The Remote Team: How to Stay Connected in Times of Distance

By Katie Cummins, HR Consultant at HRBOOST®, LLC

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, never have we as professionals, business owners, and teams been faced with such challenges as we are today.  Our world has completely changed, and we are living in a new world of remote work.  While remote work has been accelerating over the years, most of us have not until now been pushed to work one hundred percent virtually.   Many companies have rolled out mandatory working-from-home policies, either as an extension of what was already in place, or for the first time in other cases.  Suddenly, we’re working with teams that have never worked remotely before, managers who have never managed remotely before, and companies that were never remote before.

What can you do to help your team not just survive, but thrive during these challenging times?  In times of distance, how do we stay connected?

As easy as it might be to focus on the negatives, or the challenges, try to see this as an opportunity. Simply because this IS an opportunity – for us, our families, our teams, and even our companies.  Fundamentally, what we are going through now and the near future, will change the way we work.

Help set yourself and your teams up for success by using the following strategies:

1. Structure and Routine

Treat this like a job, because…IT IS YOUR JOB! Don’t roll out of bed and join a conference call a few minutes later.  Get up, get dressed (even if it’s sweatpants) and get yourself into “work mode”.

Set up a workstation or dedicated space where you can focus, where it’s quiet, and where you can actually work and be productive.

2. Set Expectations and Boundaries

Be realistic with your time and manage your day accordingly.  If you’re juggling home schooling your children and work, set realistic expectations and boundaries both for your children and your teams. Spell out when you will be available.

During this time, evaluate remote workers’ performance on work output and completion of objectives rather than on time-based performance.

3. Relationships

Relationships are vital to get things done!  It’s more challenging to maintain relationships from a distance, but crucial for success.  Understanding what you need, what your team needs in order to feel connected is important.  Use this time to get a better understanding of each other and broaden and deepen relationships during this time.  Even an introvert will want to see a human being from time to time.

Businesses across the world are struggling – with millions of workers instantly working remotely. Having tools and data can help during this time.  HRBOOST® proudly partners with BestWork® DATA to conduct assessments for individuals and teams to find their strengths and ways in which people can work together.  They are offering FREE assessments for individuals and businesses and providing reports that give more complete picture of how to work together remotely.

Find new ways to connect and strengthen relationships.  Be vulnerable with your teams – share the daily pain, struggles, and success you have. Have a little fun and find new ways to interact with each other.  From virtual happy hours, to coffee chats, and lunch and learns, get creative in your ways to connect and combat loneliness.

4. Communication

Communication is key!  In fact, we feel most employee relations problems can be prevented with proactive communication. Be sure that you are having consistent and routine communications with your team.  Have an agenda and purpose, discuss important topics, hold regular team meetings. Working from home requires you to be over communicative.

An appropriate level of communication between employees and managers should be spelled out, including expectations of availability, responsiveness and what modes of communication are to be used. When you’re not meeting with team members in person, creating processes for collaboration and communication are key.

5. Technology

Consider what types of communication tools work best in situations like manager one-on-ones and team meetings.  Technology is your friend, use it! Chat apps like Slack or video conferencing apps like Zoom are great tools to help you interact with colleagues and make you feel less isolated at home.

What Should You Do Next?

At HRBOOST®, we recommend the following steps:

• Learn quick, fail fast, and celebrate success!
• Be proactive, not just reactive, and forward thinking when it comes to the way we work
• Find new ways to make the most out of virtual work experiences

Today’s COVID-19 pandemic could permanently shift working patterns and the way we work in the future.  Embracing remote work and virtual collaboration is one of the most impactful thing companies can do today.  Together, we can find ways to make the most out of virtual work experiences, navigating immediate disruptions like the coronavirus outbreak while also remaining focused on the longer term, the future of work, and the future of remote teams.  We may never again in our lifetimes experience such an opportunity to reshape the way in which we work, and work gets done.  Take advantage of this opportunity and make a positive change!

At HRBOOST®, we can help!  We believe every team and business (big or small) should have support to manage their people challenges.  Let us give you the boost you need.  Give us call, we are always on standby! And believe it or not, we have been working virtually for nearly 10 years!