Employee engagement has historically been the most effective method of creating great employee experience , which in turn has been instrumental in architecting a positive work environment, that impacts the organizational culture. Thus the importance of engaging employees in more ways than just ‘performance laurels’, cannot be denied or refuted. During times of remote working, a key factor that has impacted a whole lot of the work force, has been social isolation. While a lot of studies and research initially indicated that productivity got enhanced in work from home employees, with passing time the myth gradually started getting busted. What came to light was that the social isolation had become a bigger cause of concern - especially within the younger work force - than a boon to be able to work from the comfort of home.

While working remotely has its fair share of benefits, like saving time and money on commutes and encouraging better work-life balance, it also has some downsides. Because they’re not in the office with their team, remote workers often feel less engaged and connected to their company, which can hurt productivity and performance.

Having pronounced the importance of employee engagement in a remote working environment, it is important to mention that it is easier said than done. Here are a few evident roadblocks:

Employee Communication

Communication is a major challenge when it comes to remote teams. Lack of effective communication makes it difficult to get everyone on the same page. 

Building Relationships

An employee’s ability to build bonds takes a back seat in a virtual environment which becomes a barrier to effective teamwork.

Unlocking tam creativity

Missing the synergy which face-to-face interactions bring, chances are that the team may require an additional effort to unlock their creativity.  

Lack of Agility

Working remotely may slow down the process of collecting information and taking immediate measures. Alignment between the middle management and the executives tends to be low

Sense of Community

In the digital world, a sense of belongingness towards the Organization could lessen. 

Lack of Motivation

Physical separation may make employees unsure of whether their contributions are making an impact. They may also be dealing with unforeseen challenges on the personal front. 

The good news however is, that with emerging trends in the digital space, and adequate use of technology tools, a part of these challenges can be mitigated. It is important to be disciplined and systematic about the approach. Few of the approaches listed below might help garner the attention an employee desires or needs , to be able to make this remote working synergy successful.

Keep people updated

It’s essential to keep remote workforce updated in a frequently changing landscape to contain any uncertainty or anxiety they may be feeling. It needs to be a part of the business communication plan to share company news with people before announcing it publicly to give employees a chance to ask questions and provide feedback.

Help them feel a part of organizational culture

During changing times, its critical to have a relevant shift in the Vision, Mission and Values of the company. The next step would be to encourage remote and desk-less workers to feed into the company culture by means of systematic communication. It might need to put a stronger than usual emphasis on company values across communication platforms rather than relying on a subtle ‘feeling’ that tends only to work when everyone is in the same location. For example, start each weekly meeting focusing on one core value and ask people to describe how they’ve demonstrated it recently. And try to have ways of recognising or rewarding efforts, like small gifts or prizes.

Supportpersonal and professional well-being

Issues with well-being might not be so easy to spot virtually. Hence, it is important to look for cues that remote employees may be struggling with, and step in early to address the same. Clues that someone is experiencing ‘isolation fatigue’ include keeping their camera off, skipping meetings and calling in sick. Providing access to and funding for training can be an excellent way to support personal and professional well-being. And without their commute, people may now have some extra time to commit and engage with courses. Encourage employees to talk about their interests outside work, to show you value them as a person, and not just as a resource.

Encourage communication channels 

Encourage informal catch-ups between team members. For instance, virtual coffee breaks could be one option. Smaller groups are better for increasing intimacy and trust. For larger teams, it may be useful to have several coffee-break groups and rotate people weekly. For new team members, it can be helpful to allocate them a buddy.

Virtual fun activities to engage remote employees

Create planned activities and encourage informal activities between team members. For instance, some companies have regular quizzes, book clubs or karaoke nights. To boost engagement, allocate a budget for these moments of connection and encourage your remote employees to take turns deciding on themes. Give them autonomy on how they spend the budget.

Emerging times have rendered new perspective and the need of the hour is to acknowledge the same and step up for the change.