Helping your remote employees thrive.

Twenty twenty is a year that changed a lot of things for business – none more so than the shake-up for HR. Working from home is here to stay for many companies for the foreseeable future – or forever. Even as we do return to physical workplaces, ‘the office’ is likely to look very different than it did in 2019 (hello kitchen table!). We may never return to a full five day week in the corporate office but settle on key days where we can be physically with the team and other days at home. Even once we are given the all clear to go back into the physical work environment, the pandemic has shown us that working from home actually works quite effectively, so we may opt for a more flexible hybrid model.

As we look to the future of work, it is important that we now consider the longer term strategy for engaging employees in company culture.

Even sitting separately, employees want to be part of a thriving and dynamic workplace culture. They still get a buzz from contributing to common goals. They are energised by helping to build something meaningful. Human connection is as important as ever. To put it simply, employees want to connect and contribute and it is the job of leadership to create that sense of belonging as we work solo, together.

But what does belonging look like if the ‘workplace’ is spread across suburbs and streets, working together but sitting apart? And how do we go about creating new ways to connect, bond and banter?

#inittogether in isolation.

The first thing to consider is that when working from home, everyone is faced with different circumstances. One of the team may be at home, alone and not see anyone all day long. Great for productivity but emotionally this can be really challenging. Another member of the team may be at home with kids (who are maybe also learning at home depending on the current situation) meaning they are constantly interrupted so adjust by working later when they can focus. Another may be working from a shared kitchen table as the office is taken by their partner who is on calls all day. Some may have elderly parents with them they are caring for.

Everyone has their own version of life happening in ‘the new office’. It can easily start to feel like they are living at work, rather than working from home, if leadership do allow for these unique circumstances with grace and flexibility.

Encourage employees to do things like add an email tag to their footer, letting others know their working hours. Reminding them to take regular breaks and get out – if they can – like they may if they were in the actual office. Institute ‘No Zoom Tuesdays’ so employees get a break from screen overwhelm (I think we all know what that one feels like!).

Allow everyone to be human. While you may not want to encourage people showing up online in their activewear, if their kids happen to pop on screen, or a pet steals the show for a few minutes, or there is a package delivery, create space for each team member to find their groove at home and their contribution will thrive.

Encourage more collaboration than ever before.

Great things happen when we work together. There is no single source of good ideas, no one person who knows the best ways to solve things. Everyone has something to contribute so now more than ever, foster that.

If you are not already using transparent collaboration tools, start. If you do not have a way that employees can put forward recommendations, create one. If your team does not work closely on projects, bring them together where possible so they can support each other through this time. Collaborating on building the workplace of the future and solving pandemic problems, will help build a deep sense of resolve within the organisation and equip the team to face the challenges of the new normal together.

Take the focus off work with ‘social moments’.

We have all been on screens more than is probably healthy for us in the past months. A COVID-borne necessity that thankfully, has kept many business going. But it’s been challenging for health and has been a bit of a connection killer.

We have lost the ‘social moments’ of work – a seemingly inconsequential connection with a colleague as we wait for the last person to join us in a meeting room. A quick check-in with a work friend while grabbing lunch from the fridge. A laugh over a funny family mishap shared to lighten the end of a meeting.

Connection is vitally important but when we jump onto Teams, most of us put our serious face on and get straight into boss mode. Try dedicating the first five minutes of meetings to regaining the social connection we are all missing. Do a whip around the screen and ask everyone the same, non-work related question – weekend plans, funniest thing that happened last week, what’s on the menu tonight, most memorable holiday location.

It may seem like time wasting, but a quick casual chat will re-connect colleagues and allow them to find common ground. It will build on relationships and for those who have only ever known their ‘screen-team’, will give them insight into who they work with.

It may not be as good as real, face-to-face connection but will improve the overall team dynamic dramatically.

Amplify the little wins and celebrate the big ones.

Use social recognition to amplify the great work being done every day and align all employees to the company values. As we all sit separately, it is more important than ever to showcase through a recognition program, the meaningful daily moments that are happening across the business.

In a physical workplace, the little things get noticed and employees feels valued for doing them. In the home office, there may be no-one else there to see it happen but it is still important to the business and should be recognised for the impact it has.

Amplify the moments that are happening across the business by calling them out, commenting and liking them so all employees see the activities that are contributing to the company’s success. At times like this, it is easy to feel unappreciated and disconnected, so make sure your team feel the human connection to help them thrive.

Not only will they thrive, but engagement will increase. A study by Hewitt Associates looked at if frequency of recognition matters when it comes to levels of engagement. And guess what, it really does! So recognise all the meaningful moments, not just the extraordinary achievements.

Allow employees to build the new normal.

Ask your team what they want the workplace of the future to look like. Each of us has different needs and have uncovered new things about ourselves as we have worked in isolation. Let employees determine what the new way of working looks like. If it is designed by them, it will be designed around them and will give them the space they want and need to flourish.

That does not mean that every suggestion is implemented, but allowing them to be a part of creating the ‘new work’ means they will adapt to the changes more fluently and more enthusiastically.

Align your employees around the new way of being.

Use tools like social recognition to not only amplify the great work being done, but to align all employees to the new meaning of your company values. Just like our teams, values are dynamic and while the words on the wall don’t change, the meaning for employees does.

‘Teamwork’ today may not mean the same thing as teamwork did a year ago. ‘Help each other’ means going out of our way in whole new ways. ‘Putting the customer at the centre of everything we do’ is different in a pandemic – their needs and ours. Encourage employees to use recognition to spotlight the activities of today that align with the company goals, By doing this, not only will sense of belonging increase, everyone will start to understand what is expected of them in a post-pandemic world. They will have a greater sense of belonging and understanding and their time at the table will yield better outcomes for everyone.