Managing remote employees can be difficult, but with the right strategies and tactics, you can make it easy and successful. Here are some tips to help you succeed.
Setting expectations
Creating a company culture with remote employees can be a challenge. However, with the right processes and tools, the team can grow stronger. This is a great opportunity for companies to improve employee engagement and retention.
One of the first things you should do is set clear expectations with your employees. These expectations are crucial in preventing misunderstandings and misalignment. This can also help eliminate frustration.
When creating these expectations, it is important to focus on your team’s work style. Some people thrive in a problem-solving environment, while others prefer to meet deadlines. Keeping these goals in mind can help you create a productive, cohesive workplace.
Once you have established expectations with your remote employees, it is important to follow up with them to make sure they are meeting them. This can be done by sending an email or making a video call. Keeping communication open will foster a strong trusting relationship between you and your team.
Communication
Whether you’re running a remote team or a virtual business, communication is essential to its success. Without it, your company could experience a drop in productivity and eventually, demise. As a manager, you need to develop a strategy to address the various communication challenges that can arise in your team.
While most employees are accustomed to the difficulties that come with communicating in traditional office environments, the challenges of working remotely are a little different. For instance, remote teams aren’t under the same roof, which means fewer interactions with each other. Moreover, some of the traditional communication tools that are used in the office aren’t used in a virtual setting.
Fortunately, there are a variety of tools that are designed to help you communicate with your remote team members. These include instant chat and social networking tools.
Collaboration
Whether your organisation is planning a remote work initiative or already runs one, there are certain common challenges that must be overcome. These are cultural, time zone, operational and communication distances. Understanding these challenges can help your organization achieve successful collaboration.
In addition to working remotely, team members may also have different levels of proficiency in English. To ensure that everyone is able to communicate effectively, it’s essential to develop their communications skills.
As part of this effort, you’ll need to establish a clear communication protocol. This can include a simple agenda and set of policies. These will prevent issues from arising and remove ambiguity about how you contact team members.
Using digital tools can also assist with overcoming some of these remote collaboration challenges. These tools include software, hardware and interactive tools such as virtual whiteboards.
Motivation
Managing remote employees is a challenge, and one that companies will need to tackle as more and more people move away from traditional work environments. Keeping the remote workforce motivated is no easy task, but there are a few key techniques that will help you keep your team motivated.
One of the best ways to motivate employees is to build a positive company culture. This is important because a good work culture can help you attract and retain talented employees.
Another way to motivate remote employees is to encourage them to participate in team-building activities. These events can bond dispersed teams, and can also provide employees with the opportunity to socialize.
Managers can also use performance-based incentives to motivate their workers. This will not only motivate them to produce better work, but it can push them to innovate.
Socializing
Whether you work from home or not, socializing your workforce is a must if you want to keep your employees engaged, motivated and productive. Luckily for you, most of the technology necessary to do it is free. This includes video conferencing, desktop and laptop computing, and even social networking tools. If you have the budget, you can even get a free membership to a co-working space.
Of course, the only complication is figuring out how to schedule, coordinate and manage your team. While you’re at it, consider incorporating gamification into your game plan. This will help you measure and reward the most deserving of your team members. You can also nudge your remote slackers into the fray with a well-timed gift card. You’ll be glad you did!
