Many establishments, factories, industries, and businesses in general, across the globe, are greatly affected by the spread of coronavirus in terms of workforce, supplies, and their day-to-day operations. While most jobs are suspended and workers have no choice but to have force-leave, some are also assigned to work from home. This might sound like a ray of hope for business owners because they can continue working but it is still challenging especially for those who are new to it. Abrupt changes can cause stress, that’s why it is necessary to have an action plan in implementing this remote work scheme.
As the remote work system is being adopted, the difficulties may not have the same resolution as what you usually do in the office but there are also relatively quick and affordable techniques that you can apply to ease the transition. Here are some useful tips to help you manage a business from home.
Make sure you have reliable tools
It is understandable to have a little hiccup when you first start working remotely. These might include difficulties in file sharing, having trouble hearing on conference calls, and receiving an unending stream of meeting invitations in the middle of the night.
That’s the good thing about test runs BUT now that you know these, you must address this at once and make sure that before everyone goes “work from home,” you have all the RELIABLE tools set up and ready for operation. It will save you a lot of time and resources. With all your tools at optimum condition, you can expect productivity as long as your “employees from afar” are also doing their job well.
Here are the basic tools used when working remotely:
- Slack– useful for team communication
- Zoom / Skype – both are great for calling and sharing your screen/s with your team members
- Dropbox / Google Drive– easily share files using either of these tools
- Gmail– make sure your email is set up properly on your computer and your phone as well for easy access
- Asana – manage your team’s work, project, and tasks
- Evernote – take down digital notes and sync it across other devices
- Canva.com– edit and create photos and graphics with ease and flexibility
- Hubspot– useful for organizing your contacts, increase leads and accelerate sales
Set your expectations
Sometimes when the employees are not of “one mind” with their manager or even with their co-workers. It is hard to tell as to what extent they would do something. For example, “quickly” or “well” may not be interpreted in the same way by each party. Each team member usually has different styles and mechanisms in coping with change. Some might work really well while others get more distracted.
With this, you just have to be clear and concise with your instructions. It helps to show examples of what you expect to be done when you need it to be done. Having have specific outlined tasks to be followed would help a lot as well. As for tasks that are more on the creative side, it is recommendable to keep track of their progress. Furthermore, setting deadlines will be very helpful. The time pressure might give them some sense of urgency and will also start continuous feedback. It will make their work better through systematic communication.
Establish a communication strategy
As an employee, it is always nice to have someone to check on you from time to time. When employees can anticipate the frequency of the conversations or talks, it becomes part of their routine. Thus, it will be more natural instead of a burden or an added task.
Most remote managers make sure to have daily check-ins with their “employees from afar”. This can be through a series of one-on-one calls if the employees are working independently. It can be via a team call if their work is highly collaborative. The important factor in creating a strategy for communication is consistency and predictability. By this means, each employee can easily consult with you, as their boss. That way, if they have concerns and questions, they will have real-time solutions that are in line with your objectives.
Stay focused on goals
Working with a remote workforce is like a long-distance relationship. Sometimes, you either worry too much about what is being done or the employees feel neglected.
Communication is the key to avoid being side-tracked. As much as that’s important, your goals should always coincide with each other to achieve similar output quality. Managers should concentrate on what is being accomplished. The methods would differ due to circumstances. However, as long as the quality is not compromised and the goals are met, you’re on the right track.
Provide encouragement and emotional support
Stressful times caused by abrupt shifts to remote work needs more understanding and considerate managers. They need to listen to employees’ concerns and empathize with their struggles.
Some employees might not voice out their stress and anxiety with the new working set up. Hence, it’s the manager’s initiative to ask them. Additionally, they should be asked how they’re doing or how the remote work situation is working out so far. With this question asked, it is important to listen carefully and make sure you understand correctly. Make sure the employees’ stress or concerns are the focus of the conversation rather than yours. Use phrases such as “we’ve got this,” “this is tough, but I know we can handle it,” or “let’s look for ways to use our strengths during this time”. They would provide affirmation of their confidence in their teams. With this support, employees will feel a sense of purpose and focus.
Over to you
That’s it. Now you have more understanding and an outlook on what you could do to manage your business from home. Let us know if you need some help with some of these tasks. We can provide you with quality service and output as well.