Although it may not seem like it right now, the global Pandemic will eventually end.  When it does, life will begin returning to normal.  People will start coming back into the office again after an extended hibernation working from home.

The simple truth is that in a lot of companies, not everyone will come back.  The economic realities of the pandemic hit hard, and many companies have already been forced to downsize.  Before it’s all over with, many more will almost certainly follow suit. 

Those who do make it back to the workplace then, are survivors in more ways than one and should definitely be rewarded.

When things start opening back up again and people start returning to work, you can bet that Morale will be lower. 

Gone will be the days of big team meetings.  If your office will meet before Covid-19 has been completely eradicated then, fears of the pandemic will be near the forefront of everyone’s mind and the safest choice will be to keep teams smaller and more compact, which will reduce the spread of a second outbreak in your office.

Also, understand that morale is, and will continue to suffer.  The isolation of working from home and the lack of social interaction has sapped morale, and returning to the office only to find that some, and perhaps many of their co-workers were let go to keep the company afloat is certain to dent morale further.

Given all of that, once everyone comes back together, it will be important to celebrate victory of the virus and a return to normal life. 

If your company already has a recognition program in place, that will be relatively easy, although you’ll almost certainly have to refrain from having big, company wide reward and recognition celebrations.

Instead, keep them to smaller, more focused gatherings, preferably of ten people or fewer.  That doesn’t mean the occasion has to be any less festive, it just means that there won’t be as many people in close proximity as there once were.

Even so, given the state of technology today, it’s easy enough to share those moments company wide, via video conferencing apps that can seamlessly connect smaller teams, pictures posted on the company’s’ website, and the like.

The big thing though, is simply this:  When the shelter in place orders finally end and your employees come back to work, honor them.  Recognize them.  Celebrate your shared victory over the pandemic.  The reality is that we haven’t seen anything like this since the early 1900’s. 

This pandemic will be one of the defining moments in people’s’ lives, and those who come through it will be stronger for it and should be celebrated as survivors.

There’s a hashtag that has become wildly popular since all of this began.  #AloneTogether.  There’s a lot of truth to that.  Right now, we are mostly alone.  Isolated and carrying on as best we can.  We should all look forward to the day when we can once more be together, without the alone part.  That will be a great day indeed, and something well worth celebrating.