Many people assume working from home halts productivity and company morale. However, when done correctly, a remote environment can promote a healthy workplace. It’s important to understand that your team relies on you to guide them when they work remotely. Let’s explore the five ways managers can help employees improve WFH efficiency.
Focus On Mental Health
Although employees are mostly accustomed to a WFH workplace, they may still be struggling with staying on top of their responsibilities at work.
Oftentimes, remote work can instill loneliness and isolation due to the natural state of working from home. Not many employees get to work at home with their significant others, so they may be home alone for eight hours a day.
As a manager, you can help your employees feel more in-tune with their work by focusing on their mental health. This means checking in on them on how they’re feeling rather than how they’re progressing on a task.
When you show them that you genuinely care, they feel more valued and a part of the team. As a result, this increases their efficiency and the efficiency of the entire team.
Set Clear Expectations
Although the physical workplace has changed, that shouldn’t mean an employee’s quotas or goals have changed. It’s important to make this clear to your team while remaining understanding of their workload.
Set clear expectations, help them put a plan of action in place, and remind them you’re here to support them. This will profoundly impact their WFH efficiency; when a team member knows their manager is in their corner, they feel empowered to keep going.
Help Them Set Up a Home Office
Help your team set up a more efficient home office. This could include purchasing a standing desk for them or even little things that encourage productivity like giving them calendars and agendas. You may need to adjust your company budget to do this, but it’ll be worth it.
When you help set up your employee’s home office, you’re setting them up for success.
Perform Mid-Month Check-Ins
As tempting as it may be to check in with them daily or weekly and ask about their progress, do not do this. It may put additional pressure on them.
Instead, a great way to ensure they’re on their way to meet the goals you established is by performing a mid-month check-in. This can help you assess how well they’ve stayed on top of their work and course-correct if they need to hit their numbers at the end of the month.
Install Time Tracking Software
In a remote work environment, you can’t physically check in on your employee to see how their project is coming along and how long they’ve spent on it. With a remote employee time clock, you can not only streamline workflow, but you can also pay them accurately for their time.
Digital timesheets help them stay accountable and on top of their work. They also prevent burnout and decreased production. Be sure to communicate with your employees about how a remote time clock will positively affect their productivity.
Follow these five ways managers can help employees improve WFH efficiency to ensure your business is on a successful path. When you support your employees, they support you back.
