In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, employee health and safety has come to the forefront of many leaders’ minds. To help those leaders put thought into action, Control magazine's Amanda Del Buono interviews Kylene Zenk, director of manufacturing practice at Kronos, about how digital technologies can help manufacturers be more attentive to their employees’ overall well-being.
Amanda: So, we've all noticed the increase in stress that the pandemic has put on all of us, and that's on top of just trying to stay healthy right now and keep your family healthy. Wondering what advice you have for leaders in manufacturing for how they can support their employees mentally and physically while working during the pandemic.
Kylene: My advice is to consider this situation not just as a business leader or a manager, but more importantly, as a human being. We need to try to understand the various implications that the workforce is experiencing. Obviously, how they work and their job has changed, but what health and safety concerns they might have, and also, more importantly, how their personal and family life has been affected. This is such a new dynamic for all of us and, almost everyone's lives changed in some fashion dramatically, overnight, from how and where we work to how and where our children are educated or cared for, to restrictions or recommendations on our movements. And then, of course, just new fears and anxieties about potential illness. So, manufacturers and manufacturing leaders need to adapt to this new normal and recognize that the pandemic has created ultimately a new employee experience. We need to understand that this new employee experience extends beyond the workplace and look for opportunities to support employees in all aspects of their lives. For example, many of us now have competing priorities and new time constraints at home due to daycare closings or camp closings right now. Who knows what the situation with school is going to look like in the fall, people's partners or spouses have experienced job loss or other changes brought forth by the pandemic.
