By Vadim Konovalov, InToSoft Founder
Telecommuting is now becoming something more than just a trend. Working from home today is a well-respected option for everybody who is looking a full-time - or even part-time job - from a home office. Actually, recent researches show that up to 4 million employees spend at least half of their time working from home which more than two and even one year ago.
Scientists say that telecommuting makes workers feel happier as they are grateful to their employers for the flexibility and that, in its turn, directly influences peer’s productivity.
However, with all these benefits remote workers still struggle with maintaining proper and strong relationships with its bosses and colleagues. Working from home sometimes presupposes a range of challenges such as miscommunication, disconnectedness and absence of team spirit. I’m glad to share with you five useful tips which will help you to establish strong working relationships with those employees working from home.
Do not keep “doing business” only
Many of us don't have enough time during the day so communicating via virtual means like e-mails, telephone calls and so on appears tempting. Though, keep in mind that a personal contact is vital to any relationships with the workers, otherwise, it may lead to a peer’s mistrust and disengagement.
PractiŃe emotional expression
Albert Mahrabian, author of “Silent Messages” book, says that words compose less than 10% of communication while the tone of voice and body language make 55% of it. That’s why make sure that your virtual messages deliver the tone you intended. Re-read them in different tones so you’ll see whether they can be misunderstood by your colleague and allow peers to use emoji and GIFS to show their real attitude towards this of that issue.
Hire the right people
While telecommuting proponents like the opportunity to work from home this option certainly doesn’t suit to everybody. Building strong and trustful relationships with a remote worker depends, first of all, on choosing the right person. If you’re in search of telecommuter pay high attention to personal characteristics not to professional only. Make sure that a candidate knows how to organize his working schedule and has solid communicational skills.
Stay available
Be very clear about your schedule so all the coworkers know when you’re around or not and how to keep in touch with you. It will show you as a good team member and keep you from disturbing or bothering in off hours. So share your schedule with all the involved coworkers, plan regular check-ins, virtual meetings and team-building calls.
Use remote working tools
One of the keys to maintaining proper relationships between employers and remote workers is to ensure that everyone uses software tools that simplify and make communication and collaboration comfortable. Telecommuters should have access to all the tools their office colleagues use as it’s vital for work morale and productivity.
We've found an effective way to create stable relationships with remote workers!
I often meet owners of the companies that deal with telecommuters and they always say that's it's a real challenge to make remote workers feel a part of the team, boost their engagement and motivation. And I with pleasure recommend them to cover this uneasy task by using our corporate app aimed at enhancing staff loyalty and engagement.
It definitely worth trying!
Conduct special surveys to know how do your remote colleagues feel, provide them with the possibility to get acquainted with in-office employees and remind them about upcoming corporate events they can attend.
All the interested I invite to try demo version of our How R U? app here.
Building strong and trustful relationships when you work with a remote employee does include some challenges and planning, but with the right attitude and tools, just a few small steps a day can help you create the same type of bond as if you worked right in front of each other.
About the author: Vadim Konovalov is the founder of InToSoft BV company that covers the full range of services from software development to QA and BA as well as promotes its own software products. Its key competences are .NET, PHP, Share Point, iOS/Android/Windows Phone/Xamarin Development.
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