Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many employees have had to work remotely Financially, it has some benefits for the employees such as saving a number of costs for commuting to the workplace. However, working remotely may cause the employees to feel alone and struggle to maintain a work-life balance since they lose their workplace atmosphere. Plus, When your employees are based in an office, it is much easier to be aware of any habits or behaviours that may be impacting their well-being.
Work-from-home arrangements are not a simple or desired activity for many reasons, ranging from stress-free work and higher production to a lack of motivation and technological equipment.
Here are some tips for the higher-ups to support your employees in a remote working environment.
Set Limit Between Work And Personal Time
Since employees don’t have to commute from home to the workplace anymore, it can become challenging to establish personal time and office hours. Due to this lack of separation, many remote employees may feel as if they are always in work mode, adding to their already-high stress levels.
Be assertive as managers try to draw lines between their professional and personal lives. Managers can accomplish this by demonstrating their faith in their employees and encouraging them to set limits for their job. Your employees will feel liberated to turn off at the end of the working day and rejuvenate if you communicate the importance of this balance.
Offer Rewards To Motivate Employees
Employers might want to step up their game to ensure their employees’ well-being and commitment to the company even when they’re working remotely. One way to do this is to show appreciation beyond the usual work benefits and bonuses. For example, employers can set a professional challenge for the employees or choose an exemplary employee of the month, and offer the winner a trip somewhere. The travel reward doesn’t even have to put a dent in the company’s budget if they can partner with travel agents that can offer cheap flights or flight deals.
Alternatively, rewards can come in the form of small gifts or treats.
Remember That Breaks Are Necessary
Working for lengthy periods of time without breaks causes increased stress, lower productivity, and can quickly wreak havoc on physical health.
Encourage employees to take breaks throughout the day and implement a mechanism that alerts teammates when this occurs. When someone takes a break, they can note it on their work calendar, update their status on their instant messenger, or send a message to their colleagues to notify them that they will be unavailable.
Check In On How Your Employees Are Feeling
Some employees may be hesitant to bring things up to management themselves, especially when they haven’t felt supported in the past.
If this is the case, employers can try using confidential surveys to check in. An automated pulse survey tool can assist employers in sending frequent, brief pulse surveys to determine how employees feel about all aspects of the organization. This allows the management to discover any issues that may be affecting the employees’ well-being and to implement changes swiftly and effectively.
Keep Your Communication In Check With The Employees
All remote jobs done well come with an increased and sustainable communication. Ensure that team communication between remote workers and in-house team members is open, frequent, and consistent. By checking in regularly with your employees, you can ensure that they are getting what they need and staying on top of their job.
This could mean providing additional information and explanation on assignments, daily one-on-one to check the progress of tasks, or scheduled check-ins to gauge the moods of your employees.
Arrange Virtual Activities And Happy Hours
Staring at the laptop’s screen all day long just for work must be exhausting for the employees. Rather than turning the laptop into the employee’s ‘biggest enemy’, you can set up happy hours for the employees so that they get a chance to take a break. Employers can set up virtual activities or games even outside of working hours to brighten up their moods.
This simple act will hopefully improve employee’s engagement and set up better bond between employees and employers.
