How to Engage Remote Employees
More workers than ever before are working remotely. According to this report by the Office of National Statistics , nearly 40% of the UK workforce is working from home at least some of the time, and that figure is only likely to grow in the years to come.
It’s pretty easy to see why remote working is on the rise, particularly since the pandemic - many of us have become used to this “new norm”. If remote working is possible (and we understand it’s not suitable for all business types or roles) it provides an arrangement that benefits both businesses and employees, with worker happiness and productivity both reportedly higher among remote workers than in-office employees.
Still, though remote working initiatives offer clear advantages, they’re not perfect. They come with their own challenges that must be proactively addressed by management and HR teams.
For instance, how to keep remote employees engaged. Employee engagement, a common issue even in the office, becomes even more challenging when dealing with physically distant employees.
The good news for leaders wondering how to increase employee engagement remotely is that it’s very much an achievable aspiration. In this post, we’ll run through a bunch of practical tips on how to engage employees working remotely and outline exactly why it’s worth your time to do so.
What Is Employee Engagement and Why Does It Matter?
Employee engagement can be thought of simply as how much the employees care. That can be pretty hard to quantify, but you tend to know it when you see it — and especially when you don’t see it. But why is employee engagement important?
An engaged employee cares about the business, cares about their role and believes in the ethos and ambitions of the brand. Engaged employees tend to be more motivated and it’s easier for them to buy into the shared goals and objectives of management and the wider business. Even when it may not be directly related to their own role.
Disengaged employees are more likely to view their jobs as simply a pay-cheque . Studies have repeatedly shown that employee engagement can have a huge impact on a wide variety of performance metrics. One study conducted by Gallup found that strong employee engagement positively influenced:
● Productivity
● Absence
● Safety incidents
● Employee wellbeing
● Customer loyalty
And we could go on. Ultimately, working to improve employee engagement — for both onsite and remote workers — can have a tangible impact on the organisation, most notably on the balance sheet; Another study from Gallup found that highly engaged workforces lead to a 23% difference in profitability.
The bottom line is that learning how to engage remote employees as a leader is not an empty exercise. It makes a difference, helping to foster a host of positive outcomes that can be transformative for an organisation.
And we could go on. Ultimately, working to improve employee engagement — for both onsite and remote workers — can have a tangible impact on the organisation, most notably on the balance sheet; Another study from Gallup found that highly engaged workforces lead to a 23% difference in profitability.
The bottom line is that learning how to engage remote employees as a leader is not an empty exercise. It makes a difference, helping to foster a host of positive outcomes that can be transformative for an organisation.
How Does Remote Working Affect Employee Engagement?
OK, so that’s all the good stuff that can come from having an engaged workforce. The problem is that many workers are not engaged and once that happens, organisations can begin to suffer from the inside. It’s not an exaggeration to say that having an engaged workforce can be the difference between long-term success and failure, given how influential it often turns out to be. Employee engagement is a worldwide issue, but it’s especially common in the UK. In the 2023 State of the Global Workplace report, the UK was found to have the least engaged workforce in Europe, with a staggering 90% of workers reporting feelings of disengagement.
While these findings refer to workers in all locations, engagement issues are more prevalent among remote workers.
The Challenges of Engaging Remote Employees
We’re not going to say it’s easy to engage in-office employees, but it’s certainly easier. It’s just more straightforward to ensure team members feel included when they’re in the same physical space.
Things become more challenging when dealing with remote employees, especially if they’re fully remote and never step foot in the office. It’s not uncommon for such employees to feel excluded from the rest of the organisation for the simple reason that they don’t have in-person conversations with their colleagues and often don’t receive the same updates and progress reports as in-office employees. Furthermore, remote workers are more likely to have a less distinct divide between their personal and professional lives, resulting in an unhealthy work-life balance that increases the risk of burnout.
As a result, companies should take a proactive approach to remote employee engagement, introducing policies and methods that help to bring remote workers into the fold.
How To Engage Remote Employees
We’ve already seen that having an engaged workforce can make all the difference. Alas, we’ve also seen that engaging workers can be challenging, especially remote workers who can feel physically and culturally distant from the rest of the organisation.
The good news is that by understanding how to keep employees engaged remotely, leaders can turn the tide and start reaping all those benefits that come from having a team where everyone is pulling in the same direction.
In the rest of the article, we’ll outline some effective tactics for doing just that. If you were wondering how to keep remote employees engaged, wonder no more — we’ve got you covered.
Building a Strong Remote Work Culture
A positive remote work culture can have a galvanising impact on a business. It helps to elevate the good times and makes the difficult periods easier to manage. Organisations that have a strong working culture routinely outperform weaker businesses on virtually every metric that counts.
