A well-developed large organization has many branches scattered in a different location. In such cases, the employees are working away from the direct supervision of the head managers. The managers are not able to assist and guide the employees directly which often lead to miscommunications and delay in work. Also, if we look at the current scenario, this has led the employees to work away from the supervisor or the manager. Working away from the managers is a huge task and involves many difficulties and hurdles in the way. Although the managers and employees are connected over the calls, messages, emails and video conferences, still there are some chances of communication gap.
Many employees and managers may sense of feeling of frustration because the goals and the objectives to be achieved does not match. They work for different aspects which lead to issues and conflicts. So to make sure everything is clear, defined and streamlined, clearing of the goals and objectives is very much important. Here the managers need to be patient and friendly to some extent so that the employee does not feel burdened and stressed. Always try to create a healthy and happy environment to get productive results. Motivating them and clearing the goals specifically is very much important for the managers. At the same time, it is important for the employees to be responsive and dedicated to their targets. To achieve a common goal, it is important for them to work all together and disburse the high-stress environment. This will help the remote workers to perform and give the desired productive results.
Following are some of the points which will help the managers to effectively manage the employees remotely:
- Set expectations early and often- When starting with the project and allotting the duties as per the capabilities of the managers, it is important for them to clearly define the expectations in the very beginning. This will help the employees to know what their managers are looking from them. This will help the employees to create their own mindset and they will start working on it from the beginning. But make sure that the managers are allotting the duties to those who are actually capable of doing.
- Be organized and flexible- A concrete plan is a must but when working with the remote employees, the managers need to be bit flexible. He/she should give flexible hours to an extent to the employees as sometimes one can face lots of difficulties in understanding the task. But this does not mean that the employees have the freedom to work according to his/her comfort.
- Avoid lengthy meetings- Lengthy meeting can create boredom and stress. When lots of things are discussed in a single meeting, this will put pressure on the employees. So better is to have small virtual talks and allotting them task step-by-step.
- Track your worker’s progress- As a manager, it is important for one to pay attention to the employees working chart. Looking at one’s performance and speed is very important. Also, take notice that whether the performance graph is going upward or downward. Appreciate them if they are performing well and ask them the reason if they are not doing well. Help them if they are facing any kind of problem in understanding their duties or related things. It is important to calmly deal with them as you aren’t aware of their personal reasons.
- Emphasize communication- It is important for the managers to be in direct contact with the employees. Regular communication will induce them to follow their work schedules and meet their deadlines. As a manager, keep asking them about their status and ask them if they are facing any problem. This will put a little stress on them which is necessary for the completion of the assigned tasks. For effective communication, the managers can directly ask the employees how they want to be managed while working remotely. This will make them feel valued and worthy.
- Do not forget to listen- Listening to your employee’s queries and reasons for delay submissions is important. To create a healthy and productive environment the managers should listen to them and try to solve their problems, if in their hands. An efficient manager is one who listens, communicates, inquires about workload and is responsive. Listen to them and don’t always say their reasons an excuse. Try to understand their point of view and try to resolve it.
- Be available and connect with them- Many workers or employees feel out of the way and confused in this new work reality. Do not burden them with the workload and make them feel like machines. It is important for the manager to be available to solve their problems and take their feedback for improvement. Try to build a connection with your work team as this has always helped in creating a positive and trustworthy environment. Make your employees believe that they can count on you and talk to you anytime they want.
- Share achievements- When an employee perform well or achieve any target, the manager should share it with the whole team at the end of the meeting or in the group chat. This will motivate them to do well and motivate other employees as well. This will create a push effect for the employees to outshine in the team.
So above are some of the points through which the managers can handle a team of remote workers effectively. Creating a trustworthy environment will make them achieve their deadlines on time. Also, a manager who communicates clearly and specifically clear the goals and job of the employee will help them to do well.
Also, measuring their performance is important so here ‘Mettl’ can help the managers to do remote work assessment, identify the potential employee and build a virtual assessment center with the help of the technology. ‘Mettl’ understands that managing remote workers can be tough so it helps the managers to create a virtual workplace that mimics the in-office experience. It also provides the best psychometric tests for recruitment to select the best employees to work remotely.
