Businesses of all sizes have been forced to adopt remote work, and now team leaders and their staff are struggling to maintain a sense of normalcy while adjusting to a completely new management style.
Until things return to normal, this has necessitated the development of a new communication strategy, the assuaging of worries, the management of expectations, and the adaptation of jobs that are not generally suited to remote work.
As a Team Leader how to Motivate Your Team in WFH?
The best thing you can do for your team members throughout the transition to remote work is to be as open and communicative as possible. Schedule regular meetings to promote teamwork and eliminate feelings of isolation. In addition to team meetings, check in with each team member to establish expectations and determine their needs.
Numerous leaders are tasked with meeting these demands on the fly. In order to assist, business.com interviewed a number of small business owners and business leaders with remote teams to obtain advice on how to be an effective leader for a remote workforce.
Following are some of the biggest challenges of managing a remote team:
According to the Harvard Division of Continuing Education's blog, communication is essential in any sort of workplace, but especially in virtual firms. When a team's communication fails, not all of its members have access to the appropriate resources to meet corporate objectives.
Scheduling is one of the reasons why many individuals prefer to work digitally. However, this can make it difficult to schedule a convenient online meeting time for everyone. Most significantly, this becomes a problem if your staff is located in separate regions. Challenges of leading a remote team
As a manager, you are expected to be current on the status of all team initiatives. When employees are in the office, it is simple to monitor their progress; nevertheless, it may be difficult to confirm the productivity of a remote team.
When teams operate remotely, it is not always possible to locate project-related information in a shared location. Managers are expected to give simple access to the materials required to accomplish projects efficiently, and team members may find it challenging to receive timely responses to their questions.
Integration of new hires into a remote team might be challenging. Even if the remote team is currently operating smoothly, adding a new member can disrupt workflow. Without effective onboarding, your team's productivity, particularly that of new employees, may be impacted.
Few tips to Motivate your team in a Work from Home Environment
Have regular Online meetings
Consistent, open communication is a common challenge for remote teams, so you will need to put in a little extra effort while your team is temporarily distributed. Schedule at least one weekly video conferencing conference – you may call it a check-in, an update, or a status meeting – and concentrate that time on project management, giving your team relevant updates, assessing their professional and personal progress, and answering concerns.
Collect feedback
Possessing a "we're all in this together" mentality, recognizing that you and your team are all navigating this new circumstance of remote team management, and inviting feedback on any new practices, such as weekly check-in meetings, can be beneficial. Make your team aware of all the communication channels they can use to reach you, such as email, Slack, and text message, and adopt their suggestions wherever possible.
Find a balance between recognizing fears and proceeding with business
It may appear rational to adopt a "stay calm and carry on" mentality when managing remote staff and attempting to maintain business as usual. However, this may give employees the impression that their anxieties and the massive interruptions to their lives are being disregarded. On the other hand, you should avoid focusing every discourse on the current situation.
Try to detect your team members' concerns and emotions and do your utmost to strengthen their trust in the organisation. Employees are more productive when they feel comfortable, so do all in your power to reassure them that things will return to normal.
Create possibilities for enjoyable virtual interactions
Working remotely can be tough for team members who feel isolated and cut off from regular social connections, as socialisation is a crucial aspect of the workplace. As a leader, you may facilitate distant socialisation by utilising apps and collaboration platforms such as Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and other instant messaging solutions to keep your remote workers engaged. So many leaders used to create a healthy and positive enjoyable environment during their work even when they are working remotely. This helps to keep employees motivated and they work with more enthusiasm and work effectively and efficiently.
Make context an integral component of your communications
A great deal of meaning can be lost in email. A curt "yes" response to your three-paragraph inquiry from a team member may come across as cold, but it may simply indicate that the respondent was running late for a meeting. Instruct your employees on teamwork and excessive communication, while emphasising that they should avoid making assumptions. A simple misunderstanding amongst employees can result in resentment and offence, which can have detrimental effects on your team and company culture.
Communicate Regularly
To effectively motivate and direct your remote staff, you must maintain clear and constant contact. In a recent study conducted by the Association for Talent Development, 83 percent of corporate leaders indicated that communication is the most essential talent for managing success.
"As a general rule, leaders frequently believe they are communicating adequately, whereas their teams frequently believe they are receiving inadequate communication," Mayo says in Leadership Principles:
Joyce states, "It is really crucial to communicate on regular intervals." It will not only ensure that the message is conveyed, but it will also help solve and resolve many of the problems that organisations face due to miscommunication.
Offer your team more technology options
Never rely on a single technology to communicate with your team. For instance, email is commonly regarded as the least engaging method for constructing teams. Virtual conferencing is the most effective method, however, consider meeting in small groups. Large virtual meetings can easily become unproductive and confusing. Audio conferencing works well for brief sessions, but if critical information must be discussed, opt for video conferencing. Live chat applications should be used to manage time-sensitive conversations.
Be Transparent
Transparency is one of the fundamental communication qualities that every leader must possess. It is also the most important component for gauging employee satisfaction, according to the data.
When communicating an important endeavour, such as an organisational change, provide a thorough explanation of why certain decisions were taken and encourage your staff to ask questions. As a result, you can ensure that everyone is on the same page and strengthen the basis of trust.
