As per a survey conducted by McKinsey, it has been found that 83% of employees cite the ability to work more efficiently and productively as a primary benefit of working remotely. However, the greatest fear of most of the leaders and managers is productivity. They feel if a team is set at remote work model, then it might affect productivity.
The question comes, why is every company after productivity? Because it allows us to meet goals with high quality work within the specified time frame while contributing to the company’s success.
Now, when we have discussed why productivity is important to organization, the next question arises is how to improve remote team productivity?
The Challenges:
Remote work culture became prominent with the onset of pandemic. This was a new work model for many companies as they were not aware of what to do and what not to do. While setting strategies to improve remote team productivity few challenges were felt which persist. Let us understand what type of challenges are faced while working remotely.
- Communication Barrier: The challenge that ranks on top is the communication barrier. Usually, it is a technical issue like technical issues or distractions. Apart from this, cultural diversity, time zone differences and language become a huge challenge for employees’ leading to communication barrier.
- Isolation and Disconnection: Employees feel isolated because they miss social interaction. They also lack the immediate support that they used to get when they were present in the physical office. This creates a gap between the company and an employee, and they feel less connected and motivated.
- Distraction Risks: Working remotely provides comfort but brings distraction factors in the picture too. During working hours too much noise at home or any other deliverables that are to be made creates botheration. There is a high possibility that usage of phone increases, followed by other digital distractions. These distractions lead to an impact on productivity and to overcome this comfortable work environment is required.
The remote work model brings along challenges but to combat them strategies to improve remote team productivity are required. Let us move further by understanding the strategies to improve remote team productivity.
- Foster Clear Communication: A team is highly productive if the communication within the team is clear. To set strategies to improve remote team productivity the foremost task is to inculcate a clear communication habit. The manager or the leaders need to take initiative by doing regular check-in and keeping a tab whether all your employees are feeling fine or not. There are many communication tools like slack and Microsoft teams that are heavily used for correspondence. These tools allow teams to work effectively and efficiently, trying to use them as much as possible will bridge the communication gap.
- Set Clear Goals and Expectations: Most of the organizations are using SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timebound) criteria today, especially if working remotely. To set goals it is required that we specify what is exactly required at the end and what needs to be done to achieve it. The task that is assigned should be measurable as well, it is essential to figure out what works best for the whole team to reach the target. Guidelines should be set to accomplish the tasks, but it is required to assess the potential of the team. Set clear deadlines and make sure that the team finds everything interlinked and relevant. See that everyone is clear and knows what specific task they need to do and plan virtual meetings often for regular feedback.
- Scale-Up Technology: When talking about strategies to improve remote team productivity, introducing tools to allow the team to ease the workload. There are certain apps like Asana, Trello and Monday.com where progress and deadlines of the project can be tracked. Similarly, apps like Todoist and Rescue Time are there for time management and increased productivity. Organizations need to see that they provide suffice tools and system setups to enable the employees to work efficiently.
- Work-Life Balance: Setting strategies to improve remote team productivity includes a balanced work-life too. The major reason for the decline in productivity is observed due to blurred boundaries between personal and professional life which leads to burnout. A huge responsibility comes over the organization to check that their employees are mentally healthy. Offering flexibility by asking employees what the most suitable time is when they can be most productive is a benefit for the company as well as the employee. Providing them with mental health resources like podcasts, blogs, apps will allow them to stay mentally relaxed. Plan for webinars with experts where they can understand the importance of mental health. Apart from sick leave, a provision of mental health day off will allow them to come back to work more focused and motivated.
- Build a Strong Team: To narrow the gap that is created among the team members due to remote work, planning for virtual activities will help. Parallel to this, celebrating small milestones achieved by the team is required to be celebrated. Some practices should be incorporated so that no one feels alienated and finds themselves an integral part of the system.
Conclusion: Remote work culture is a blessing for companies as well as employees if it can be managed with a strategy. Squeezing too tightly will kill the prominent benefit of remote work. Maintaining transparency and focusing on performance over presence will allow team members to work with flexibility. Reducing micromanagement and shifting mindset from being boss to leader will help to build a strong team.
