Working from home may become the new norm in the near future. Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19), many businesses are switching to working remotely for the time being, but telecommuting has been steadily increasing in recent years. For companies that were already embracing a remote work environment, the switch won’t be much of a shakeup. However, if your business is currently scrambling to adjust to accommodate employees working remotely and worrying about employee productivity, don’t fret. There are a few ways to ensure that your staff stays productive when working outside of the office.
Set Expectations
An essential aspect of working from home is clearly outlining what each employee is expected to accomplish, along with any guidelines that might need to be discussed. A few examples of expectations that should be set are:
- Communication polices
- Time tracking
- Necessary programs
- Availability reporting
By setting clear expectations, the transition to remote work will be much smoother and provides less room for any misunderstandings or unproductive uses of time.
Provide Equipment
The most obvious difference between working from home instead of working in the office is the resources available to employees. Whether its computer monitors, telephones, or printers, most remote workers won’t have the same equipment at home as they do in their workspace at the office. Providing the necessary resources and equipment will help ensure that each employee has the tools they need to properly accomplish their typical tasks in a remote working environment.
Time Management Software
One of the main reasons that working in the office remains the standard in the workforce is the convenience of monitoring an employee’s time. In the office, every employee is hunkered down at their desk or workstation, making it easy to gauge how much they’re working. There also might be clock-in software utilized by the office’s work computers to keep track of their hours at work. When employees are working remotely, that convenience disappears, and you’re less certain of how long they’re working or what they’re working on. Time management software such as Asana, Toggl, and Hubstaff can eliminate these uncertainties and keep track of their progress on tasks.
Trust Your Employees
Trust is essential when it comes to your employees working remotely. When your employees are working outside of the office, you need to be able to trust the team. Keeping track of what they’re working on and communicating with them is a given, but you also don’t want to micromanage more than you usually would in the office, as this could lead to dissent and disengagement. If you trust your employees, many uncertainties and concerns about them working from home will fade and everyone will function better.
A remote working environment might seem like a hard transition to make, but if you keep these tips in mind when making the change, it could maximize productivity and save you a lot of stress down the line.
