The finance industry is undergoing rapid change. From constantly changing regulations and compliance implications to the mass migration to remote or hybrid work, employee relations teams must navigate new, complex challenges every day.
With so much turmoil in the industry, ER teams in this sector need to double down on proactive processes, ER-specific technology and data-backed decision making. Now is the time to audit what you’re doing to stay resilient, consistently support your employees and protect your organization.
Here are a 6 areas ER teams in financial services should audit right now:
- Make sure employees feel heard. This is where ER-specific technology can work wonders. Truly anonymous reporting goes a long way to help employees feel safe about stepping forward with their concerns without fear of retaliation. At a minimum, anonymous workplace reporting technology should include real-time messaging between employees and the appropriate ER team member. The lines of communication need to be open and immediate.
- Make sure status tracking for employees is transparent. This is where both proactive processes and ER-specific technology can help. When an unavoidable issue comes up and a case is filled, make sure that part of the process is making sure employees are clear about what happens next. Setting up expectations on the front end and making sure they know how to see the status of their case will go a long way in building both patience and trust – even if the case doesn’t go their way. Here’s a resource to help you properly conduct workplace investigations – from allegation to aftercare – at your organization.
- Be bullish about accommodations. Covid triggered an avalanche of accommodations for many industries – including finance. With the introduction of remote work and long Covid, ER teams are finding themselves up to their eyeballs in accommodation requests. Focus on getting a proactive, efficient process in place to handle the increased volume. If an employee needs a special accommodation to stay productive, healthy and engaged, make it a priority. The best way to create efficiency here is by creating a smooth, repeatable workflow that employees and managers can initiate themselves.
- Help your people leaders spot the signs of burnout. Employees need to know their well being is important. Naturally, the most likely people to affirm whether it’s important or not is their direct leadership. Unfortunately, with so many employees working remotely, receiving that affirmation can be elusive. Give people leaders the specific training and tools (read more on HOW here) they need to communicate more effectively – especially in moments where employees show signs of burnout or express explicit concerns
- Create tighter, more resilient documentation and investigation processes. Financial industry regulations can change overnight leaving ER teams scrambling to audit and adjust multiple processes on the fly – including case documentation and investigations. This is where ER technology creates speed and efficiency. With technology built specifically for employee relations, documentation processes and investigation workflows can be audited and updated quickly and consistently across all departments and locations.
- Stay ahead of employee issues and regulatory violations with better data and analytics. ER teams that spend all their time fighting fires don’t spend time helping the organization reduce risk. Make sure your team has the ability to access real-time behavioral data that helps you spot trends, patterns and repeat behaviors before they catch fire. The ability to drill down into real-time data can help you detect the most nuanced bias and articulate more realistic reasons behind issues related to workplace culture, policy, and more.
The changes in financial services aren’t going to slow down any time soon. The good news is that with proactive processes, the right technology and data-backed decisions, ER teams are in a powerful position to help their workplaces stay resilient, compliant, healthy and safe. Take a Curiosity Tour with us to learn more about how our solution can help you level up.
