Linking the COVID-19 work experience of SMEs employees to post-COVID-19 superior productivity of SMEs

ABSTRACT This study established how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can drive post-COVID-19 productivity by understanding leadership behaviors that drove positive work experience of SME employees during COVID-19, their work style preferences post-COVID, and reasons for their preferences. The interpretative phenomenological qualitative approach was adopted in the cross-sectional survey. Two hundred participants drawn from SMEs completed the questionnaire containing unstructured statements. Data were analyzed using NVivo. The study identified eight leadership behaviors that created positive work experiences for employees, and three negative behaviors that exacerbated employee stress levels. Employees would rather work remotely post-COVID to achieve work–life balance and reduce transportation costs. The study showed that the post-COVID era will be characterized by a hybrid work style, hence the results obtained in the COVID-19 era are necessary for the post-COVID recovery of SMEs where leveraging organizational collective intelligence is critical. These findings will help SMEs factor employees’ expectations into their post-COVID recovery process.