HR in War“We are focusing on strengthening our leadership muscle” amid war, says Eleos Health.
HR in War
“We are focusing on strengthening our leadership muscle” amid war, says Eleos Health.
The Israeli company explains how it has approached leadership on both an organizational and personal level following the 7/10 massacre.
“On the organizational level, we are focusing on strengthening our leadership muscle, educating and supporting our managers, providing them with tools and one-on-one support that can help them navigate a situation with their teams,” says Merav Ben Ari, Global VP People at Eleos Health. “And at the same time being very flexible and empathetic towards people's different reactions and needs to the situation.”
HR in War is a new series exploring how companies in Israel are adapting in unusual times. At CTech we believe the world should know about the atrocities committed on 7/10 while at the same time highlighting the continued resolve and resistance of the Israeli tech ecosystem.
“On a personal level, we touch base with our people daily and are having daily syncs,” she added. “We are in daily contact with the people who are on reserves and with their families. We have conducted sessions with all our team on resilience and mental support.”
Company name: Eleos Health
Your name and title: Merav Ben Ari, Global VP People
Names of founders and upper management: Alon Joffe, Alon Rabinovich, Dror Zaide
Field of activity: Healthcare
Number of employees: 100
Office location: Tel Aviv
On a scale of 1-10, how much did the war disrupt operations at the company?
Three. Most of our C-suite and Engineering management are on reserves. Some engineers were also called and some are expected to be called. In the beginning, people were feeling a lot of anxiety and found it very hard to be focused on work.
What consequences have you experienced from these disruptions?
We are seeing a slowdown to some extent in our production speed, and in the first week, we have closed the office for safety reasons.
What are the two major challenges you are coping with these days?
- Creating focus and business continuity.
- Containing the crisis- emotional stress and lack of schooling systems that impact people's ability to stay on track.
What support do you provide to employees?
On the organizational level, we are focusing on strengthening our leadership muscle, educating and supporting our managers, providing them with tools and one-on-one support that can help them navigate a situation with their teams, and moving between managing the work routines. At the same time, we are being very flexible and empathetic towards people's different reactions and needs to the situation. We have revisited all our communication channels and cadences making sure that we streamline information both in business and personal lives in the most efficient and quickest way. We are creating focus for our teams, and are adjusting the capacity of work as well as the owner of certain tasks, understanding that we need to fit the right task to the right person right now.
On a personal level, we touch base with our people daily and are having daily syncs. We are in daily contact with the people who are on reserves and with their families. We have conducted sessions with all our team on resilience and mental support.
Do you have employees with foreign citizenship who asked to work from another country? If so, has movement been requested/approved?
In times like these, we realize people have different needs and different capabilities. We are absolutely allowing people to work from any location that makes them feel safe, regardless of their citizenship.
How do you communicate the situation to customers? Do you see hostility or support?
We do not see hostility, on the contrary, we see a lot of understanding and care from our customers, empathy towards our staff, and a complete understanding and containment of the situation. We do realize however that sooner than later business must go on. We have taken a proactive approach to updating our customers and keeping them up to date with the progress and deliverables they should be expecting.
Startups only: How do you communicate the situation to investors, and how are they reacting?
Like our customers, we are experiencing a strong backwind from our investors, they are fully understanding of the situation and have offered an umbrella of services and support that can help us go through the current circumstances.