Businesses must take a forward-thinking approach to creating a sense of belonging among remote workers. Failure to instil a unified company culture results in each individual remote worker developing their own culture, resulting in a sense of disparity and isolation.
The simple act of making an effort to ensure each and every remote worker feels included will go a long way. Getting together virtually for a tea break or organising a games night are examples of positive steps leaders can take.
Solidifying the company’s culture and actively communicating the ethos to workers can also help. Remember that it’s not just what the organisation says that counts, but how it acts. Endeavour to live by the positive attributes of your culture and remote workers will be more likely to buy into it themselves.
Effective Communication Strategies
When it comes to remote workers, it’s better to err on the side of overcommunication than under-communication. It can help to make up some of the gap left by the lack of what we used to call ‘water cooler’ chat that in-office employees routinely enjoy. In doing so, you’ll be strengthening and continually reinforcing the connection between the company and employee.
When we say over-communicate, we really mean it. Sending a Slack or Teams chat message with a quick question can feel like you’re bothering a colleague, but that’ll rarely be the case — the employee wants to engage. Send a message!
You can help foster communication across the remote workforce by implementing the right communication tools and platforms, which will allow workers to communicate regardless of where they’re based. There’s no one-size-fits-all communication platform that’s right for all organisations. Your needs are unique and your solutions should be too. Some businesses will find that a daily group video check-in is best; for others, a group Slack or Teams channel will suffice. Speak to remote workers directly and see what kind of communication strategy will work for them.
Note that it is possible to go overboard when figuring out how to keep your remote employees engaged. Regular communication is key but be mindful of overloading remote workers with pointless meetings.
Setting Clear Expectations with Remote Workers
Some leaders seek to micromanage their remote workers. But that’s the opposite of engagement. By taking autonomy of their work away from the employee, micromanagement serves as a fast track towards disenfranchisement and quiet quitting.
Instead, managers should set clear expectations for remote workers and then essentially allow them to get on with the work. Employees feel empowered when they know exactly what’s expected of them and what they should be aiming to achieve, especially when they’re free to organise their working structure. It’s simply easier to stay focused when you know the success or failure of the outcome is in your hands.
If you don’t already have Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) or Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for your remote workers, then that’s something that you can get started with. It’s best to create goals, coming up with objectives that are achievable yet challenging.
Why is it important to set clear expectations for remote employees?
Setting clear expectations for remote employees is crucial for several reasons. Firstly, clear expectations help remote employees understand their roles and responsibilities, which directly impacts their productivity and accountability. When employees know exactly what is expected of them, they can prioritise their tasks effectively and focus on achieving their objectives without ambiguity.
Along with setting these expectations, by setting measurable goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) you’re ensuring that everyone is aligned with the company’s objectives. This alignment fosters a sense of purpose and direction, motivating employees to work towards common goals. Measurable goals also provide a clear benchmark for success, making it easier to track progress and provide constructive feedback.
By having clear expectations set in place, in a formal fashion, it will help in minimising misunderstandings and miscommunications. This improves communications for both parties. The employer, and employee. In a remote work environment, where face-to-face interactions are limited, having well-defined expectations reduces the risk of tasks being overlooked or not completed as intended. This clarity can prevent frustration and ensure smoother workflow and collaboration.
When expectations are transparent, remote employees can manage their time and workload more effectively. They are better equipped to balance their professional and personal responsibilities, which contributes to a healthier work-life balance and reduces stress.Setting clear expectations enhances trust and confidence between managers and remote employees. When employees know what is expected and feel they have the necessary support and resources to meet those expectations, they are more likely to feel valued and engaged. This trust is vital for building a cohesive and motivated remote team.
Providing Support and Resources
Team members can quickly become disengaged if they begin to feel like just another cog in the company’s machine. As such, it’s imperative that managers treat all remote workers as individuals. Everyone has different needs and what works for one may not be suitable for the next.
Providing the necessary support and resources for employees requires consideration and communication. For instance, it may be a matter of simply asking the remote worker directly what they need in order to feel supported in their role. They may require additional tools, software, or training in order to reach their full potential.
By actively asking remote workers what they need, you’ll be doing more than just providing the logistical framework that allows the employee to excel. You’ll also be showing that you have a vested interest in their well-being and professional success. That kind of one-to-one connection can be invaluable in making remote employees feel a sense of belonging within an organisation. There are practical advantages too. Remote workers often lack the level of equipment that in-office workers possess. By providing a budget for technology or home office infrastructure, businesses can benefit from improved output.
Recognising and Rewarding Remote Employees
Workers enjoy working from home in part because of the relative anonymity that it provides. When you’re just working from your home office, there’s no need to get dressed up, engage in small talk, or be in overall “presentable to the public” mode.
