The need to abandon offices and resume work from home came suddenly and unexpectedly. Thankfully, remote work was already an emerging trend before it became the need of the hour. As a result, when it did become an absolute necessity, most businesses found that the tools and technologies that are needed to operate with distributed employees already exist and are easily accessible. However, as employees started working from home, businesses came across a unique set of challenges.
Many employees that work from home all day are isolated. This feeling of isolation, coupled with the negative news we can find around us can make anyone feel alone and depressed. Corporate employees are no exception.
Besides the feeling of loneliness, many people are seriously doubting whether they will remain employed for long. In such a situation, you shouldn’t be surprised to find that your best performers are looking for a new job.
With negativity and uncertainty looming over everyone’s head, it is the responsibility of employers to make sure their employees are engaged with their organization. In addition to this, helping your employees combat the negative feelings associated with being confined at home will help you boost the overall productivity output of your teams.
So how do you do it? How do you engage remote employees? How do you reassure them that their employment is safe? Here are a few techniques you can employ.
Enable Remote Employees
When your employees are facing challenges related to motivation and engagement, you don’t want them to also struggle with technological challenges. For this reason, it is important to make sure that they have all the tools that they need to do their job and stay included in the day to day operations of the company.
This means, making sure your employees have all the software that they will need to effectively communicate and collaborate with their peers and managers. If ensuring this means you have to send them additional hardware, make sure you do it pronto. It is also a good idea to send your employees some “office swag” that will remind them that they are part of a business.
Conduct Team Building Activities
Experts recommend having a dedicated “office space” as a way to boost productivity. To add to this boosted productivity, employers can send their employees “office swag” that can be used to decorate their office space. Then, on every Friday, the whole team can get together for a video conference and one employee can give a short “tour” of their home workspace.
This is just one example of the many innovative team building activities employers can conduct to make sure their employees feel a sense of belongingness towards their workplace. Virtually meeting with the whole team on a designated day of the week will also help employees overcome the feeling of loneliness.
Deliver Virtual Training
Chances are that you had a functioning employee training program when everything was normal. If you have discontinued it, it is time to begin training employees virtually. Simply get a video conferencing software and ask your trainers to jump in front of a camera and start delivering training.
This online training will boost the human contact your employees have throughout the day and will also reassure them that their employment is not in danger. The best part is, delivering virtual training is very pocket friendly. Even the best video conferencing software are extremely affordable and comes loaded with all the features one may require to deliver an immersive virtual training experience.
Conclusion
Organizations must take active steps to ensure their employees’ mental health does not take a toll because of the sudden switch to working from home. Do you employ any other techniques to engage employees at your organization? Share them with us (and everyone else) in the comment section below.
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