Develop a culture to live with Covid-19.....!

Let’s accept it, the earliest that the world will have access to a vaccine against Covid19 will be twelve months from now. The logic being that the current short listed probable products that have shown some promise will have to pass the third stage trials on humans, which will take a incubation period of eight months. Thereafter, for commercialization which includes setting up of production facilities and the logistical chain means this time line of 12- 14 months looks the most practical.

Reality

In this backdrop, we have no option but rather than fighting the virus we will have to learn to live with Covid-19 virus, even though it is termed very contagious and lethal in nature. As at today there are 15 million people affected and 0.6 million fatalities with the countries around Sri Lanka in challenging times. We in Sri Lanka must be proud on the fact that only 11 have died and overall the management of Covid- 19 virus has been well managed. Even though there is ambiguity on the current status, the fact remains that that there is no one in a ventilator. This is one fact that we must accept and talk good of our country.

Has the status of Sri Lanka moved from 3b to stage 4? there are many speculations I guess post the elections on the 5th of August Sri Lanka will get a better view of the reality. The most practical way to look at the issue right now is ‘ how do I live with Covid- 19’. Let me do a deep dive on this perspective.

1) Make people closer to the problem with Education

Education comes in many forms such as trainings, team building exercises, workshops, training courses and brain storming sessions just to name a few. The goal of educating employees is to make them aware of their own unconscious bias, instill a new perspective like wearing masks/ washing hands for 20 seconds/ keeping a one meter distance for instance. The approach of educating people helps the people understand that Covid- 19 is a common problem that require a team approach to solving.

In the education process you will notice that it will bridge the gaps and strengthen relationships on the task of ‘ living with Covid-19’. For instance if one is feeling sick with headaches/ throat ache or running nose, then it’s best to stay at home than putting the whole team at risk. This will require maturity and responsibility which will come from the approach of educating the employees.

Leaders, especially middle managers, need to be fully onboard and dedicated to educating themselves and being aware of their own unconscious bias to Covid- 19. Drinking kothathamalli is said to boost the immunity and the BCG vaccine tend to give a herd immunity but yet these are at hypothesis stage than being actually proven.

Given this background the HR departments must remain committed to exploring various learning opportunities to keep the leadership of the company and employees engaged in learning on the development of Covid- 19. The reason being, there is so much of knowledge coming in from the US and India which can be accessed via CNN and NDTV for instance. The only inhibitor is that one must have a learning mind. This is the new thinking required which is why it’s prudent to theme the current reality as ‘ Living with Covid-19’.

2) Supportive Workplace

Getting your company ‘ Covid-19 Control Environment’ Certified by SLSI will make the staff feel that the work place is safe to attend. You have to make the office more safer than once house. Like for instance all vehicle tyres must be sanitized before entering the premises. The other key steps include sanitizing carpets, having to wash hands before entering the office, sanitizer liquid can be seen visually in key locations inside the company. Some go to the extent of cleaning door handles at least three times a day and a temperature chart maintained means that an employer is doing one’s best to maintain strong hygiene and sanitation levels inside office. This is the supportive structure required to help a person “live with Covid-19’.

Allyship is another fundamental that helps support an individual during a pandaemic. Creating healthier and more positive work environments is a must given the stress levels that exits due to the pandemic. Employees should feel heard and comfortable to freely voice their feelings, opinions and concerns without the fear of retaliation as some families are naturally very sensitive to germs and illnesses.

The most important this is that people must feel confident that their workplace supports and even if one gets Covid-19 that they will not be shunned. Some companies are already training staff members in the event a colleague gets this virus how they need to be treated and how one can practice self quarantine. They have in fact documented the legal procedures about having to go to a quarantine center or IDH for treatment

3) Practice Collective Accountability

A point to note is that every company has a culture which has rules that must be abided by in order to keep the workplace functioning and healthy. The new culture inside the company must be such that, Covid- 19 new norm Violators should face the consequences, regardless of their rank or title. Turning a blind eye to one situation is how toxic cultures is a sure indication that you have not made the company responsive to the current pandaemic challenge. Leadership and management are the ones who set the tone of the culture and employees, candidates and consumers look to them to see if they’re practicing what they preach which is what we see the biggest problem that organisations are faced with. Most top leaders do not like their temperatures be checked which needs corrctivity. If we don’t pledge to practice the new norms we will end up like some parts of India where Covid- 19 has becomes unmanageable.

4) Review the current procedures

Just like during the LTTE Terror times where dummy terrorists were sent to organizations to check security levels, today this same tests must be done to check the procedures in relation to Covid-19. The best example is the rehabilitation centre at Kandakadu which was up to the point of getting the ISO certification level but yet an infected person slipped through the system and more than three hundred people got infected. This can happen to any one of our organizations and we have to ensure all leakage are tighten for the next 12-18 months. End of the day we have no option but learn to live with Covid- 19. Hence, regular audits will become a way of life in today’s companies.

5) Be Honest About Goals, Progress And Shortcoming

Traditionally, companies kept employees in the dark about what was happening internally. As a result, employees never felt like they were valued. But today, given that the problem is more a human discipline issue the importance of a employee is once again top of mind. Given this issue the management must be transparent on the current procedures and what the issues are. It could be wearing a mask at a usual meeting to keeping a one meter distance during the tea break. Unless the culture is open to the set goals and accepting the weaknesses we cannot have a situation where ‘ living with Covid-19’ can become a reality.

Conclusion

The above are some strategies that can be practiced so that we can learn to live with a Covid- 19. If a country has deep pockets it can fund total lockdowns but If we open a country too early then the economy can bounce back but at the expense of more bodies. Hence the management of Covid Virus is more a maths game. Which is why countries like USA products using AI product that that 240,000 peoples will die from the virus whilst as at now the number stands at 140,000.

The author is a CEO of a Artificial Intelligence company in the South Asian region