However, even though creating your own atmosphere is part of the appeal of working from home, it’s not as if workers want to be completely isolated. This is especially true when they’ve produced good work. At those points, a metaphorical pat on the back will always be welcome.
It’s easy to find opportunities to congratulate people when they’re working in the office. Those moments will naturally present themselves. There’ll be fewer — if any — natural opportunities to congratulate remote workers. However, it’s just as important to do so. If you’re looking for how to engage your employees remotely, then look at prioritising recognition and rewards. Being recognised by management for great work can show remote workers that they’re not just pushing a metaphorical rock up a hill; their work is seen and appreciated.
In addition to publicly praising employees’ work, look at providing well-performing remote workers with tokens of gratitude. Sending gift baskets, and other goodies is a surefire way to make your employees feel good.
Promoting Work-Life Balance
If you read articles on how to engage remote employees during the coronavirus pandemic, you’ll have noticed that prioritising work-life balance was rarely included. It was only after the fact, when increasing numbers of remote workers began reporting burnout, that the importance of healthy work-life balance became apparent.
Remote workers are more susceptible to burnout because there is less of a division between their working hours and leisure time. They tend to blend into one. And while the thought of having remote workers work long hours might sound appealing, the resulting stress, sick days, and time off work can harm the organisation in the long run. Plus, it just shows a disregard for the employees’ well-being, which will quickly translate into an unengaged workforce.
If you’re looking for ways on how to engage your employees remotely, then consider putting their needs first. Encouraging set finish times, avoiding sending emails in the evening and providing a wellness budget can all help push remote employees towards a well-balanced life.
Training and Development Opportunities
If you’ve hired correctly, then you should have a team of talented, ambitious remote employees. And they’re exactly the kinds of people who can drive organisations forward.
But they can’t — in fact, won’t — do it all on their own. The best remote workers want to see that the organisation they’re working for is equally as focused and driven. You can keep your employees sharp and focused by providing employee development programmes and growth opportunities.
An employee is much more likely to be engaged if they feel that they’re working towards something and actively improving their professional capabilities. Creating a budget for remote employee development, such as for courses, talks and trade shows will allow your organisation to not only invest in your colleagues’ futures but also benefit from a workforce that is continually being upskilled.
It’s best to create employee development plans individually with each remote worker. Together, you can identify the areas that they want to strengthen and a method and timeline for doing so. More than anything, this will be an expression of confidence in the employee’s future, and that’ll ensure that they’re much less likely to “quiet quit” or seek employment elsewhere.
Measuring Remote Employee Engagement
Ensuring that you have a committed, engaged remote workforce is not a one-time act. It’s a continually evolving process that must be refined, measured and improved upon. That can only happen if the organisation has a way of measuring the state of their employees’ engagement.
The most direct way to do this is by gathering feedback from remote workers. You can do this in two ways; firstly, by asking team members directly during one-to-one meetings (using soft, conversational language), or secondly, by having workers fill in anonymous feedback forms. Between those two methods, you should get a strong idea of how your remote workers feel towards the company.
It’s also recommended to analyse data such as sick days, employee turnover rate and productivity. If all of those key employee metrics are healthy, then that’s a good sign that the workforce is content.
Our top tips for promoting work-life balance for remote employees
Promoting work-life balance for remote employees is essential for their well-being and overall productivity. Here are some comprehensive tips:
Set Clear Boundaries Between Work and Personal Time
Encourage employees to designate specific work hours and adhere to them. This helps in creating a clear separation between work and personal life. Advise them to create a dedicated workspace, if possible, to physically and mentally delineate their professional and personal environments.
Encourage Regular Breaks
Regular breaks are crucial for maintaining productivity and preventing burnout. Suggest taking short breaks throughout the day, such as the Pomodoro technique (25 minutes of focused work followed by a 5-minute break). Encourage longer breaks for meals and to step away from the computer screen periodically.
By encouraging remote workers to take breaks, you will put them at ease and calm that sense of ‘having to stay at the laptop in case I get a Teams call’. We’ve all been guilty of thinking this at some point!
Promote a Flexible Schedule
Flexibility allows employees to work during their most productive hours and accommodate personal responsibilities. Trust employees to manage their time effectively and deliver results, which can lead to increased job satisfaction and reduced stress.
Be Mindful of Workload
It’s easy to pile work on someone over an email or a message as when someone is out of sight they can be out of mind. By not having that physical interaction with someone, or not physically seeing them working, it’s easy to assume they have free time, or spare capacity. This is a big mistake, that is so easy to make.
Managers should regularly check in with employees to ensure their workload is manageable. Overloading employees can lead to burnout and decreased productivity. Use project management tools to track tasks and deadlines, ensuring a balanced distribution of work.
