COVID-19- Managing remote employees

By Ashley Kimler

COVID-19 has changed the workplace, forcing many companies around the world to transition to a remote workforce.

In Ireland, 47% of the population aged 15+ have had their employment situation affected, with 34% of those having to work remotely from home.

Naturally, this has presented a number of challenges that businesses didn’t expect to face this year.

For instance that of managing their remote employees during COVID-19

Managing remote employees during a global pandemic is tricky.

But if you get it right, it could lay the groundwork for a business that’s able to scale with a permanent remote workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this article, we’ll be taking a look at exactly what you need to do in order to manage your remote employees so that their engagement and productivity are both sustained and improved.

Set Expectations For Employees

It’s important to remember that many of your employees won’t have worked from home before.

They may not know what to expect.

hey also won’t know what’s expected from them until you tell them.

This can be done by creating work-from-home policy guidelines.

Communication is key here.

It’s important that you make it 100% clear how many hours you expect your employees to put in.

It also should also be considered what apps and tools they should use.

And how often you want them to check in with you, and so on.

Also make it clear from the start what you intend to do with team meetings via video (how often you want to have one etc), as well as what each team member’s goals are.

These types of workload expectations will reduce the risk of your employees suffering from burnout during the COVID-19 crisis.

COVID-19 remote working -Host Structured Daily Check-Ins

Many office-based workers may struggle with the sudden loss of structure and routine that working in an office gives them.

As such, it’s a good idea to create a daily call routine with them.

You can choose to call each team member one-on-one each day, or, if you think it would be more beneficial, you could hold a team call each day.

Perhaps ask your team what they would rather do.

What’s most important is that your team has a forum in which they can provide feedback to you.

Instigate Informal Remote Social Interactions

For some, going into the office each day is a chance to work, but it’s also a chance to see their friends and have a catch-up.

It’s really important that your employees don’t feel isolated.

They’re still maintaining some sort of social interaction, despite working remotely.

You could, for example, have a group catch up via video at the start of each week.

Instead of diving straight into discussing your projects, ask everyone how they spent their weekend.

You could even hold virtual office parties now and then, especially after a good working week or month.

Whatever you do, it’s key that you foster a sense of belonging among your remote team.

Create Your Communication Plan

Email is a good way of staying in touch remotely, but there are so many different options open to your remote team in 2020.

There are instant messaging, communication tools, project management tools, video conferencing software, and so on.

It’s a good idea to introduce your team to different apps and software so that they can interact with each other in a way that improves productivity.

These will also boost morale and create a sense of fun.

However, what’s key is that you establish clear ways to communicate for different types of collaboration and interactions.

For example, you could use a customizable messaging platform to send instant messages.

This type of app can work best with less formal conversations and also if your team needs to message in real-time about a project.

You could use video conference software for when you need communication to be more personal and face-to-face.

Tools like Slack offer the opportunity to create different channels for public and private conversations.

Whatever tools you choose, it’s essential that you relay your communication plan with your team so that everyone knows what’s expected of them.

Use Cloud Storage

Cloud storage allows your team to access files and documents wherever they are.

It’s absolutely essential for remote businesses if they’re to stay on track and maximize productivity.

Cloud storage also helps retrieve lost data.

Which will come as a relief to any employees that fret over their work if they don’t have a backup system installed at their home?

Version control will also be more manageable.

Being able to track changes with cloud storage makes teamwork more accessible.

is necessary when employees are not in the office and are working at different times of the day.

Some of the best cloud storage solutions include iDrive, iCloud, and Google Drive.

Hold Video Conferences

Remote teams need video conferences.

They can give some structure to your team, help you clarify your points, and improve communication.

They also enable you to hold team meetings and presentations, which must still go ahead even though your team is working from home.

All you need is software that allows you to host video calls without any hassle.

A good video conferencing tool should be reliable, offer good picture quality, screen sharing, live chat, slideshows, and come with additional features such as calendars and reminders.

Some of the best tools include Zoom.

This comes with a free version that allows for as many as 100 people on the same call, and Google Meet, a video conferencing tool that integrates with Google’s other apps.

Implement a Team Management Platform

Team management platforms are designed to improve your team’s performance, helping them to keep on top of tasks and assignments, as well as organize meetings.

The best team management platforms, which include Teamwork and Trello, bring your team together into one centralized hub.

Here, they can communicate and collaborate, share files, meet deadlines, and view whole projects at a glance.

Conclusion

Managing your remote employees during COVID-19 is essential if your business is going to come out of the other end of this.

Use the tips in this article to ensure your team stays productive and efficient, and make sure to take advantage of tools and apps that improve your overall workflow during COVID-19.

Prepared by Patrick O’Brien.

Bio:

Ashley Kimler is a SaaS copywriter and the founder of CopyNoise.

She’s been working remotely in the tech space since 2014.

Interested in getting her advice on your blog? She’s always looking for the opportunity to share her knowledge with new communities.

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