Office culture has changed beyond recognition, with online communication platforms such as Teams, Zoom and Yammer saving many businesses as they were forced to transition online. Top Banana notes that while the organic culture of an office is hard to replace, companies have worked hard to streamline communications and utilise technology that enables instant co-working.

The pandemic has also accelerated the merge of internal and external comms. Businesses were already starting to see the benefit of increased transparency but Covid-19 meant that employees and consumers alike relied on transparency to maintain trust. Top Banana says ‘the pandemic has allowed for openness that many companies weren’t comfortable with before.’ The line between internal and external comms is close to none existent now, say Top Banana.

Remote working has been the most obvious shift in employee evolution over the past year, as employees are no longer rooted to company PCs in the office. In terms of technology, laptops and portable working devices are now essential to enable employees to connect. This feeds through into a change in recruitment policy, as employers can hire the best talent across the world.

Top Banana says ‘If there’s one thing that’s gone thanks to Covid-19, it’s death by PowerPoint.’ Zoom fatigue has led business to revaluate the way they deliver information as people respond far better to shorter and more engaging comms. Virtual training has become more innovative and aims to capture employee attention rather than simply offloading information.

Organisations have been forced to recognise that employees are also people and not just workers. An increased awareness of mental wellbeing has been pushed to the forefront of internal comms, as businesses now understand this drives leadership, communication and strategy.

Finally, work-life balance has come to fruition after years of speculation that it might be possible. The pandemic has forced people to admit employees can work effectively while juggling personal commitments, home schooling and childcare. Businesses had to allow employees to work flexibly in order to continue working through lockdown, which has led to an increase trust in employees and their ability to manage their time.

Find the full Employee Evolution infographic here.