Avoid Scheduling Meetings Outside Standard Working Hours
Respect employees' personal time by scheduling meetings during agreed-upon working hours. Consider time zone differences for remote teams spread across different regions to ensure that meetings are convenient for all participants.
On the subject of avoiding meetings, don’t be tempted to put unnecessary Teams calls in “just to check up on people” - unless it’s part of a scheduled communication and engagement plan. These ad hoc meetings or last-minute calls tend to be counterproductive and lead to a loss of productivity.
Encourage Use of Holiday and Personal Days
Remind employees to take their entitled holiday and personal days. Time away from work is important for recharging and maintaining mental health. Ensure that the company culture supports and respects taking time off.
Provide Mental Health Support
Offer resources for mental health support, such as access to counselling services, mental health days and stress management workshops. Promote a culture where employees feel comfortable discussing mental health issues and seeking help.
Promote Physical Health
Encourage physical activity by promoting wellness programmes, virtual exercise classes, or step challenges. Regular physical activity can improve mood, energy levels and overall well-being.
Foster Social Connections
Social isolation can be a challenge for remote employees. Organise virtual social events, coffee breaks or team-building activities to help employees stay connected and build relationships with their colleagues.
Provide Training on Time Management
Offer training sessions on effective time management and productivity techniques. Equip employees with skills to better manage their time, set priorities and avoid overworking.
Lead by Example
Managers should model good work-life balance practices. By setting an example, such as not sending emails outside of working hours or taking regular breaks, managers can reinforce the importance of work-life balance within the team. Of course, emails may be written outside of standard office hours, but they don’t need to be sent. Use the ‘delay send’ functionality on email to automatically send the email at 09:00 the next day.
FAQs
What are the best practices for engaging remote employees?
Best practices for engaging remote employees include regular communication, setting clear goals, providing continuous feedback, offering professional development opportunities and fostering a strong company culture. Utilising tools like video conferencing and project management software can also enhance engagement.
What tools are the best tools for engaging remote employees?
Some of the best tools for engaging remote employees include project management software (Trello, Asana), communication platforms (Slack, Microsoft Teams), video conferencing tools (Zoom, Google Meet), and companies can also utilise employee engagement tools, or have a bespoke solution built.
How can I build a strong team culture with remote employees?
Build a strong team culture with remote employees by organising virtual team-building activities, recognising and celebrating achievements, maintaining regular communication and ensuring that all team members feel valued and included. Sharing the company’s mission and values regularly also helps reinforce the culture.
What are some virtual team-building activities for remote employees? Virtual team-building activities for remote employees include online trivia games, virtual escape rooms, remote coffee breaks, collaborative projects and video game sessions. These activities help in fostering team spirit and camaraderie.
Does remote working increase or decrease employee engagement? Remote working can both positively and negatively impact employee engagement. While flexibility can boost satisfaction and productivity, lack of face-to-face interaction can lead to feelings of isolation and disengagement.
What are the main challenges of engaging remote employees?
The main challenges of engaging remote workers usually include communication barriers, feelings of isolation, lack of immediate feedback, and difficulty in building a cohesive team culture. These challenges can lead to decreased motivation and productivity if not addressed effectively.
Why is it important to set clear expectations for remote employees?
It is important to set clear expectations with remote employees for a number of reasons. These range from understanding their roles and responsibilities, which increases accountability and productivity. Setting measurable goals and KPIs ensures that everyone is aligned with the company’s objectives.
Summary
Companies in all corners of the world have difficulty with employee engagement, but it’s an especially prevalent problem in the UK, where a whopping 90% of workers report feelings of disengagement.
Studies have routinely found a link between worker engagement levels and profitability. Indeed, with studies finding that companies with an engaged workforce are more than 20% more profitable, investing in employee engagement should be viewed as an essential investment. While organisations should work to encourage engagement among all employees, learning how to engage employees who work remotely is particularly important, since they’re often the first employees to feel isolated and adrift from the rest of the organisation.
Let’s recap some of the most effective tips for how to engage employees in remote locations:
● Develop a positive company culture
● Set clear expectations
● Invest in communication
● Provide resources and support
● Recognise and reward remote employees
● Promote healthy work-life balance
● Provide training and development opportunities
● Proactively measure and track employee engagement
Do those things, and you should find that remote worker engagement increases.
At Enthuse, our vision is for everyone to enjoy being at work, so we help organisations to create a positive employee experience by engaging their team members. No one ever engaged anyone without communicating with them, so best practice internal communication is about having a regular drumbeat of communication that keeps colleagues feeling well-informed and valued.
If you want to learn more about how to engage your remote employees, don’t hesitate to reach out to us here at Enthuse by contacting Andrea on 07812 343310 or emailing hello@enthuse-comms.co.uk