jr.

We might not be in the same boat, but we are sailing to become resilient amidst the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. We aim to turn these boats into a ship leaving no one behind.

Understanding Disruption and Resilience at Work

Resilience refers to the ability to recuperate from difficult situations. A sudden disruption in the social and economic growth in our country was brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Inequality, discrimination, exclusion, and unemployment increase due to the failure to address the necessary policies for implementation. The rate of employment declined, which has an effect on economic growth. Most of the employees were forced to a work-from-home setup in order to hamper the spread of infection. While others lost their jobs as their employer closed or lost business due to the implementation of community quarantine with different levels of restrictions.

For some, a shift from the typical work in the office to a work-from-home setup might sound interesting, right? There is no need to deal with the traffic during rush hour or even endure the struggle with co-commuters to ride in public transportation. We have our own time at home. We can bond with our family if we want or even watch a movie while checking emails and answering calls. We can also be in any place - not literally at home, as long as there is a strong internet connection to attend to meetings and webinars.

Others may enjoy the advantages of a work-from-home setup as one might find it as a typical weekend. However, as community quarantine takes up longer, the complexities of a work-from-home setup become at a disadvantage. A typical 8-hour duty in the office becomes longer than expected when at home. Nights become part of our day – we might even think of a graveyard shift. Several distractions are being encountered such as the barking of the dogs from the neighborhood, vehicle noise, and other unnecessary conversations inside and outside home. The work-from-home setup eventually becomes unconducive and uncomfortable. We came to a point that we have to find an area at home as our workspace. For us who are not that privileged, we cannot cater to convert a room to be our office. Aside from these, additional expenses such as the need to buy a computer or laptop, a webcam with microphone to be used for meetings and webinars, and other supplies and equipment just to deliver services while working at home. Having an internet connection becomes a necessity. On top of these is the surge in our electric consumption.

As the community quarantine loosen up, we, tagged as essential workers, have to dwell with the usual operations in our office. A combination of work-from-home and physical reporting are being exercised. Our usual work that we do in the office has been changed by the pandemic. Due to the observance of safety health protocols, the implementation of a limited number of employees reporting for duty affects the flow of our documents. We are having a hard time with our filing system and on tracking the documents as one cannot do and monitor all transactions in the office given a limited time considering the threat of the coronavirus. We become flexible with our job as the delegation of tasks are being passed by to those on schedule to work in the office while having to coordinate to other employees who are in a work-from-home setup. If there is a need to purchase supplies and equipment, this takes longer than usual despite the urgency for it since other offices also exercise the same protocols.

Meanwhile, some colleagues assume that we can handle all the transactions the same way we had during pre-pandemic. The “bahala na/sila” culture showing lack of commitment and motivation to improve is still there despite the need for strong coordination and cooperation with other colleagues due to a skeleton workforce. We know that these attitudes among our colleagues will change and that this pandemic just adds up to the way we think and respond.

Stimulating Resiliency among the Team

In a moment of our life, we are leaders or might aspire to become one. Some wanted to lead the team in all sorts of ways - may it be to victory, in finishing a task, or even to develop one’s potential. Others tend to lead based on their guiding principles. According to Israelmore Ayivor, an inspirational writer and speaker, “Leadership is self-made. People who have deliberately decided to become problem-solvers lead better”.

In our work, we encounter lots of challenges - be it with the task or with our colleagues as members of the team. We sometimes do not meet the expectations with our work, thus this affects the general performance in the office. Given this situation, can we simply give up? The answer is no. As we tend to become leaders, it is normal for us to go through ups and downs. We have our strengths and weaknesses. However, we need to be resilient and influence our team to cope up with different situations at work.

During our discussion among leaders in the team, we all agreed that leaders must be an active listener in order to understand the actions and reactions of our colleagues especially when the task has not been done on time or failed to do so. We need to communicate effectively to address the issues instead of just letting it pass without resolution. There are instances that we need to have compassion. Words of encouragement might help to keep them motivated. One of the characteristics we had in mind is that a leader must be teachable or willing to learn. It might be a cliche but it is true that a leader must be a good follower. He/She has a plan to keep the unity in the team and a good coach that will guide the team in every step of the way. Being a leader with a positive attitude contributes not only to our own well-being but also to the welfare of the team.

Thriving Resilience to Move Forward

As we move forward, we meet people with different types of personalities. Some are amiable who are people-oriented, a driver who dwells on getting the task done and in making decisions, an expressive type who comes up with ideas, and an analytical type for keeping things organized and being task-oriented.

Despite the threat of the pandemic, offices still need to be operational. There are still deadlines that are being set wherein documents must be submitted on time. Also, there are requests that must be approved in a short span of time. Given these circumstances, meetings and consultations among the team and even with other offices are at hand. Coordination must be effectively done for the delegation of tasks. In order for our colleagues to have the drive to meet these deadlines, it is encouraged for a driver and an analytical type of employee to partake in the planning and in assigning one to have a checklist of priorities that can be monitored regularly. An amiable type may also be involved especially if it has to deal with consultations and coordination with students, faculty, other administrative staff, and stakeholders. Communication channels aside from face-to-face conversation which cannot be done regularly, can be through a form of email and group chat. A pressing and straight forward message can be an effective strategy. More so, we may notice that as the deadlines are getting near, some may get stressed. To make things lighter, having an ice breaker during meetings and even in conversation in a group chat might be a good idea especially for those with an expressive type of personality. These colleagues may also be assigned in activities that involve socializing and in preparation of programs.

In the long run, we wanted our office to provide quality services to the students, faculty, other administrative staff, and stakeholders. As such, our target is to increase the level of productivity of each employee by accomplishing requests, having an effective filing and tracking of documents through systematized monitoring, and maintaining a good condition of facilities and equipment. We can achieve these by conducting a yearly training and seminar to the employees relevant to their duties and responsibilities, developing a database of tracking systems, and regulating safety precautions for the use of devices and equipment before the semester starts.

The one-size-fits-all approach is not applicable for us. In this time of pandemic, we plan and create sets of strategies to make ourselves resilient and meet the expectations set to us in providing excellent services. However, we cannot stand as a leader and implement the necessary task if our colleagues have a path that is different from ours. Some may lose track and need to be reminded of the vision that we have in mind. With this, we need to gather and empower them, and form a harmonious relationship towards the same direction. As we may put it, we need to sail as one.