After the COVID-19 Pandemic, work from home is new normal. But managing a geographically distributed team is not an easy task. Some of the companies have started complaining that their work efficiency has reduced significantly. Here, in this article, we have described five basic and simple steps to engage and manage a distributed workforce. Have a look at the following points:

1. Set Goal and Announce Awards

Just like setting clear goals is necessary for the workplace, similarly, they are even more important while working from a remote area. It is very important to set short-term as well as long-term goals while managing the team from a remote area. Without setting goals for teams and individuals working from remote, there is a high probability that workers start drifting.

Ultimately, it will lead to a bad impact on the productivity and working efficiency of employees. The team managers should discuss the progress report with the team and individual as well. It will keep employees engaged and keep their morale high. Also, the team leaders should communicate with all team members and appreciate them for their good efforts.

Sometimes, the employees feel isolated while working from home. Therefore, managers should put in efforts to make them feel like part of the company. They should reward the top performers of the month. This trick will keep the employees engaged and also encourage them to work hard. When employees receive their work, then they start working hard.

2. Provide the Required Tools & Infrastructure

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, most offices are operating remotely. It means that most employees are working from home. It is important to provide the required tools to your workers so that they can complete the assigned tasks efficiently. Along with software tools, employees also have accurate infrastructure so that they can start working properly. Without appropriate tools, equipment, and infrastructure, your employees may start struggling to complete the assigned jobs.

Gradually, they will start feeling frustrated and it affects their efficiency. It is the responsibility of companies to provide the physical hardware and software to make Work from Home (WFH) easy for the employees. These tools may include voice or video call capabilities, conference software, organization software that can keep all team members connected, ergonomic chairs, etc.

3. Promote Work-Life Balance

While working from home, it is really difficult to maintain the balance between life and work. Companies should implement the formalized structures to help their employees maintain a healthy balance between work and life. The companies should give training to their employees for fostering their boundaries for maintaining a balance between work and life. You should talk to your employees and ask them to create a designated workspace at their homes.

Also, communicate to them the importance of breaks and physical activities. You can also allow them to choose a flexible working house. This kind of effort will encourage the employees to complete their work and manage their home life easily. Your employees will feel that you understand their needs and they will want to work in your company for a long time.

4. Offer Training And Development Opportunities

When employees work from home, then they start feeling restricted. It is so because they start spending the whole time at home and there will be minimal interaction with colleagues, team leaders, and team managers. They start feeling like there is no advancement or progression in their career. It is very important to keep employees satisfied by offering them training and development opportunities. This training also helps them to perform efficiently and give desired results.

Thus, providing training to employees when they are working from home plays a vital role. Online training does not need huge expenditure. Business owners can easily afford the online training of employees while they are working from a remote location. This training helps in increasing the productivity of employees and increasing the profit of the business.  

5. Encourage Safe Social Engagement

While working from home, the employees are missing social engagement. But safe social engagement can be encouraged while working from home. It just needs little effort and creativity. When employees work remotely, they face the problem of easy communication and they start feeling lonely. The managers should be proactive and look out for different ways to deal with this kind of situation.

Some of the ways are described below:

  • Ask your employees to discuss work-related issues immediately.
  • Managers should conduct a virtual competition among the team members.
  • Build an online community board where employees can engage with each other without any problem.
  • The managers should organize safe social activities to make the employees feel that they are part of the company.
  • It is important to start a mentorship program. These kinds of programs can help in encouraging one-on-one relationships.