Rarely have employers and their HR managers been as challenged as in recent months. In this interview, Sky's Head of HR Danja Frech reports on particular challenges and solutions.
CW: What did Sky's Head of HR learn from the remote phase during the pandemic?
Danja Frech: The pandemic and working from home have once again catapulted the topic of employee wellbeing1 to the forefront as a success factor and given it a new value in the working world - including at Sky. The care and appreciation we have shown our entire team over the past few months has been rewarded by a stunning willingness to go the extra mile that is so necessary in pandemic times. I think that's strong and it confirms to me once again that culture2 is an important success factor.
In addition, clear objectives and a focus on a few important goals have helped to keep our business running and achieve good results. What's more, the special situation we all found ourselves in brought us together and at the same time released a lot of energy and creativity. For example, the new Sky sound function "Stadium Sound" was conceived and developed remotely by our employees.
Another aspect is the topic of sustainability. So far, we have practiced this very strongly in the areas of environment and
society. Now we have also discovered sustainability for ourselves as HR managers. For example, conducting virtual interviews or the possibility of virtual onboarding of new employees are simple measures that have given us a big boost: Less CO2 for travel, less printed paper, less stress for everyone and lower costs - we want to keep this up even after the pandemic subsides.
Despite all the positive developments, however, we also clearly state that we need not only creativity, but also conceptual work, fun, employee loyalty and the preservation of a corporate culture. No remote tool can replace face-to-face conversations or spontaneous and direct exchanges. In combination with the above-mentioned argument about wellbeing, this is one of the main reasons why we are focusing on a hybrid working model that brings together the best of both working worlds.
"Say goodbye to control-based management"
CW: Why should managers rethink their role in a hybrid working model? What is important?
Cheeky: How do I create a good and inclusive working environment in which everyone can give their best? How can I
stay in close contact with all employees and develop a sense of
how my team is doing, even if not everyone is in the same place? How can I recognize and prevent
recognize and prevent overload? These are all key questions that managers need to ask themselves, especially in a hybrid working model.
Above all, it is important to make good use of the time spent in personal contact with our employees, to listen, to develop the right antennae for undertones, to set clear goals and to equip the team with the skills they need to work together successfully. Supporting employees to say 'no' in order to manage their workload healthily, take breaks, prioritize correctly and be responsible for their own balance will continue to be key. In a hybrid world, this cannot always be done by managers.
It is important to move away from control-based management and develop a culture of trust despite virtual working. Inclusion and equality8 must not be allowed to fall by the wayside: We must manage to focus on all employees and not just those who are visibly in the office.
CW: In addition to empathy, what other management and leadership skills will be important in a hybrid working model?
Frech: For me, the focus is on leading with a few, but well-formulated goals. Clarity and openness create trust and ensure mutual support within the teams. This includes continuous feedback and an open management culture that also creates time outside of meetings.
Digital affinity and authenticity are also extremely important for a manager in a hybrid working model. Sharing your own insights, for example when using remote tools, or allowing a glimpse of private life behind the screen helps to build bridges and signal approachability. This also makes it easier to appeal to and actively involve introverts.
"We are constantly trying to create shared experiences"
CW: How does Sky maintain the necessary proximity to its employees? How must employee retention measures change in a hybrid working model?
Frech: We are constantly trying to create shared experiences that stand out from everyday life and make us smile. During the remote-only phase, for example, our Sky band was celebrated for continuing to make music together and sharing their videos on the intranet. We also awarded prizes for the best 'Bad Hair Day' photos on the intranet and launched other competitions. We are currently promoting personal collaboration through attractive specials in the office under the motto "Welcome back of the year". Be it through our beach bar, a photo booth or the option of catered team events - always in compliance with safety rules, of course.
It is important for us to demonstrate at all times that we are one team and have a cross-border Sky spirit, which we also want to transfer to our hybrid working model. To get all employees on board, we have also greatly increased the frequency of our internal all-staff events. This creates transparency, generates optimism and demonstrates enthusiasm for our own product. We also always allow enough time for FAQs that anyone can submit.
In the future, the much-discussed "purpose" of recent years, i.e. a deeper meaning and purpose of one's own work, will become increasingly important. This means that we need to differentiate ourselves more. Our employees need to know why they work at Sky. We need a combination of cultural identity and structural factors such as flexible working and benefits. The pandemic has shown that working many hours in isolation in your own home office greatly "reduces" work to content. Personal exchanges in the coffee kitchen, participation in workshops or team evenings and even birthday cake - all of this has been lost. And these interpersonal factors are also reduced in a hybrid working model. The question "What am I even doing here?" can arise very quickly.
CW: Why is it particularly important from an HR perspective to ensure a good work-life balance after the remote phase?
Frech: A good work-life balance has always been important. It is a competitive advantage and is simply demanded by younger generations nowadays. The pandemic and the associated rapid transformation of the previous working environment has shown us that the greater flexibility we have given our employees has increased employee satisfaction.
Now, as we transition to our new hybrid working model, we need to find the right balance for our employees. At the beginning of the pandemic, we switched to remote working as far as possible to ensure everyone's health. After months of isolation in the home office, only in virtual networks, less movement and many other factors, we are asking ourselves the exact opposite question: how much remote work is healthy? Many people were working more hours remotely than before and felt obliged to be available at all times. To change this, for example, we decided to introduce "meeting-free Friday afternoons" and adapted our email signature to relieve any pressure in times of absence.
Despite these measures and many discussions, we have noticed that the services offered by our cooperation partner pme Familienservice, for example, have been heavily used by our employees since the pandemic. This is because working from home has blurred the boundaries between private and working life. Employees need to be encouraged to keep to their working hours and breaks and also to manage communication with their manager. After all, athletes can only perform at their best if they also take breaks. Despite the desire for flexibility and remote working, it will be an important task to strike the right balance for future hybrid working.
You can find the online article here.
