With a post-Covid landscape fuelling a boom in remote working, the days of attending an office feels historic for some businesses. This can be a daunting prospect to face as a business owner, with new factors and obstacles to consider. Remote working welcomes a less direct form of management, where employees are entrusted to work independently and without constant guidance and supervision.
Here are our top tips to help you manage this workplace transition:
1 – Constant Communication
Without the luxury of walking over to a colleague’s desk for assistance, the remote workplace can quickly feel a desolate and isolated place to be. Make yourself available to employees should they need to call you for guidance or to voice their concerns.
By being on-hand and constantly accessible, your employees will be free of the overwhelming nature of working independently and will feel supported. Not only is this hugely important for everybody’s wellbeing, but also assures that you are present as a manager and will give you peace of mind that your workforce will persevere with their work regardless of the obstacles they might face.
2 – Set Daily Targets
Without the watchful eye of their boss in an office environment, employees are likely to be less pressurised and motivated to maximise their working output. Set daily goals (or weekly if this is a more viable option for your business model) to set a working pattern in motion. This will also give each employee a sense of responsibility and can provide a driving force within their working day.
3 – Schedule Team Meetings
Whether this is daily, weekly, or monthly, taking time to sit down and talk collectively as team will guarantee huge benefits. This could be to talk through an upcoming project or to voice any concerns individuals may have. Collective communication will prove to be vital in breaking down the remote boundaries and will establish an underlying sense of unity within your workforce.
4 – Trust your Employees
A key aspect of working relationships comes through trust. Until your employees have given you a reason to distrust them, place faith in what they are doing. A lack of trust will only push your workforce away and encourage resistance and tension.
As a manager, you are unlikely to have hired somebody you do not think is capable of representing your business. Keep this in mind when you manage them remotely.
5 – Create a Schedule
Remote working allows for huge flexibility, which, whilst acting as a positive factor for employees, can also prove to be a challenge from a managerial perspective.
The best way to overcome this is through the enforcement of a working schedule, even if this is only for a few elements within the working day. If you arrange a weekly team meeting on the same day and hour each week, this will generate a domino effect, where employees will strive to complete their work ahead of the meeting, so they aren’t falling behind or in case they need to voice any queries or concerns.
What your schedule entails is completely dependent on your managerial style and what you think your workforce will be most receptive to. Maybe you could consider a daily round-up, where employees send you an overview of their work, or a weekly submission of what they have achieved.
6 – Focus More on Goals and Less on Time
Remote working means that employees no longer need to clock in and out of the office or be ‘present’ for a certain period of time. Whilst you’d expect most remote workforces to be online and actively working within a certain time period, it is inevitable that each employee will face different distractions at home, whether it be a child needing help with their homework or a barking dog pestering them for attention.
Therefore, it is more realistic to view the success of an employee according to their working accomplishments and the goals they have achieved, rather than regarding their role as time sensitive. Whether they have taken a 10-minute break or not becomes irrelevant when they are succeeding in their work and achieving what you have asked of them.
7 – Allow for Flexibility
Following on from the less time-sensitive approach mentioned above, it is important to allow a sense of flexibility within your remote workforce. Ultimately, flexibility is what makes remote working appealing – if your employees didn’t wish for a versatile working environment, they are likely to have opted for an office job instead.
Therefore, whilst you may feel as if you are having to take a step back as a manager, allowing for flexibility within your workforce will make each employee feel respected. Whether somebody has a doctor’s appointment and needs to log on late or need to attend a school parents’ evening and need to leave 20 minutes early, this flexibility is what makes remote working highly appealing. The more you give to your employees, the more they are likely to give back.
8 – Encourage Socialisation
One of the biggest downfalls of remote working is the lack of social interaction your workforce will have with each other. Not only does this sometimes feel isolating, but also can prevent a team spirit and unity from developing within your working environment.
As a manager, it is your responsibility to act upon this downfall. Perhaps you could schedule monthly events which are optional for staff to attend. This could be with a focus on business or purely as a means of socialisation. You could propose occasional in-person business meetings to bridge the gap between your employees and allowing them to put faces to the names they are working alongside online. Or you could propose a social event for your workforce, allowing them to develop more personal relationships and to instil a positive atmosphere within your remote working space.
9 – Invest in Remote Technology
Much like you’d invest in an office space, it is important to invest in equipment and resources for remote working. This will ensure your employees feel as if you are embodying a professional approach and will also help you to set guidelines and routine.
The type of technology you choose to use depends on your business model and how you utilise technology – video calling platforms and collaborative workplace forums and activity trackers prove to be useful in most fields.
10 – Lead by Example
If you are organised and efficient, this will set the precedent for your employees. How you work will have an influential, trickle-down effect on those around you. If you always answer your phone or emails, and are constantly accessible, this will highlight your standards to those around you.
