Whether you have always had your team work remotely, or brought this in as a new change, you may want to think about the best ways that you can facilitate good work without the office environment.
Remote working might be a preferred option for some of your employees, however, it can also come with its own challenges. By considering the best ways you could utilize your team, you may be able to become more efficient while still allowing everyone involved to have a good work-life balance.
Sometimes, your team may not just be dotted around the country. You might have opted to hire employees from all over the world, especially if their skill sets are good, and their values align with those held by your company. Due to this, you might also need to consider the needs and opinions of those within the team, especially when working together on a project. You may want to, therefore, make sure that the cultural competence in the Australian workplace aligns with your own. This could involve asking employees, and even subcontractors, to undergo culture and diversity training.
While there may be social norms that exist where they live, it may still be important for your entire team to be able to work without fear of insult or prejudice based on any of their cultural practices.
You may also want to make sure that everyone is able to communicate with each other, as and when it is required. Emails can sometimes get lost within the system and, due to time zones, telephone calls may be quite inappropriate. One option you may want to opt for could be utilising a variety of communication apps. A benefit of these can be that they can be used on both a computer and a smartphone, meaning that people do not necessarily need to be tied to their main screen to receive information. This could also allow you to keep logs of conversations and work that has been completed, which could be vital if discrepancies were to arise.
While you might want to get the most out of your team, you may also want to be seen as a conscientious employer. Although you may commend a job well done, and a strong work ethic, it could be equally important to make sure that your staff have adequate rest breaks.
When you consider that 60% of individuals feel some level of guilt for taking breaks while working from home, it can become apparent that you might want to reiterate the importance of doing so. Not only can this allow your staff members to be more productive overall, but it may also help them to gain a semblance of balance, take care of other tasks, or even take steps to look after their physical and mental health.
Utilizing a remote working team isn’t always about making sure the work itself is up to standard. At times, it may also involve helping people to be more compassionate to both others and themselves, and even how you could make working processes a little bit easier.
You may be interested in: Top Tips for Managing a Remote Team