Case Examine: Attorneys for Civil Rights—Workers Teaching throughout the Pandemic – Non Revenue Information

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Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR), a Boston-based nonprofit, works with immigrant and colored communities to fight discrimination and promote justice through creative and courageous advocacy, education, and economic empowerment. Despite only employing 11 people, LCR has built an impressive track record of solving litigation and implementing innovative programs thanks to its highly dedicated and productive staff. The organization also leverages partnerships with local law firms and collaborations with community allies.

At the beginning of 2020 the pace was very demanding. In addition to its usual programmatic work, LCR found itself in the midst of intense, multi-year legal disputes that challenged a large number of federal government guidelines. When the pandemic broke out in mid-March, LCR, like many other workplaces, urged employees to work from home. In April, LCR’s executive director decided to help employees cope with the pandemic – including unprecedented personal and professional pressures – by offering personalized coaching to all interested employees. LCR offered two coaching sessions per month. Of the 11 employees at the time, nine took advantage of the opportunity for personal support. This organization-wide coaching support is designed to:

• Stabilize your employees while helping them achieve professional growth and success in a dramatically changing environment
• Help employees develop tools, skills, and mechanisms for ingenuity and resilience, especially in response to unprecedented adversity
• Promoting employee satisfaction and increasing work ethic

The employees were assured of confidentiality. They were also actively encouraged to “build their own adventure” and use the time in ways that made sense to them based on their personal and professional needs and priorities.

In spring 2020, when the coaching support was running, LCR recorded a high number of COVID-19 infections among employees or their close relatives. Some employees saw multiple family members on ventilators – and even losses. Many valued the personal approach to the illness and the new challenges of the virtual world of work. As one noted, “It was so helpful to have the time to talk to someone as a sounding board and to take the time in a busy schedule to think these topics through.”

As the pandemic continued, employees adjusted to the reality of working from home, and LCR was able to maintain high levels of productivity and results, submit a steady stream of new cases, and successfully transform programmatic activities into virtual formats. Staff continued to use coaching sessions to explore their own development goals. Interestingly, the coaching was used to support the leadership development of the employees as soon as the organization had developed a collective comfort with the new remote routines. While some LCR employees reached a natural endpoint of coaching towards the end of 2020, senior members who were actively involved in coaching continued to be active through spring 2021, with an on-demand model that continues to the present day.

When employees reflected on the coaching experience, they saw concrete benefits. Many were associated with significantly improved supervisory dynamics.

• “Often times, my preconceived notions about dealing with others and interactions in the workplace have been challenged, resulting in a better understanding of my future responses to things.”
• “I think over the course of my coaching I have become a better mentor and manager, both in terms of seeing management as part of my job rather than something that takes it away and in the knowledge that I am communicating [matters]. “
• “The process has helped clarify how diverse supervisees can be and that a larger toolbox is required to learn how to address individual challenges at work.”
• “At a time when we were all far away and communication felt much more mechanical, I managed to build and maintain strong relationships with my superiors.”

The employees also used coaching sessions to develop new ways of daily work and to bring the changes into the organization for a successful implementation.

• “I am proud that many of the systems that I discussed and implemented in my discussions are still being implemented.”
• “The coaching helped me turn around seamlessly. It revitalized me. “

The employees also expressed the added value from a personal point of view.

• “I definitely feel I’ve been successful at LCR since May 2020 and the coach deserves a lot of credit.”

Management valued having a conscious, deliberate, and dedicated space to reflect and develop strategies in an otherwise hectic environment – especially since LCR has operated non-stop since the pandemic broke out. LCR never closed or cut down services during the pandemic. The coaching sessions helped management to master internal and external challenges. Management credits coaching with “providing the support structure not only to keep LCR working before the pandemic, but also to expand the organization’s free legal services during the pandemic to help people with unemployment; Food and housing instability; and barriers to access to vaccines. “

All of the positive feedback – reflecting personal and organizational strength and growth – has been consistent since the pandemic broke out. In October 2020, as part of LCR’s most recent strategic planning process, an employee survey was conducted to assess their perception of the organization. While the exhaustion was real and the pandemic challenges were unprecedented, the responses regarding the culture and engagement of LCR’s staff have been very positive. All respondents agreed with the statement “I feel valued and valued within the organization” (50 percent) or strongly (50 percent). While coaching is not solely responsible for this result, it is certainly an important part of a proactive work culture that encourages holistic assessment, thoughtful reflection and creative engagement. Against the background of the pandemic instability, strategic coaching has created a constant support structure in LCR’s work environment. In the last 15 months we have learned that this investment has resulted in high levels of employee satisfaction, engagement and productivity. During the pandemic, coaching was a win-win for everyone.