Covid-19 has seen offices all over the world close their doors, with employees encouraged to work from home to help fight the pandemic and abide by lockdown laws.
Businesses did a brilliant job of adapting quickly to support staff with this new way of working. But now, there’s an opportunity to go even further to perfect your performance.
In this article we look at how to ensure your staff’s wellbeing by promoting good remote working habits –in turn, keeping your business productive.
We’ll also explore communication and collaboration, with guidance on the technology you need to keep your business ticking.
Supporting your staff’s mental wellbeing should be high on everybody’s agenda. A recent study by Oxford University suggests happy employees are up to 13% more productive than unhappy employees. A voluntary survey of your staff’s remote work environment is a good way to check how your employees are feeling.
Concentration is often the first thing to go when people are remote working, as a new environment can disturb usual working patterns.
Promote good habits, such as turning off notifications and encouraging staff to schedule inbox checks (limited to 2-3 times a day if possible). Just one notification can derail focus for up to 23 minutes.
There are also tools that can help employees carve out time to focus amidst all the meetings, calls and possible family commitments:
Remember, you’re encouraging a cultural change as much as a technological one. So lead by example – discourage after-hours communication, set a tone of flexibility and empathy, and your staff will follow suit.
Sharing information and ensuring it has been understood is much more difficult for a remote team.
The first step is making sure you’re all on the same page – reaffirm shared visions and goals, make sure everyone knows their role in achieving them, and reestablish lines of communication.
Remember to schedule and encourage informal meetings with and among teams. These not only help maintain relationships, but can also serve as a ‘wellness check-in’. This period is going to be harder on some people than others, and you won’t know who’s struggling unless you take the time to reach out and ask.
We all know how crucial collaboration is to success. But with your workforce now remote, it’s more important than ever that teams still feel like they can work together.
So find new ways to work as collaboratively as possible:
For more specific guidance around protecting your business, take a look at our piece on protecting your business from cyber and fraud risk
For more support discover our free business support helpline and speak to one of our Business Advisers by phone, contact form or web chat.
Wondering what you can ask? Our team can help with a range of digital topics
Available Monday to Friday, 8am-6pm, our friendly team are here to provide guidance and support on the topics that matter to your business.