The pandemic has caused companies to change many of their work practices. Employees have found they have lots more options when it comes to how, when, and where they can get their work done. This global shift to remote working has affected employee engagement in a number of ways – and this trend is not going away any time soon.
Business leaders face key challenges with their remote employees. Most of these obstacles stem from inadequate communication and the disruption of daily social interaction. Although most people realize that everyone is going through the same challenges – managers included – working from home initiatives can either make or break overall employee engagement levels.
Here are three ways to ensure that you are still connecting with your team members.
Keep an eye out for burnout. Some employees appear engaged and motivated during Zoom calls, but they may be secretly struggling with the challenges of working remotely. It’s up to the manager to have honest, open conversations with their team to keep up with what is really going on with their employees and look for ways to help. The nice thing about working from home is that it’s always there. The bad thing about working from home is – it’s always there. Make sure your employees are not overworking to the expense of their wellbeing.
Look at Your Leaders. Influential leaders devote their time to supporting their team and building trust with their employees. Ineffective managers waste time elevating their political capital and promoting their own accomplishments. Pay attention to how your managers are behaving towards their staff and adjust when necessary. Communication is more important than ever, so managers need to keep in touch with their remote employees more than they may have done in the past when the employees were on site.
Foster informal relationships. Promote social initiatives that give employees one-on-one time with each other. Whether you host a weekly virtual happy hour or set up paired coffee breaks, look for ways to duplicate interactions that might happen when running into someone in the lunchroom or office. Let employees introduce their “fur babies,” their kids, and show off their hobbies and house projects. Look for reasons to connect with and get to know each other better.
The single most powerful step a company can take to boost engagement is to ensure that managers communicate and collaborate effectively with their teams and add social initiatives to reinforce its work-from-home support structure.
