Managing a team of employees is a difficult endeavor at the best of times. It becomes a significantly more complex task when some (or all) of your team members work from home. However, due to the global pandemic, many firms around the world adopt remote and hybrid working environments. This overcomes many of the issues that Covid-19 presents. It also provides more flexibility to employees.
Now that the pandemic is coming to an end, the vast majority of these firms are poised to continue offering work from home opportunities. At least 98 percent of people have expressed that they want to work from home, at least part-time, for the remainder of their careers.
If you are a business leader that manages work from home (WFH) teams, get the most from your employees while they are away from the office. Luckily for you, we have you covered with these three essential tips. Let us get into them.
1. Implement a Timesheet but Don’t Overdo It
Business leaders encounter problems when dealing with work from home teams. One main problem is learning how to overcome the lack of face-to-face supervision. Many supervisors believe that employees will not work as hard when nobody is supervising and giving them directions. (However, plenty of studies indicate otherwise.) On the other hand, some employees struggle with the self-motivation, time management, and discipline that working from home requires.
With this in mind, one of the easiest ways to establish a more efficient and organized remote working company is through implementing a timesheet. In doing so, everybody knows the expectations (in terms of time commitments). It also makes it easier for team members to communicate with one another, knowing their availabilities.
However, do not overdo it by giving your employees too rigid a timesheet. For example, you don’t have to plan their days down to the minute. Instead, you should enable them to take five-minute coffee breaks without logging them. Furthermore, involve your employees in planning their work schedules. This boosts employee morale since they will have more say over their time commitments. It calms your fears because you will have the team structure needed to get the job done.
2. Encourage Productivity-Boosting Breaks
It seems counter-intuitive, but offering your work-from-home (WFH) employees more breaks is one of the best strategies to enhance productivity. If you offer your staff disproportionate workloads and fail to account for things like stress and burnout, your overall productivity figures decline. Unfortunately, this is a widespread issue in recent years. It particularly occurs when business owners prevent employees from taking advantage of their new WFH schedules by slacking off and procrastinating.
Encourage your team members to take productivity-boosting breaks, such as going for a walk outside or playing online card games like solitaire. This results in a wide range of profound benefits, such as increased employee engagement, increased creativity, and improved mental health.
3. Schedule Weekly Check-In Meetings
As touched upon already in this article, a breakdown in communication is one of the key challenges work from home companies must overcome. Since the amount of face-to-face communication minimizes, business leaders need new ways to keep team members in contact with each other if they want to continue to run effectively.
Installing a new means of communication while the company undergoes a rigorous change in company culture is a difficult task. Fortunately, one of the easiest and least intimidating ways to achieve this is scheduling weekly check-in meetings with all team members. That way, you ensure that everyone knows about important developments within the company. In addition, everybody sings from the same hymn sheet. This also builds trust between employees and leadership, which strengthens relationships and creates a better work environment.
Final Word – Remain Flexible
One of the biggest benefits of remote working is the added flexibility for managers and employees. As a business owner, you have the potential to reduce overheads by downsizing your office space. You limit your expenses through reduced utility and cleaning costs and no longer needing cafeteria service.
The added flexibility for your employees gives them the chances to cultivate healthier work-life balance, which boosts productivity and workplace satisfaction. Participating in games such as competing for time to put together online jigsaw puzzles can also increase a feeling of teamwork. However, this is only possible if you remain flexible and reasonable with your scheduling. As a business leader, understand the unique circumstances of your employees if you want to get the most out of them (while keeping them happy) as they work from home.
