Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about unprecedented changes in the way we work, with many office jobs transitioning to remote work and virtual meetings. As the situation improves and vaccinations become widespread, organizations are now faced with the decision of when and how to return to the office. However, this transition is not without its challenges. Many companies have struggled with their return to office programs, leading to questions about whether these issues stem from a leadership or management problem. In this article, we will explore the factors that contribute to the challenges faced by companies and the role of leadership and management in navigating this transition.

The Unforeseen Pandemic Disruption

The pandemic brought about an economic upheaval that no one could have anticipated or planned for. Overnight, offices closed, and employees were required to work from home. Zoom calls became the new norm for meetings, replacing the traditional face-to-face interactions. While remote work allowed businesses to continue operations, it also marked a significant departure from the office culture that can fostered creativity, problem-solving, and strategic planning.

The Changing Landscape of Office Space

With the pandemic largely under control, the return to the office raises questions about the future of office space. Headlines highlighting concerns about the impact of returning to the office on women’s careers and the mixed emotions experienced by employees reflect the struggles that companies are facing today. In some extreme cases, employees have expressed their intention to resign or retire rather than return to the office.

Leadership vs. Management: Two Perspectives

To determine whether the return to office issues are a leadership or management problem, let’s examine two contrasting examples. The first example involves companies whose leadership reacted to the disruption by comparing the current work-from-home situation with the old way of everyone being in the office. As a result, 80% of these companies regretted their initial return to office plans. It is likely that these leaders focused on the expenses and costs associated with maintaining office space and opted for a quick fix solution of getting everyone back to the office.

Contrastingly, my wife works on a mid-size team with members spread across the country. Her company has embraced remote work and understands that the past does not necessarily dictate the way forward. They prioritize hiring the best talent, regardless of their location, and make the necessary arrangements to ensure successful collaboration across time zones. While companies like this may not make headlines, they exemplify leadership that embraces change and adapts to new realities.

Exploring the Challenges and Uncertainty

Faced with the challenges and uncertainty surrounding the return to office, decisions and plans need to be developed. However, it appears that some leaders, rather than taking the time to plan an effective solution, have chosen the easier route of mandating a return to the office. This management approach fails to address the unique leadership challenges presented by the current situation and may contribute to the high percentage of companies regretting their initial plans.

Navigating the Leadership Challenges

To successfully navigate the leadership challenges associated with the return to office, leaders must adopt a forward-thinking approach. Here are some key strategies to consider:

1. Embrace Flexibility and Hybrid Models

Leadership should recognize the benefits of flexibility and consider implementing hybrid work models that combine remote and in-office work. This approach allows employees to maintain a work-life balance while still fostering collaboration and social interaction.

2. Prioritize Communication and Transparency

Open and transparent communication is crucial during times of change. Leaders should regularly communicate updates, address concerns, and provide clear guidelines for the return to office. This helps to build trust and alleviate uncertainty among employees.

3. Assess Employee Needs and Preferences

Leadership should take the time to understand the needs and preferences of their employees regarding the return to office. Surveys, focus groups, and one-on-one discussions can provide valuable insights that can inform decision-making and ensure a smoother transition.

Managing the Transition

While leadership plays a vital role in guiding the return to office, effective management is equally important. Here are some management strategies to facilitate a successful transition:

1. Develop a Comprehensive Return to Office Plan

Managers should collaborate with leadership and HR teams to develop a comprehensive plan for the return to office. This plan should address health and safety protocols, workspace adjustments, and employee support programs to ensure a smooth transition for everyone involved.

2. Provide Training and Support

Managers should offer training and support to help employees adjust to the new working environment. This could include training on new technologies, flexible work arrangements, and mental health support to address any anxieties or concerns.

3. Foster a Positive Organizational Culture

Effective management involves fostering a positive organizational culture that promotes teamwork, collaboration, and employee well-being. Managers should encourage open communication, recognize employee achievements, and provide opportunities for professional growth and development.

Conclusion

The return to office presents significant challenges for companies, requiring both effective leadership and management. While some leaders have chosen to manage the problem by mandating a return to the office, the high percentage of companies regretting their initial plans suggests a need for more thoughtful leadership approaches. By embracing flexibility, prioritizing communication, and considering employee needs, leaders can navigate the challenges and uncertainties of the return to office successfully. Effective management strategies, such as comprehensive planning, training, and fostering a positive organizational culture, are equally crucial in ensuring a smooth transition for employees. By combining strong leadership and effective management, companies can navigate the return to office and embrace the opportunities of the evolving workplace.

Introduction

In today’s complex business landscape, effective enterprise governance and risk management are crucial for organizations to thrive. The interplay between these two functions can determine the success or failure of a compliance culture within an organization. This article will delve into the key factors that influence the relationship between enterprise governance and risk management, highlighting the importance of trust and collaboration for achieving corporate performance and mitigating downside risk.

Incentives and Culture: The Foundation of Compliance

A strong compliance culture is built upon a foundation of aligned incentives, leadership styles, and transparency. These factors shape the overall compliance culture within an organization and determine its effectiveness. When enterprise governance and risk management work in harmony, they create a competitive advantage. However, inherent mistrust can arise due to conflicting incentives and goals.

