This year was the highest record for remote work and while many definitely felt the benefits of working from home, challenges were also experienced. These challenges may be discouraging for some businesses and companies to continue their remote work setup.
As we approach the new year with the Omicron variant looming, plans of returning to the office might fall through. Managers need to prepare for the possibility that virtual work may have to continue for another year and get their team ready to take it on.
If you’ve taken a dip in the remote work pool this year but are not sure if you should keep swimming, this blog can help you make the decision so you don’t sink.
What are the benefits of remote work?
Let’s revisit the benefits of remote work. Aside from the obvious reduction in costs to your company or business, the most compelling advantage of remote work most have observed is the increase in productivity amongst employees.
In fact, 77% of surveyed remote workers confirmed the increase in productivity they experienced and 90% plan to continue working remotely. This is mostly due to the flexibility and autonomy remote work offers so make sure you continue to offer that to your team. When your team is happy and productive, you save money and your business grows. It’s a win-win.
What are the challenges of remote work?
Challenges are to be expected in remote work, with team members having differences in schedules and their interactions limited to video calls, emails, and chat. Not to mention the boundaries between work and home life can overlap. Here are some other examples of the challenges some have experienced with remote work:
- Communication gaps
In a study conducted by State of Remote Work, 20% find communication and collaboration their biggest challenge when working remotely. Because there are no more physical interactions with colleagues, employees find it difficult to form work relationships, to find opportunities to collaborate, and to read social cues.
- Promotion opportunities
Again a lack of physical presence in the workplace has made it difficult for remote workers to put themselves in the running for a promotion, not to mention time zones opposite from their boss. Employers should make sure to regularly check in with all their team members and ask managers for feedback. Clear performance criteria and promotion guidelines should also be set and communicated well.
How to build a remote work culture
Help strengthen your company or business’s remote work culture by finding out what values your employees share and why they love working there. This increases employee engagement, productivity, retention, and happiness. When your team feels like they’re connected by similar attitudes, interests, and priorities, they’ll have a better work experience despite not being able to meet in person.
- Establish policies and guidelines
Things like work schedule, communication channels, and time-off should be clear to your employees. Are there hours fixed or flexible? Where should they reach out with questions, send accomplished work, or have meetings? Are they allowed time-off or do they need to offset it with additional hours? By knowing these, they’ll feel empowered and confident.
- Send a survey
Find out what the culture is currently at your company by creating and sending out a survey to your team. This can give you insights to what is currently working well and which areas you need to improve on.
- Nurture connections
Take a few minutes every week to meet with your team and talk about things other than work. Promote sharing of interests and hobbies or host fun activities that break the ice and encourage team building and being inclusive.
- Recognize achievements
Just because you don’t see your team in person doesn’t mean their contributions and accomplishments should go unnoticed too. Appreciating achievements whether big or small makes your team feel valued and motivates everyone to work harder.
- Promote positive team dynamics
Good team dynamics in remote work is challenging but not impossible. Managers need to foster good communication, build trust, and encourage collaboration for the team to work together effectively. When everyone feels free to communicate, feels like they can trust and rely on each other, and feels confident to collaborate with one another, then the company’s remote work culture is strong.
Why you should partner with us
Remote Workmate helps companies make remote working a breeze. How? We help you build your best team by vetting applicants and narrowing them down to the most qualified ones through a series of tests and interviews. All you have to do is make the final interview.
But it doesn’t end there. We also help with onboarding your Workmate as well as payroll and HR management. We also moderate evaluations of your Workmate on the third and sixth month so that both of you are working with each other as effectively as possible.
Tell us about your recruitment needs on an obligation-free session that you can schedule today. Just click the button below to get started.
