Engagement doesn’t have to be difficult. It is important to select a strategy which addresses engagement in the short, medium and long term. Therefore, a great employee engagement strategy will feature quick wins, long-haul initiatives, and everything in between. To help you get started, we’ve compiled a list of ten ways to engage remote workers.
1. Stay connected
Officevibe found that at the height the pandemic, 1 in 5 workers experienced a lot of discomfort when they felt isolated. Even though things have returned to normal, this feeling is still felt by many people who work from home. To avoid feeling lonely, it is important to actively seek out and encourage connections.
2. Encourage regular and transparent communication
Before remote working became common, many of us assumed in-person communication would be the norm. Think of office visits, water cooler chats, lunchtime conversations or peeking into someone else’s cubicle. These interactions do not exist for remote workers, or they occur very rarely in hybrid teams. But that does not mean communication must be compromised.
Encourage your employees to contact you or their colleagues if they have any questions, want ideas to be discussed, or just want to chat.
3. Select the right communication tools
It’s important to choose the best communication platforms and tools in order to promote constructive communication. This can be the difference between having a remote culture which succeeds or not. Slack allows users to create channels based on their interests, projects and teams. They can also reply more personally to conversations.
4. Regularly meet employees
Officevibe data shows that 70% of employees want to spend more time with managers. By meeting with employees individually through regular one-on-ones, you can easily satisfy this common employee need. Prepare talking points and use video calls when possible.
Notice a dip in engagement? Dig deeper in your next one-on-one with this employee engagement meeting template.
5. Use best practices for virtual meetings
Meetings can also be held at home. The key to keeping them engaging and effective is to follow remote meeting best practices, like setting manageable time limits, recording the meeting, and sharing a recap.
6. Social activities are very important.
Add some fun and lighthearted social activities in order to boost remote employee involvement. Virtual activities are often overlooked but they can be an excellent way to build rapport and understand remote employees.
You can spice up virtual events by having team members run a session based upon their interests. Wine enthusiasts can plan a class; foodies can teach a cooking lesson; and gamers can plan a gaming night online.
Need more inspiration? Many employee engagement activities can be adapted for a remote environment using video conferencing platforms and break-out rooms.
7. Collaboration is key
When you have a team that is remote, the risk of silos is higher. This can cause employees to become frustrated and disengaged. To combat this, encourage collaboration among your employees. You can do this by creating interdepartmental sprints or teams based on different skills required to complete a project.
You can also structure collaboration between remote employees by implementing a responsibility assignment framework, like the RACI chart. This framework divides tasks between responsible, accountable parties as well as consultees and informed parties. It helps everyone to stay organized.
8. Create a feedback Loop
Another way to keep remote employees engaged is to add mechanisms, like an employee feedback loop, to facilitate continuous improvement. To maximize employee feedback it is important that it be two-sided. Giving your employees the opportunity to voice their opinions about their employee experience will help them perform better and guide managers in the right direction.
9. Feel valued by employees
In our latest data report, The state of the employee experience, Officevibe found that the two engagement metrics with the strongest correlation are recognition frequency and happiness at work. It’s no surprise that valuing your employees can increase engagement.
The data also revealed 72% of employees received praise less than once per week and that one in four employees claimed their organization did not recognize employee learning. A culture that values praise can improve the workplace. Making it genuine, regular, and personal are a few ways to increase recognition in the workplace.
10. Facilitate seamless employee onboarding
Why not make the onboarding process as simple and enjoyable as you can? The first few weeks following a new hire are crucial. It’s important to set up introduction calls, create a training package, and establish accounts with your IT Department. During this time, an onboarding tool like Softstart can keep things tidy for managers and employees alike.
In the months to come, it is important to ensure that new employees have all the tools and resources they need to perform.