Remote Work - How to Stay Connected When Working Remotely?

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected businesses in many different ways. While some businesses were negatively impacted, others remain unaffected due to the nature of work. The situation has them looking for new ways to go about their official operations while staying safe & productive. Their response to the Coronavirus chaos is remote work team collaboration, a brilliant way to stay connected while working from home.

Related: Remote Work Software That Can Ease Your Business In Lockdown

Connecting with your co-workers when you work remotely is a resourceful plan for many businesses these days, the idea is also experimental as to how things will proceed after quarantine ends. Regardless, the major issue to deal with here is team communication, productivity, and work arrangements. You might ask how to make remote team collaboration work. Well, that’s exactly what we are going to discuss today. Keep reading this guide to working remotely to learn more about this new norm.

Benefits Of Remote Work

According to Atlassian, in a normal situation, employees tend to be only 60% productive when working in an office environment. On the other hand, FlexJobs‘ 2018 survey states that more than 70% of the remote workers feel fewer interruptions and less stress and that they don’t have to put up with office politics. However, the benefits of remote work go beyond the measure of productivity.

Remote work, or work from home, gives a better sense of work-life balance too, resulting in a generally happier mood. Other major benefits of remote work team collaboration include savings on transport costs and the choice of working in a desirable environment. Additionally, exploring affordable meal deals can make remote work not only productive but also budget-friendly. Sites offering discounted meal kits can transform daily meals into delightful experiences without financial stress.

Surprisingly, even though there’s universal agreement on the benefits of working from home, it has never been part of the employment policy. Global Workplace Analytics reports that the ideal situation is a hybrid model – an arrangement where employees get to visit the office some days of a week and have the flexibility to work from home as well.

How to Make Remote Team Collaboration Work?

Remote work team collaboration is not always as easy, but it is something most of us can manage. For starters, the focus should be on bridging the communication gap among remote employees. This can be achieved through mentoring software that can help in regular communication between mentors and mentees, enhancing the new remote employees' experience.. Remote workers often have to do a lot to make sure they do not miss important company announcements. Next, they also have to face the anxiety of a lack of proper support from the office.

Moreover, not only are they responsible for how they manage time, but also for prioritizing the tasks. Meanwhile, rewarding prizes to the most successful and hard-working employees, this selection of thank-you gifts will help you to find the best gifts to cheer up your remote employees. However, considering the following tips might help everyone on the team, especially remote employees:

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Your Home Is Also Your Office:

Staying at home means that you have to make room for your office as well. You are your manager there and you have to monitor yourself so that you stay productive. Set up a small quiet space somewhere in your house, where you can sit comfortably and work without interruptions. Be sure to take regular breaks too to increase productivity.

Additionally, for those striving to keep a balance between work-life and fulfilling nutritious meal needs while working remotely, exploring flexible home cook recipes can seamlessly integrate healthy eating into your daily routine. Bring the joy of cooking back with easy-to-follow recipes that fit perfectly around your work-from-home schedule.

Avoid procrastination

We all do it, and there is nothing wrong with that. Then again, too much of anything can be counterproductive and we need to keep it under control. Since you are the manager of your remote work routine, you should avoid daydreaming, zoning out, and wandering off into the wild world of the Internet. Consider installing time management apps such as “Beeminder” and "Bato"—life to make sure that you stay focused. 

Enhance Security in Remote Work

Security is a crucial factor in remote team collaboration. To ensure sensitive data and communications remain protected, teams should adopt secure tools like VPNs. For example, ExpressVPN Chrome offers an effective solution to encrypt online activity and safeguard remote work interactions. By prioritizing security, teams can focus on collaboration without worrying about potential vulnerabilities.

How To Manage Remote Teams?

Managing employees at the office is challenging enough and doing the same remotely is a separate story. You might need to invest in employee training, and wellness programs, as well as use employee engagement software to facilitate remote employee management effectively. Keeping track of all employees can indeed be difficult, especially when implementing remote work team collaboration. Then again, it is not impossible either. Here are a few tips that can enhance connectivity while working remotely.

Ensure Objective Clarity

Time differences and flexible working hours might seem challenging but it gets easier if your team knows what they have to do. Make sure the team is on the same page when it comes to the project’s timeline and that everyone is clear about their priorities. 

Provide regular feedback, Employee feedback tools are essential for fostering two-sided communication, positive and negative. Make sure that the feedback explains the reasons in detail. It is simply not enough to tell someone “it’s good” or otherwise. A detailed explanation will give them clarity about your expectations of them and how they can improve if they are lacking.

Set Boundaries In Remote Work

An uncontrolled remote work is like an overflowing kettle. Therefore, try to figure out a schedule that you and your team are comfortable with and follow it religiously. This will not only protect everyone from pinging each other at odd times but also teach everyone to value others’ time.

Trust Project Management

One part of managing teams and projects is to trust your team. The right balance is needed here. Be present all the time and also give everyone their space. Yes, keeping track of the team’s progress is crucial, but letting them work on it is necessary as well. You can consider finding a virtual assistant to manage the work better and keep track of all the work processes, as a virtual assistant will help with all the logistic work and planning.

Consider Remote Work Team Collaboration

Find time to organize a weekly hangout session, which would be similar to quick standup meetings. Here, everyone can update managers on work progress and briefly describe any blockers too. 

However, you can have an organization-wide Zoom virtual conference as well. Incorporate brief demos and presentations, this will help raise employee awareness towards each others’ work and create a sense of what the organization is aiming for.

Remember – Managers Are Mentors too

Managers should take their managing skills up a notch amid working remotely. They should assist employees as much as possible. They should focus on task delivery and align everyone’s contribution too. They should consider recognizing employees' hard work; there are 15 thoughtful employee recognition ideas worth checking out to engage your team.

The more receptive you (managers) are to your team members, the smoother office operations will be. Aim to foster positive relationships and build trust with team members. This will ultimately raise performance, regardless of the work location. 

Struggling to run your company’s daily state of affairs during the COVID-19 pandemic, get in touch with InvoZone. The Canadian software development company will guide you on how to face the challenges amid the crisis and also develop custom software to meet your specific needs.