Plek blog

Here's how to engage remote employees

At many companies, social connection grows automatically, through daily lunches or birthdays in the workplace, for example. Now that everyone works from home because of coronas safety measures, that means you have to look at how to keep employees motivated and satisfied in a different way. But, how do you start with this? We list some possible solutions for you.
 
Communicate clearly
 
In any crisis, it is important to keep your employees informed, especially in the uncertain times we live in now. Working from home creates a new way of working, so experiment and see what works. At Plek, we always do a team update on Mondays and Thursdays, but a stand-up session is a bit harder to do in an online call. Hence, Monday is now used for announcements from the MT and Thursday is for anyone who has something interesting to say. Don't be afraid to try things out and ask for feedback on what works or doesn't work for people.
 
Trust your employees
 
New ways of working have a habituation period - trust your employees that they will eventually regain their normal productivity. The change to working from home has been very sudden for many people, so they do not yet have a suitable place in the home where they can work with good focus. In addition, many employees are dealing with a family that is also sitting at home, so it takes some time for everyone to get their routines again. Accept that everyone now has more frequent off days, allow your employees the freedom to plan their own day. That way they have time during the day to do something fun with their children or go for a walk. Give your employees that time and offer them help when needed.
 
Zorg voor een goede digitale thuiswerkplek
 

Where you would normally walk by a colleague in the office, you will now have to contact them via email or chat. The more comprehensive your online platform is, the better the communication will be. The Plek work environment offers both one-on-one chat and groups in which to chat. This way, you can share your question with the entire marketing department, for example, but also with just the digital marketer. Not everyone will understand this equally well in the beginning, which is why you need to make sure to monitor these processes. For example, have your communications department actively ask questions and respond to answers, that way you encourage employees to participate as well. 

For some companies, working from home is a new thing, but it is quite possible that colleagues will want to work from home more often in the future. Use this time to prepare for the future. Make sure everyone is familiar with the new programs and adjust work activities to digital working.

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