COVID-19: Expert Tips for Managing Employees Who Work from Home

Whether you have always had employees who work from home , or whether this is the new system put in place due to the COVID-19 outbreak, t...

Whether you have always had employees who work from home, or whether this is the new system put in place due to the COVID-19 outbreak, there will be certain issues that come up time and again that you, as an employer, need to manage. In order to make this way of working feel seamless and to keep everyone as productive and happy as possible, you need to be aware of what might be causing problems, and ensure you have the right solutions in place. Read on to find out more about what issues might arise and how to cope with them.

Expert Tips for Managing Employees Who Work from Home

1. Establish Daily Check-Ins

Although your employees may well be able to get their work done without supervision – after all, that’s what remote working really needs to be about – it is a good idea to establish a daily check-in. You can set up a regular time to chat with your employees, either individually or as a group. Not only is this a useful way to stay connected, but you can also make sure your employee health and wellbeing is still good. Sometimes, working remotely can be isolating and lonely, and if this is the case, it needs to be dealt with quickly.

Making these calls (either phone calls or video chats) a regular occurrence means that there will be some structure in your employee’s daily routine, something that can help a lot when working from home.

2. Give Options

Every member of staff will have a different set up at home. Unless you provide everyone’s equipment for them – which is possible but potentially expensive –there will be different kinds of equipment, different working areas, and different distractions that can cause people to find working from home difficult.

Be aware of what these different options might be and try to ensure that your employees have choices. For example, make sure you have programs that can be used on both a PC and a Mac. Understand that there will be distractions at home – particularly if the schools are out – and don’t expect everyone to be working to the same routine. Some will want to work in the mornings and evenings; others will be able to work all day. In reality, when working from home, it is often best to give deadlines but not to structure the working day – that should be down to the individual, as they know how they work best.

3. Create Rules

Although it’s good to be flexible when it comes to remote working, it is also useful to have some rules in place to ensure that everyone continues to be productive and a useful member of the team.

Having rules is not only good for managers and employers, but it’s also good for employees too. It allows for routines to be set and for people to know what they are meant to be doing, which will help them to be more productive and happier to work from home.

Make sure that these rules are not going to be difficult to follow, and that they don’t restrict people too much – the happier and more in control your employees feel, the better the work they will produce.