How To Increase Your Remote Workers’ Efficiency And Productivity

Since the pandemic began, a lot of people have had to adjust well to what is considered as the “new normal.” Obviously, one of the most affected by the pandemic was the business sector. However, since introducing the work from home setup as the new norm, businesses have been able to continue their operations despite the challenges.

As the Delta Variant of Covid-19 is forcing stricter lockdown restrictions once again, more companies might have to make their employees work from home once again. If the strategy has been effective for you so far but you still believe that there’s room for improvement, then you’ve come to the right place.

Improving your worker’s performance and efficiency can be tough to manage. You don’t want your employees to think that you are putting more on their plate as you did when things were back to normal. With these tips, you can help them perform as if they’ve never left the office in the first place.

Make Sure There’s More Than One Way To Communicate

One of the biggest challenges of remote work is communication. Giving orders and telling employees what to do is as easy as talking to them directly before the pandemic. Now, you need to rely on various communication tools to keep direct contact with your employees.

It might be a bad idea to set up only one way to communicate with your employees. What you should do is set up a primary means of communication. This can be a group chat in a messaging app. Other than that, make sure that your employees are well-aware of other ways to contact their peers just in case one medium fails.

Provide Them With What They Need

A common misconception is that once employees transition to the work-from-home setup, you have nothing else to do for them since they are technically no longer at the office. However, the best companies know that the company’s care should always go beyond the premises of the office.

Make sure to provide your employees with whatever they need to get set up at home. For instance, if they don’t have a work computer, have their office computers delivered at home instead. This will help make them feel more in tune with the environment. Moreover, it can make them feel more at ease knowing they have nothing else to worry about.

Invest In The Right Software

Most of today’s companies invest in employee monitoring and collaboration software so that they can adjust better to the current situation. You can have more productive and efficient team with these. It’s an extra expense on your end but in reality, it’s an investment for your company’s future.

Good software to invest in is employee monitoring software. This lets you track the progress and efficiency of your workers even from afar. What’s good about this software is that they don’t exactly track what your employees do, they track the progress they make during the day.

You should understand that for some employees, it can be a bit uncomfortable knowing that somebody is watching you work. Another upside to employee monitoring software is that it’s barely noticeable. Your employees won’t notice the tracker at all once they activate it on their side.

Software like these basically motivates employees to do better or to at least perform as if they were inside the office. As they know that their progress is being monitored, they’ll work harder to impress their superiors inside the company as well.

Prevent Zoom Fatigue

Zoom fatigue is indeed a thing. It happens when employees are constantly obligated to engage in video conferences. Unless it’s really necessary, do away with the Zoom or Skype meetings. If it can be said through a concise message, then no meetings are needed any more.

Give Your Employees Better Autonomy

You need to have better trust in your employees. Don’t ask them to update you on progress about their work regularly. Not only does this show your lack of trust in them, it can also take up more of the time doing so. Give them more autonomy and trust.

Your employees will feel a lot better about themselves if they see your trust in them. Instead of hourly updates, simply give them the tasks they need to be done for the day. Have them update you once the task is done. This saves them more time and it lets them work more comfortably too.

Stop Being Too Serious

Another challenge with the remote work setup is the lack of socializing people get to do. It’s very exhausting to be cooped up in one place with no pals or friends to talk to. The last thing your employees would want is to be stuck in a workplace that seems all but fun.

Don’t forget to be friendly with your team. Also, encourage them to interact with each other once in a while. Socializing can relieve a lot of stress on their part. Moreover, it can greatly help those who don’t like the feeling of being alone during these trying times.

Keep Things On A Schedule

The concept of finishing and working on time shouldn’t have to be abolished just because of remote work. It would be wise to give your employees a schedule to follow. For instance. Tell them what they need to do upon clocking in for the day. Also, provide them with details on when you expect progress updates to arrive.

For many employees, having a schedule to follow makes them more efficient and relaxed. It makes them feel as if things are still as normal as possible.  Remember, there are a lot of people that get flustered if they are left to do things at their own behest.

It can be hard to adjust to the remote work setup at first. If you execute it properly though, you’ll be surprised at the amount of things your employees can do in a short amount of time. There are many benefits to remote work but they can only be achieved if you lay the groundwork for a better online environment.