Crescent maintained connection and overcame the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic when social distancing was mandated, and working remotely became mainstream by focusing on the wildly important factor - People. To keep our people-focused, we leaned on our company’s mission, culture, and values to Do it Right, Do It Safe, and Do it Well. Crescent is social, and staying socially connected was a fundamental part of our strategy in protecting jobs, maintaining livelihoods, and staving off the threat of a severe economic collapse. While COVID established a new normal, we did so with a Crescent twist!
The temporary stop of in-person connections didn't stop our morning huddles, team meetings, and collaboration sessions in this digital age. Crescent began utilizing Microsoft Teams and Vonage's video conferencing software to keep teams connected. From Microsoft Teams, we have established a morning ritual of getting our Crescent leaders together to review and discuss the current COVID-19 updates and guidelines to share throughout the company. Crescent Teams, Video calls, and instant messaging provided a quick and easy way to stay connected and productive.
Crescent's new communication plans also birthed the creation of additional ways to keep Crescent connected. Some examples are listed below.
1. Crescent’s e-newsletter provided all people and talent partners access to developing news and transparent information on Crescent and COVID-19, insights into best practices, interviews, stories, and events happening throughout Crescent.
2. Our Whole Person well-being initiatives provided people with access to new benefits and services to help them stay on track with their health goals without leaving home and staying connected. Services such as Wellbeats, our new on-demand fitness service, delivers fitness classes, challenges with friends and co-workers, nutrition, and mental wellness activities, anytime and anywhere, at no cost.
3. The Crescent Voice of our People stations were created, giving people a chance to vote on and express their opinions and thoughts on changes or submit ideas, with the absence of our in-person focus groups.
4. Crescent's website was updated to provide our customers and potential customers information on Crescent's response to the crisis and provide up-to-date information on the pandemic. Our tools and FAQs were also helpful resources for people looking for specific information quickly and conveniently.
5. SMS services were introduced to provide a simple way to alert our teams on updates and any sudden changes to the company or daily operations.
6. Being a Premier Service Provider is our mission, and taking care of our customers is our top priority. The COVID chaos presented opportunities for innovation in the ways we connected and serviced our customers. For example, we increased the frequency of our customer updates, providing them with up-to-date information on Crescent’s ongoing response to the pandemic. Through this, we built a stronger trust with our customers - and validated our mission to Do it Right, Do it Safe, and Do it Well, as we continued to focus on protecting their essential supply chain and their competitive advantage.
7. The spread of COVID was a focal point for many, but the effects of COVID once someone was infected were also another critical factor for Crescent. Social distancing took a toll on mental health as well as created an atmosphere of uncertainty. Crescent provided on-site covid testing for all people and COVID vaccination wellness events for our Crescent people and their spouses for free. Events like these allowed us to bring resources to our people who could not find the help they needed due to transportation, time, and money. In addition, the creation of our new Donated PTO policy provided people the opportunity to give back to their fellow team members, covering much-needed time off for emergency surgeries, adoptions, and sicknesses not related to COVID. Finally, the stories and gratitude shared throughout the company provided an extra extension of our Crescent Cares initiative and warmth of humanity when staying socially distant.
The COVID-19 pandemic, although challenging, allowed Crescent's continuous improvement service culture to innovate and implement new ways to stay connected while staying safe and without sacrificing our Values and Vision.