Long before the global pandemic, remote working was a growing trend. It is entirely possible though, that the coronavirus has exposed you to the unique challenges that come with managing a remote workforce for the very first time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If so, then you might be scratching your head wondering how on earth to keep people you can\u2019t see and interact with directly motivated and engaged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019ve been asking those types of questions, then this article will help, both in the here and now, and long after the pandemic behind us, because one thing\u2019s for certain; going forward, remote working is only going to become more common, not less.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s start with employee engagement because that\u2019s the\nsingle biggest challenge you\u2019ll face as a manager with remote employees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Keeping people engaged even when you see them face to face\nevery day can be a daunting challenge, and it\u2019s at least twice as big a\nchallenge when they\u2019re working remotely. \nThe single biggest thing you can do to make your remote employees feel\nlike they\u2019re part of the team is to maintain regular informal communications\nwith them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Think about it: When\nemployees share the same office space, there are innumerable opportunities for\nsmall talk and \u2018water cooler gossip.\u2019 \nThese are just ordinary human interactions that most of us take for\ngranted, but remote workers get exactly none of that, which can make them feel\nisolated and disconnected. That, in\nturn, leads to lower morale and increasing disengagement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not every communication you send out has to be about work. Take the time, on a human level, to reach out to your remote employees. Share a joke. A meme. A funny story. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ultimately, the particulars don\u2019t matter. What matters is the reaching out in an informal capacity. That\u2019s what fosters a sense of inclusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Basically, this comes down to making sure all of your\nemployees, whether they\u2019re in the office with you or not, get the same\ntreatment. Since your remote workers\ndon\u2019t have access to those informal interactions, take the time to give them\nsome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a similar vein, treat the work spaces of your remote employees exactly like you would those of the people in the office with you. If you, for example, give everybody a plant to liven up their desks, make sure all of your remote people get one too! That applies to absolutely everything, by the way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yes, providing training for remote employees is a bit more difficult than the readily available training your on-site people get, but taking the time to make sure they\u2019re not forgotten or lost in the shuffle really goes a long way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Also, be sure you\u2019re taking the time to discuss growth and\ndevelopment, along with the goals, challenges and frustrations faced by your\nremote team members. By being proactive\non that front, you\u2019ll keep small, budding problems from blossoming into much\nbigger ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then there\u2019s recognition. If you have an employee recognition program, ask yourself when the last time one of your remote employees was recognized for their efforts and contributions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019re like many managers with remote employees, you may be struggling to remember, and it\u2019s quite possible that it\u2019s literally never happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bottom line is, your remote employees do\ncontribute. Their work often goes unseen\nbecause it\u2019s out of sight and out of mind until and unless there\u2019s a problem,\nand that\u2019s a big part of the reason that so many remote workers report higher\nlevels of stress and lower job satisfaction than there in-house peers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Change that. Make it a point to call attention to the accomplishments of your remote team members. Recognize them with gifts and awards, just like you do with your in-house people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even if all you do is send them a gift card with a hand-written note expressing your appreciation, it\u2019ll have an amazing effect on morale and engagement. In fact, multiple studies have shown that recognition in any form has a bigger impact on employee engagement than anything else. That\u2019s true no matter where the employee in question works from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And at Successories<\/a>, we have a whole range of gifts for employees working remotely. You can find all the different categories of gifts and rewards on the home page of the site<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In conclusion, if you\u2019re worried that your remote employees aren\u2019t as happy as they could be, you\u2019re probably right. The good news is that there\u2019s an easy way to fix that!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Long before the global pandemic, remote working was a growing trend. It is entirely possible though, that the coronavirus has exposed you to the unique challenges that come with managing a remote workforce for the very first time. If so, then you might be scratching your head wondering how on earth to keep people you […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,656],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5172","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-employee-engagement","category-employee-recognition-2"],"yoast_head":"\n