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I was recently asked by Susan Seitel of WFC Resources, what should work-life champions be focusing on during the current economic climate?

My response was that they should remain focused on the same issues that were on their agenda prior to the economic meltdown. This includes helping their organizations to best meet their business needs, while supporting their employees, which promotes increased productivity, creativity, loyalty, engagement and retention. Of course, organizational needs are probably different now, and it is the job of work-life practitioners to identify current concerns. To get the full picture, work-life champions might talk with senior leaders, line managers, employees, and work teams about their short-term and long-term challenges and critical business issues. Work-life leaders must be pro-active and offer solutions that can respond to current needs. For example, if lower staffing costs must be achieved, perhaps offer employees reduced or flexible schedules as well as unpaid sabbaticals. If employees are stressed about job insecurity, regular communication from the CEO and senior leaders about future plans and the business bottom line might be helpful.

With so much uncertainty, now might be a good time to focus on resilience and managing change. A good example of an organization who helps their employees to handle the constantly change marketplace is GlaxoSmithKline and their Team Resilience Program, designed to enhance personal as well as team resilience. Deloitte’s Mass Career Customization (MCC) model supports individuals and their career needs as they navigate their careers over the lifespan. As personal, work and family goals change over the lifecycle, MCC offers a transparent yet structured “lattice approach” to career progression that highlights four key areas—pace, workload, role and schedule/location.

I emphasized that the business reality is that we work in a highly competitive marketplace where the only thing that we can count on is that things will change. If an organization is going to survive, it has to look past today, and continue to recruit, retain, and support employees. One job of work-life champions might be to keep reminding management about that.

For more from WFC resources, read our interview with Susan: A Historical Perspective on Work-Family:
Where We Came From, What We’ve Achieved, Where We Need To Go.

• Scheduling , Workplace