Jul 20

Jul 20 Four Hacks for Managing Remote Employees

What is your opinion of team members working remotely for your organization? Is it possible? What are the benefits and pitfalls associated with it?

It’s safe to say that many of us think differently about these questions than we did six months ago. In fact, some of us are thinking about them for the first time ever. The good news is there are people who have been researching and learning the best ways to work remotely for years, and great progress has been made in this space. Like other workplace wisdom, best practices are born from real-world experience. So if you’re new to the idea of having team members who don’t report to a physical office each day, take heart.

Here are four hacks to help your team navigate this new reality:

Invest in the tools and equipment they need.

No matter what task you want performed remotely, there likely exists a combination of hardware & software designed to do just that. And initial investment costs for technology are often recouped many times over in the long run. It is normal to feel apprehension when it comes to technology, but don’t let a fear of the unknown sabotage remote work when it so often enhances both productivity and employee engagement. Help them seamlessly transition from on-site work to remote work by providing the tools needed to make them successful.

Encourage them to maintain a work-life balance at home.

While there are certainly horror stories of lazy employees taking advantage of working from home, deadlines and deliverables can make these incidents outliers in the world of remote work. It is more likely that your best team members will be tempted to engage after hours when they are working from home. Encourage them to use both time (only working during certain hours or for fixed lengths of time) and physical space (only working in their home office or other dedicated space) to set boundaries for work. Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is key to employee engagement. Empower them to be present when they are working (even from home), and then be present with their family and friends when they are not.

Bring them on-site regularly.

As anyone in a long-distance relationship can tell you, sometimes there is no substitute for being physically present. Even if we do ninety percent of our work remotely, we still need to share the same space regularly for interaction. We will make quicker progress in building and strengthening work relationships when we have the opportunity to pick up on non-verbal communication such as body language, speech patterns, and tone of voice. Schedule a day of meetings and team building at least once a month if possible.

Be intentional about communication.

Remote or not, if you want to build a great team then communication is the key. Great teams communicate well, and great communication among remote teams is possible but looks different from those that work in the same physical location. Communicating with remote employees must be intentional and thought-out. Things like email, texts, and phone calls must happen more often. Don’t assume everyone is aware of the latest decision or why you made it; send an email and then follow up with a phone call to see if they have questions or concerns. Schedule a weekly check-in phone call to learn their current obstacles and ask how you can help them.

Have more questions about strategies and practices for engaging remote workers? Momentum Consulting offers training and coaching solutions based on more than a decade of experience managing remote teams in both local and international contexts.