The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a shift to remote work around the world. People once had dreams of being able to work from home that are now realized. For those running a business, this means there has to be a change in management styles. A number of industries have seen productivity increase during remote work which employers were surprised to see. Employees around the world made the adjustment to remote work more quickly than experts anticipated. Take a proactive approach to managing your employees during this time as being passive can lead to drops in productivity. The following are tips to manage your employees now that they are all remote.
Regular Zoom Meetings
The meetings that you have during the week should be clear in terms of agenda. You do not want to waste time with certain meetings that can be handled by sending a detailed email. The email will likely take a few minutes while a meeting with 10 employees can take hours of their time combined. Zoom meetings will also allow you to let employees tell everyone what they are working on. Kudos being given during this time can help keep motivation high especially during tough weeks where deadlines need to be hit.
There should also be meetings that are a bit of fun at the end of the week. Sending pizzas to your employees for a virtual pizza party can be something that lifts company morale. Employees likely miss their friends in the office and this can be a perfect place to interact without talking about work.
An Efficient Project Management System
The right project management system like that of TeamWork or Asana can be immensely helpful. Your employees will know what they have to do as soon as they start working. Being able to prioritize tasks is important as you will not be able to directly tell them. These platforms are great for communication as it will all be stored in an easy to find place. The best part of these platforms is that you can track what is behind schedule. Being able to allocate more employees to a specific task to hit a deadline can allow your business to keep clients happy.
A Home Office Will Allow You To Manage More Efficiently
Veteran remote workers understand that you will need a dedicated place to work. For the owner of a business, this is essential as you likely have quite a few things to juggle during the day. You cannot be on a client call only to have a screaming child enter the area that you are in. Monster series sheds can act as a great home office without impacting the livable space in your home. Being able to work uninterrupted can allow you to spend more time with your family without distraction than if you work inside of the home.
Managing your business with all remote employees will present a different challenge than in the past. Take time to adjust and try some new management techniques.