There are large portions of your team that are either completely remote workers, or they are partially remote. The office space can be a bit intimidating for partially remote people. For those who are fully remote and never enter the office, being a team member can feel isolating. Here is how to make the office friendlier for your remote workers.
Keep Communication Wide Open
The biggest fail with hybrid teams is the lack of communication between office employees and remote workers. A lot of information can stay within the confines of those in person, and those working from home are left in the dark. Keep communication wide open, so remote workers can know all the same information as the team members.
The best way to do this is to hold weekly meetings and send messages regularly through Slack or WhatsApp, and when everyone is given the same message and receives the same information, the team is cohesive. A lot can get lost in emails as the thread grows longer and more complicated, so using apps work best.
Have Video Conferences Where Everyone Can Be Present
When everyone can be in the same room at the same time, that is where the most work gets done. With remote and partially remote workers, that can be impossible, but if you can have video conferences where everyone can be in the same room virtually, that is a good way to keep the team together.
Contact audio video companies to have your office or business set up with a great system that will bring your entire team together to make your remote employees feel like they are there even though they may be miles away.
Offer Similar Incentives
Even though an employee is not in the office, certain incentives should not be available. Small things like a job well done, earning a gift card, or an extra day off are appreciated by someone, even if they are working from their home office. The same goes for certain promotions and raises.
Employees who are home and working hard also deserve to make more money and take on new and different responsibilities. Make sure remote employees are included, and that means the office will seem like a friendlier place.
Ask About Their Work-Life Balance
Remote workers also struggle with work-life balance. Check on them and make sure they are not working too hard while working from their home office.
Many remote employees often have relatives and children home with them while they are working, and the lines are blurred between time for work and time to be home and rest. Let’s face it. Their office is their home. They need a check-in every once in and while. If things are off for them, offer to help just as you would help an employee working side by side with you in the office setting.
