Employee well-being is paramount during the Covid-19 crisis, wrote Simon Lance, managing director for staffing provider Hays Greater China. Companies need to make sure employees see a secure, confident future ahead.

Lance shared his insights about the virus over the last four months. Another lesson executives can take from the pandemic include learning from other regions in order to prepare for further disruptions and recovery.

“I think it’s really going to vary considerably between location and industry sector but having a return to work plan that is based on learns from colleagues or other businesses around the world is really important,” he said. “I would be looking at different business models and different industry sectors and just trying to tease out what has become best practice at each progressive stage of disruption and recovery around the world.”

Another lesson: Communication is key. Leaders need to be more visible and talk to their general staff more frequently.

“Having that clear, frequent and open communication from the executive down to general staff has also been a real key learn for me,” he said.

Lance also said digital disruption and remote working appear here to stay.