You’ve probably been doing it for more than a year now because of COVID-19. Maybe you’ve even decided to let your employees continue working from home after the restrictions have been lifted. But regardless of the reason, keeping team morale up while all, or some, of them are working remotely, can be tough.
Of course, there are many functions in your restoration business that require in-person or on-the-job interactions. (Remember, you have to inspect what you expect. And that means showing up to review work). But other roles, like estimating new projects for example, may not require your employees to go back to the office.
Many employees enjoy the flexibility of working from home. And businesses across the country are planning to return to work in a hybrid model, if at all. Their employees might only be in the office a few days each week.
So, how can you keep your employees engaged and productive? How can you keep team morale up, while working remotely?
Stay Connected
Check in. That’s the easiest thing you can do to build a positive culture around a remote team. And do it regularly.
Check in with your staff, and check in often. This goes for their work, but also their personal life.
Working remotely can be lonely. Many employees who have been forced to work from home during the global pandemic feel isolated. They miss the social interaction of going into an office and seeing their coworkers every day.
So, if your business is still in that stage of reopening, or even if it’s a choice to work remotely, make sure to stay connected with your people. Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone and see how everyone is doing.
Embrace Technology
Make meeting virtually as easy as you can. Encourage your team to collaborate through platforms like Teams or Slack, which make it simple to stay connected.
Make sure everyone has the tools they need to be successful. It’s different for everyone, but sometimes that means a monitor, or a webcam.
The power of seeing each other on a video call is undeniable. It can be an instant boost to team morale, just to be able to get that face-to-face interaction again.
Set Boundaries
Respect working hours. It can be easy to assume that your employees are available because everyone is within walking distance of their computer and new remote “office”.
But expecting your employees to be plugged in and ready to respond to emails at all hours of the day, is a sure way to lead to burn out. It’s not healthy, and it’s not productive in the long run.
Many businesses have struggled to adjust to working remotely over the last year. If you need help adapting to this new working environment, and want to learn how your business can thrive, don’t hesitate to contact us. Set up a free 30-minute consultation with The Restoration Entrepreneur today!