To address this issue, leaders in enterprise governance and risk management must focus on building trust. By fostering an environment of trust, these leaders can leverage it to their advantage. Collaboration and engagement between enterprise governance and risk management can lead to positive outcomes such as increased corporate performance and team satisfaction. This trust also reduces downside risk, as employees are more willing to speak up and self-report errors.

“Developing unconditional trust will lead to a free exchange of knowledge and information, resulting in increased corporate performance and reduced downside risk.”

Collaboration: Bridging the Gap

Collaboration between enterprise governance and risk management is essential for several reasons. Firstly, risk management should not be seen as a mere bolt-on function of enterprise governance. It needs to move from a non-traditional leadership role with indirect reporting lines. Secondly, the rapidly changing business environment, including factors such as social media, technology, and AI, necessitates collaboration between these two functions. Additionally, as the corporate environment evolves, new leadership skills are needed, along with a focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and changing cultural views of risk management.

Identifying and addressing toxic leaders or managers is crucial to counter the negative effects on trust, information flow, and knowledge sharing. By acknowledging and addressing these issues, organizations can make better-informed decisions, enhance productivity, and reduce downside risk.

“Collaboration between enterprise governance and risk management is essential to make informed decisions, enhance productivity, and reduce downside risk.”

Results: Unlocking Corporate Performance

Improving trust between enterprise governance and risk management can have a profound impact on corporate performance. When information and knowledge flow freely across the organization, it significantly reduces downside risk and enhances upside risk. This, in turn, contributes to a positive brand awareness and perception.

By integrating risk management as a collaborator for corporate success, rather than a perceived bolt-on function, organizations can leverage collaboration and adapt to the rapidly evolving business environment. Embracing the changing landscape and utilizing the collective expertise of enterprise governance and risk management can lead to improved corporate performance and increased competitive advantage.

In a previous post, I mentioned evidence-based management and I thought additional information would be helpful. Evidence-based management is best defined as gathering all the information possible to make an informed decision. We make decisions in our personal and work lives through a wide variety of lenses. For example, in our work lives, decisions are made based on our professional experience and training. Being trained in legal knowledge, decisions will be made through that lens of being a lawyer. Being trained as a salesperson, decisions will be made through the lens of wanting to make the next sale.

There is nothing wrong with these decision-making processes. However, they can create a conflict. The conflict could be that a risk manager who is trained as a lawyer might not agree with some of the actions and decisions a salesperson may be making.  The salesperson is under pressure to deliver sales results and can view the policies and procedures of the risk management department as a hindrance, or restrictive on their ability to make a sale. The risk manager may be uncomfortable with some of the actions a salesperson may take to close out a sale. Through using evidence-based management, this conflict can be greatly reduced and even used to develop a trusting relationship between sales and risk management.

Evidence-based management is a decision-making process based on the combination of critical thinking and the best available evidence. Critical thinking is based on the personal experience of each party involved as they look at the decision process independently of professional training. Best available evidence is the information, facts or data that support or deny assumptions or hypotheses. Using critical thinking and best available evidence results in a decision-making process that is more academic and less made of personal opinion. To be evidence-based, risk managers should be looking at the information being used to make the decisions and ask:

• Is the information from a reliable source? Is it fact or fiction?
• Is all the organizational information being used, or is there some information being omitted or held back?
• Have stakeholders and external professionals been consulted? If not, why?
• Has there been any scientific literature or empirical studies referred to? If not, why?

As risk managers, we need to be aware of the information being used to make decisions, both in the risk management department and other departments such as the sales department. By being aware and making decisions using our own professional training and others’, the conflict between risk managers and salespeople can be greatly reduced and help in the process of creating a trusting and collaborative corporate culture of compliance.   

I have a question for you. In your role as a risk manager, have you ever sat in a strategic planning session with the sales department?

Here’s a great place to get additional information:  https://cebma.org/faq/evidence-based-management/

I got caught the other day sharing a study on how the coronavirus spreads when you run, however it turns out the study is not a true scientific study, just conjecture. Fortunately I could correct the sharing of the fake news rather easily, however it highlighted in todays world, , how easy it is to get caught up in fake news. The speed and flood of information we receive on a daily basis seems to be overwhelming. We can’t turn the tap off however we can be better prepared.

We can be better prepared to sort through what we receive as being facts or half- truths or even false facts. The true facts allow us to make better decisions, worry less and focus on what’s truly important. I don’t what to be known as someone who spreads rumors or fake news, I want to be known as someone who cares about the truth. There’s a couple of quick steps at a high level we can take to arm ourselves so we’re more informed on fake news and don’t get caught out again.

From the Harvard Business review https://www.summer.harvard.edu/inside-summer/4-tips-spotting-fake-news-story

2: Understand the effect that fake news can have so that we are not the ones spreading the news. What we think is real is fake events or news that has a negative impact on the businesses we need to rely.

Fake Facts: What the Rise of Disinformation Campaigns Means for Businesses

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With the speed that events have been unfolding, the volume of information available and the little time we have to asses, digest and act, it’s important that we can at least at a high level, sort our fact from fiction. Hopefully with a little guidance we can make it easier on or selves in the assessment process.What tips or tricks to you have to help you sort out fact from fake news?

Get started on how you can begin working towards identifying the facts for leadership issues or road blocks by having a conversation. This conversation can begin the process to providing effective risk management leadership solutions.

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