Increasingly, staff includes individuals working from remote locations. Yet, while they are valued employees, the old adage “out of sight, out of mind” sometimes applies to these team members.
This perception has the potential to create issues related to employee engagement and retention.
Recognizing the Difference
Managing a remote workforce, or even remote workers, is different. The interaction that routinely occurs as part of an on-site employment relationship doesn’t take place. You can’t, for example, make small talk while getting coffee or celebrate the person’s birthday with a cake. Unless the person lives locally, he or she won’t be part of holiday celebrations, either.
These and other seemingly insignificant interactions help further connections and contribute to teambuilding. They also matter when it comes to employee morale—more than you might realize.
Is it possible to create the same kind of camaraderie, albeit at a distance?
Commit to Communication
Fortunately, the answer is yes, although it does require proactive communication.
Here are tips that can help.
- Check in with your remote staff on a regular basis. Even a simple, “How are you doing?” goes a long way.
- Provide positive feedback on staff members’ work. Sometimes remote workers assume no news is good news, while others become paranoid when confronting radio silence. Praise can prove affirming.
- Share company news with your remote workers, especially when the news has implications for them. Changes related to pay, benefits, and management are especially important.
- Keep remote workers in the loop as far as coworkers’ time off, if their job requires interacting with these employees.
Avoid Overkill
When it comes to interacting with remote workers, resist the temptation to go all in.
Managers sometimes think the more communication with remote staff, the better. However, too much communication creates other issues.
For one thing, workers may feel that you are keeping tabs on them. Also, if remote employees are in constant contact with you, they won’t have time to do their work.
With these issues in mind, don’t schedule regular meetings. Hold meetings only when necessary. (This is good advice when managing on-site staff, too.) When you do schedule meetings with remote staff, remember to consider time differences.
The nature of remote work requires different considerations, and a somewhat different approach to management. Nevertheless, there is one major similarity.
As with your on-site staff, if you take the time to engage with remote workers, they are more likely to remain engaged.
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Paula Santonocito, Contributing Editor for Recruiting Daily Advisor, is a business journalist specializing in employment issues. She is the author of more than 1,000 articles on a wide range of human resource and career topics, with an emphasis on recruiting and hiring. Her articles have been featured in many global and domestic publications and information outlets, referenced in academic and legal publications as well as books, and translated into several languages. |