Remote working, a trend that has gained momentum in recent years, offers numerous benefits. While some companies may prefer an office-based setup, studies indicate that remote workers can be more productive when given the flexibility to work outside the office. Embracing this trend can bring significant advantages to your company.
That’s not to say you assign your remote workers their tasks and leave them to it. Far from it, you need to be able to include them in the entirety of what you do. For instance, you can involve them in team meetings via video conferencing, share company updates and news regularly, and provide opportunities for them to contribute to company-wide projects. This will offer help and support and keep them engaged with the company so they’re in the loop as much as possible to facilitate their ability to work at their best.
With this in mind, what are the best ways to engage remote employees and ensure they’re just as productive, if not more so than those in the office and still feel like valued members of the team?
Keep Meetings Short and Sweet
There are some studies that suggest that remote workers engage in more meetings than office-based employees, and to avoid wasting valuable working time, it is essential to keep meetings to a minimum and short when they need to be held. Aim for brief meetings and avoid overbooking the day with meetings that could really just be an email or Slack message. Have a dedicated zoom room setup so you can be prepared to host everyone when required, and so you don’t waste time on setup or organizing meetings with in-person attendees and remote workers.
Stay Connected
Utilizing multiple communication channels can enable you to stay in touch with everyone you need when you need to contact them. Zoom, Asana, Slack, etc., are effective streamlining tools that encourage sharing and collaboration. Everyone is on the same page and in the loop without having to play a game of ‘Chinese whispers, ‘which is a term used to describe the distortion of a message as it passes from person to person, or wait for the information to trickle downstream. Use video calls and text-based messaging to converse with your team and ensure they’re able to contact you and others when required so they don’t feel so isolated.
Encourage Social Interaction
One of the main benefits and drawbacks of remote working is the isolation. Some people absolutely love working in solitude and not conversing with others in the office, while for some, this is their idea of hell. To avoid the loneliness that can sometimes be attributed to working remotely, encourage social interactions, host virtual team-building exercises, have planned office days for people to come in if they wish for social events, etc. By ‘social interactions ‘, we mean activities that foster a sense of community and belonging, such as team lunches, virtual coffee breaks, or casual check-ins. You cannot force everyone working remotely to be social, just like you cannot force all in-office workers to engage with coworkers, but you can encourage it and offer opportunities for social connections.
Respect Boundaries
Remote workers are faced with the stigma that they aren’t actually working and engaging in personal activities during company hours. Generally, this is far from the truth, and remote workers put in more hours overall to prove this isn’t the case. However, to engage your remote team more effectively, try to be understanding and appreciative of their home-work life, allow flexibility in start times and breaks, and allow them to create balance in their lives that supports healthy working environments and reduces stress and burnout.
Ask for Feedback
And then take it on board. Asking your team for feedback on what is and isn’t working, what you could do better or change to make things better for them, and then listening to it and acting on it can be a great way to engage those who might otherwise feel they aren’t being taken seriously. Not all employees will have feedback, but allowing those who do to have a voice and express issues can be beneficial to stronger working relationships and improved productivity.
Recognize Contributions
Recognizing and appreciating the contributions of your remote workers is a key aspect of engagement. Remote workers often put in more hours and may feel more detached from the team than their office counterparts. Taking the time to acknowledge their efforts and offer thanks and support can help them feel more connected and motivated, contributing to a healthier workplace culture.