It’s fall—well, almost—and there’s a hint of excitement in the air. At least it feels like there should be!

Kids are going back to school. College and universities are offering more in-person classes. And people are getting revved up for the busiest season of the year.

But are you ready to go back to the office or would you prefer to work remotely or in some type of hybrid situation?

And how will you communicate what you decide to your team?

Of course, there are no easy answers, but if you’re interested in our take, check out this episode of Inside PR.

Gini Dietrich, Joe Thornley and Martin Waxman talk about:

• The importance of having a communicator in the room when workplace decisions are being made.
• Why organizations need to listen closely and pay attention to people’s reactions.
• Giving employees an opportunity to voice their opinions and know they’re being heard, rather than simply feeling they’re being talked at.
• Creating a culture of empathy by understanding people’s situations, anxieties and fears.
• Being flexible and letting people know nothing’s set in stone and that you’re prepared to adapt if need be.

And finally a word of advice from Joe: If you’re on a Zoom meeting and someone says something that makes your blood boil. Don’t get into a fight. Shut your camera and mic. Take a breath and try to see things from your colleague’s point of view. Then come back when your temper’s cooled so you can have a more balanced (and hopefully productive) conversation.

We’re trying to be wherever you want us to be. So, you can subscribe to Inside PR on the most popular podcast apps.

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We’d love to hear what you think and if you have any subjects you’d like us to cover in upcoming episodes.

Leave us a comment on the blog.

Send us an email or an audio comment to [email protected],

Connect with us on Twitter. We’re @inside_pr or connect directly with Gini Dietrich, Joseph Thornley, and Martin Waxman.

We hope you like the podcast as much as we like making it for you. If you do, we have a favor to ask: If you like this podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts.

Our producer is Jacob Waxman, a talented musician, producer, and recording engineer. Jacob produced the episode and is also the composer of our new theme music. Roger Dey is our announcer.

Inside PR by Joseph Thornley, Gini Dietrich, Martin Waxman is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.