How To Keep Remote Employees Engaged – 4 Things You Can Do Today

Working remotely has become more common than ever, but your employees might not be as happy, productive, or engaged as you think. Many times employees can become distracted, feel isolated, and even lose the drive and motivation they have while working in the office with others.

But it doesn’t have to be this way!

In this article, I want to give you some practical things you can implement today to help your remote employees stay more engaged and productive while working offsite.

What’s The Problem With Disengagement?

Disengagement is a huge problem. Many studies are pointing to the danger of disengaged employees, but this article from Bob Kelleher sums it up pretty well.  In it he says,

“This lack of engagement is costing companies billions of dollars in lost productivity and reduced levels of client service, resulting in declining profits and worsening client satisfaction.”

Why Do Remote Workers Get Disengaged?

 

Loose Momentum

There is a certain momentum that is created by simply being around other people in an office. Think of it like paddling a canoe down a river. If you want to get downstream quickly, you still need to paddle, but the movement of the river will magnify your effort and even help keep you going when you get tired.

On the other hand, when you work remotely, it can be like sitting in the middle of a calm lake. To move ahead, they have to generate all of your own forward progress, and if you stop, the momentum stops.

This loss of momentum can feel overwhelming and disheartening and can lead to becoming disengaged.

Get Distracted

Distractions are everywhere, at home and in the office. However, back to our river example, when you are in the “current” of the office, it’s easier to avoid certain distractions that can be a drag on productivity. Things like, kids, the dog, housework, or even a favorite TV show could distract you from your work.

These distractions can be like trying to paddle that canoe into a strong wind and can really slow your progress and productivity. And when you feel stalled out, you can start to check out of your work.

Loose Connection

Finally, and most dangerously, when someone works remotely, they could start to feel isolated. Clinical psychologist, Ryan Hooper, noted that

“For some people, working from home can put their mental health at risk, causing feelings of isolation and disconnection.”

This feeling is dangerous because isolation can lead to all sorts of problems that could eventually negatively impact productivity and their overall health.

As people, we need other people to thrive. I realize that people differ in their need for human interaction, but we all have a core need to feel connected to a group of people, and when we work alone, we can start to feel disconnected and disengage from our team.

What’s The Common Theme?

All three of these things, Momentum, Distraction, and Connection, are tied to a common theme.  Their success each hinges on the right amount of quality communication with other people.

So, How Do You Help People

  • Maintain momentum
  • Reduce distractions
  • Stay connected
  • Stay Engaged

4 Ways To Keep Your Remote Employees Engaged

 

Be An Intentional Communicator

When we are in the office with others, it’s effortless to communicate. Almost without thinking about it, we talk about work, what happened this weekend, how the baseball game went, or how the project is coming along. It’s all part of natural human interaction when you are in close proximity to one another.

But, when someone isn’t in the office, it’s easy for the “out of sight, out of mind” problem to arise. This could lead to sometimes going days, weeks, or even months without much communication, other than some sterile emails about work. That drop off in contact could lead to your vital connection growing cold and begin the downward spiral of disengagement.

So, take the first step to be intentional and schedule a time on your calendar to reach out to your remote employees.

Be Regular

Being intentional is the first step, but next is making that communication consistent. No one would expect any results if they went to the gym one or two times. It’s only with constant effort that strength is built. This power of consistency is also true in maintaining relationships.

Consistency in communication with remote workers is critical because, again, the everyday conversations that happen naturally in an office environment don’t usually happen when people work from home. So, you must make it a part of your routine.

Now that you have your first day scheduled, go ahead and set a weekly or even daily reminder on your calendar to check-in with your team, depending on their needs.

Be Personal

The content of your conversations will naturally involve work, deadlines, projects, etc. Discussing these topics is important to help keep people productive and on track.

However, when you check in with your team, remember you are dealing with human beings. When people are not around, it’s easy to remove the face from the name. People can become a number or a name that has a job to do instead of a real person that is part of the team.

So, not only do you need to be intentional about communicating regularly but don’t always make it about work. Take time to ask about them about their personal life and show them you care about them, just like you would in the office.

Obviously, the depth you go with someone depends on the relationship, so use your best judgment. But even simply asking about their family, a hobby or how they are holding up working from home could be a good start.

Take a moment before the next call with your remote teammate and think about something that matters to them that you could ask about.

Be Different

Finally, don’t fall into a rut with your communication. Just like in the office, you might communicate in a more formal way in a meeting or you might have an off the cuff conversation around the coffee pot or in the hallway.

Try to emulate this and vary the way you communicate with your offsite staff. Like I’ve said, mix up the topics between work, personal, and surface things like news, sports, and weather. But also mix up the method ou use to communicate.

So your communication doesn’t become stale, consider things like phone calls, text messages, emails, and video calls. Also, try to incorporate both one-on-one and group calls or texts if you can.

So, brainstorm on a few different ways you could communicate and add that to your upcoming communications schedule.

Conclusion

Working remotely has many benefits, but these positives can quickly become outweighed by the negative consequences of having offsite staff work alone. Working by yourself can lead to a loss of momentum, giving in to distractions, and losing connection with your team. These things can lead to feeling disengaged, overwhelmed, and isolated and can kill productivity.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. As a leader, you can be intentional with your communication and focus on being regular, personal, and different in your communication with your remote team members. By doing this, you can keep them as engaged and productive as they would be in the office.

What Now

It takes time to build habits. So, I would challenge you to take the next 30 days and set aside regular times on your calendar to reach out to your remote staff intentionally. Be personal and consistent, and mix up the way you connect with them.

If you do this, I believe you can build a strong team that is both productive and engaged while working from any location.

 

Thanks for reading,

Charles

Charles Kown, Founder

 

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I’m Charles Kown. I love helping leaders accomplish their goals, become their best, and create thriving, productive teams.