8 Tips For Keep Happy And Engaged Employees While Work From Home

Introduction

Work life has changed drastically in the course of the recent years. Every aspect of life has transformed in one way or another. Previously, there was a small number of remote workforce, but since the recent developments in 2020, almost the majority of office staff is working from home. Work from home recruitment has its own benefits, both for the employer as well as the employee. Having a remote workforce is extremely profitable for any business or organization. It helps to expand the business to any corner of the world. Work from home recruitment reduces the infrastructure cost to set up a proper office. It expands the hiring boundaries, as employees from any part of the world can be hired. Giving access to a richer talent pool along with saving the time for commute.

But there are downsides to the work from home recruitment arrangement too. Employers usually face challenges managing remote employees, as working from home recruits face many distractions. Working in a nonprofessional background reduces work efficiency. Being isolated from co-workers also causes stress and loneliness. All this in turn hampers the working capacity of the employees.

To solve this problem here are some tips you could take from a work from home recruitment agency in order to keep employees happy and engaged while they work from home.

Essential steps to keep employees happy and engaged while working remotely

1 . Allow flexible working

The on-going pandemic has revolutionized the working sector completely and suddenly, taking all the working population by surprise. Work from home, remote work, or freelancing was not a common practice for most businesses some time back. But now remote work has become a new norm.

Businesses thrive when all the employees work on time and complete all the tasks in a timely manner. But sometimes, being flexible is of great advantage, especially when dealing with some key challenges in managing remote employees. Productivity and employee morale gets affected when work timings add to individual stress and problems. To overcome this problem, recruiters or business managers need to be flexible. Giving employees the freedom of flexible work hours allows them to manage work more efficiently. Keeping a strict work schedule may reduce the working capacity of the workers. Unless it is not a feasible option, flexible work management is worth considering and implementing.

As long as the remote employees are completing the tasks before the deadlines on a regular basis, grant them the freedom to work in timeslots favourable to them. This will help employers to retain good and hardworking employees and build an atmosphere of trust.

2 . Believe in your employees and trust them

Working from a distance can be stressful. To get the full support of your distant employees, appreciate them for their good work. Verbal acknowledgment is a great way to boost their spirit. Make sure to show them that you know where they stand and encourage them to be more and more productive. Give constructive criticism whenever necessary and do so in a gentle and polite way so as to make them believe that you trust them.

Ask them to take up new projects rather than ordering them to do so. Take note of their daily progress without being too controlling, and avoid micromanagement. Let them work in their own style. This will instill trust in them. Ask for their opinion and ideas in new projects and show them that their say matters. Discuss upcoming assignments and future goals of the company with the employees. It’s an amazing way to let them know about the future workload without actually stressing them about it. You may also hear their views on a lot of new things. Demonstrate to them that their hard work is the reason the organization is going places and that it needs their support and cooperation.

This will make them feel valued and appreciated. And increase the overall productivity of remote employees.

3 . Encourage small breaks during work hours

Working from home has definitely reduced the time spent daily on travel. But it hasn’t reduced the amount of pressure on the employees. If anything, it has only increased. Previously employees could have lunch, tea, or coffee breaks together. Now, they may feel lonely as no such occasions will occur while working from home.

It’s important to work hard and have valuable resting time too. Encourage your remote employees to take breaks and connect with each other on virtual platforms during these breaks. You may not realize the importance of a coffee break conversation. But these little conversions with fellow workers serve as an energy booster for employees.

Provide digital assistance for such meetings if required. Let your employees catch a breath. This shows that their time and efforts are respected.

4 . Support the employees

It is a good idea to converse with your remote team. Try to connect with each employee on a deeper level. Superiors could have a casual conversation with the distant employees during a work-related meeting or through a weekly catch-up meeting. These conversations help you understand your team member’s abilities, challenges, and limitations much better and help them perform better.

Small talk is the key to big conversations. Get to know your employees. Many organizations hire employees overseas who they haven’t met in person. Keep the communication open. The effect of providing support by being approachable and open minded could turn out to create a greater positive impact than you realize. Let your employees know that you are there listening to any of their grievances or difficulties. Also, be patient and understanding. This is a simple but effective way to show support as well as maintain the appropriate professional relationship.

5 . Encourage recreation time

Due to the curfews or government rules controlling people’s movements in public places, your employees may miss their walk, exercise, or gyming time. Daily exercise tones the body and relaxes the muscles reducing stress and helps in secreting relaxing hormones. Encourage employees to engage in any hobby or sport of their liking.

Research shows that employees practicing any hobby in their free time are more sharp and productive in their professional life. These hobbies can be as simple as reading and writing or as adventurous as sports, trekking, etc.. Anything that takes a person’s mind off his professional life is acceptable. Employers should encourage work-from-home employees to find common interest and bond over it. This may imbibe team spirit in the workers and connect them more intimately.

Support employees in their initiatives to catch up beyond office hours for a virtual yoga, meditation, or some other such session. It has immense benefits. This is one of the easiest and most inexpensive methods to de-stress, especially in lockdown. Help employees to rest and recreate as much as possible, so they can give their best at work without stressing and getting frustrated.

6 . Promote creation of dedicated workspace

Regular office employees may not have needed a separate workspace at home before. But if they are going to work from home regularly, employers should encourage workers to have a special workspace away from the living space of the house. Companies can offer online help to create these personalized workspaces.

These dedicated spaces help employees to free their minds from the normal distractions of home life and be more productive. Many of the work-from-home employees are parents who have to care for their kids due to school closure. Having an office away from family helps in maintaining focus and staying on track.

Employees need not dedicate a permanent workspace; a makeshift office in a spare bedroom, in the living room, etc., would be just fine as long as it helps you distinguish work from home.

7 . Dress professionally

You may feel it is unimportant, or even time consuming, to dress professionally when you can comfortably work in your sweatpants, pajama shorts, or crop tops. Psychologists say that it does not help many work-from-home employees to work efficiently wearing casual clothes, particularly when their work involves frequent video-calling or virtual meetings with clients or team members.

Wearing office wear does trigger a psychological impulse that makes you feel more alert about work responsibilities and helps recreate a work atmosphere, especially during virtual meetings. Dressing professionally while working from home is most beneficial when you have to attend an impromptu conference call with colleagues or clients. Dress to impress.

8 . Celebrate achievements

Celebrate the success of your company or business. Try to include all the members by hosting a virtual party. Such get-togethers boost team spirit and increase the flow of communication. In the contactless world of work-from recruitment, physically meeting employees or team members is impossible. So make use of the available platforms and include more and more employees in the party.

This will show the employees that their hard work for the organization is paying off, giving them a sense of fulfillment and purpose.

Conclusion

If you are implementing a work from home recruitment practice, it is extremely essential to keep your remote teams motivated and engaged. The tips we have provided could come extremely useful. The tips are also easy to follow and could prove to be very effective in retaining your employees.

Being a work from home recruitment agency, we are always happy to assist organizations with their remote recruitment practices. Please do not hesitate to contact our work from home recruitment agency if you have any questions about successfully recruiting remote employees.