Employee management when working in a remote team can be difficult. Most people are used to the traditional, in-person work structure and can find it difficult to adapt to a remote job. There has been a huge rise in the number of Outsourced IT Support Solutions that companies can use which is able to help make this easier for this adaption. It is important for management to have the skills to adapt to the specific needs of a remote team. Something to take into consideration is whether a more flexible or traditional structure works best for your team. We’ve come up with 7 tips to help optimize your remote team.
Know the common remote working challenges
There are three common challenges when working remotely.
1. Lack of in-person contact
Each person has their own working style. One of the most common is that people tend to be more productive and dedicated to their work when they feel that they are part of a community. The lack of contact with team members can make it difficult to feel connected. It can also be more difficult to work on projects that require collaboration, it can also be more difficult to have more serious conversations.
2. Distractions
When working remotely, most people are working from home. This of course has way more distractions than working in the office. Especially for those who have children that they need to care for at the same time. If your company uses London IT Services or Support in your area, they can help make suggestions that minimize distractions at home. This can have a negative effect on the time your teams spend working and can extend the turnaround time of your projects. Understanding your team’s individual work environments will help you be more understanding, and adapt your plan to your team’s needs.
3. Breakdown in communication
With the multiple forms of communication that is needed to work remotely, it is easy for things to get lost in the process. Employees will mainly use voice or video chat but this still leaves room for things to be misunderstood or misinterpreted. If employees are communicating using only text or email, a lot more can be misinterpreted.
Related Post: How Having a Good IT Support Provider Can Make Working from Home Easier
Provide the correct tools
Both employers and employees need to have the correct tools for remote working. The basics of these are having a fast, stable internet connection and a laptop that has video calling capabilities and can handle apps like Skype or Zoom. The correct software needs to be installed on their laptops. This can include things like asset libraries which will give employees access to graphics they will need for presentations or other designs; time trackers, which will allow both the employee and employer to make sure everyone is on track and work will be submitted on time and project management software, which has become an essential to keep track of everyone’s work within a project and how much time there is to complete it.
Listen to employee feedback
Most remote workers feel that it is more difficult to make suggestions since they cannot do it in person. There is a simple way to fix this, which can be done by creating a feedback system, like a survey, to allow staff to submit their suggestions to their managers. In this system the employees should have the opportunity to voice any issues they may be having and how they would like management to address these issues, as well as any suggestions they may have for improving the remote working process.
Set expectations for productivity
Since remote work is less structured, it is a good idea to set guidelines for what is expected in the remote environment. This can be done by management setting goals for their employees which should be built on project goals, as well as analytics from employees performance through productivity trackers. Having clear guidelines will help employees know exactly what is expected from them and will improve communication overall.
