How to make remote employees feel more connected

Remote work can be a great opportunity to take on new challenges and learn new things in a more flexible environment. But managing a remote workforce requires additional considerations. Remote working can be isolating, and feeling disconnected from your team can make it harder to stay motivated and engaged.

Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to help your remote worker feel more connected to their team and the company they work for. Here are a few suggestions:

Create a remote-positive company culture

A company’s culture is more than a nice-to-have and should be designed with a purpose rather than left to chance. Purpose-driven culture can be a powerful tool for attracting the right talent, driving employee engagement, producing happiness and job satisfaction, and impacting performance. 

If you want to embrace a remote-friendly organization, then it’s important for you to update your company culture to include remote team members. Even if you’re forming a culture around remote consultants or remote independent contractors, all of your organization will reap the benefits of remote-positive work culture.  

When defining your culture, consider these factors:  

1. How leadership interacts with employees, their vision, and their values
2. To what extent your structure, hierarchy, and goals empower employees
3. What your vision and mission emphasize, and the values that guide your people towards achieving goals
4. The type of people you prioritize hiring and love working with
5. How you reward performance, and your attitudes towards work/life balance and employee wellbeing
6. The kind of workplace guidelines you have, e.g. attendance, internal transfers  
7. How employees interact with each other, handle victories as well as challenges

Use a variety of communication tools 

There is a multitude of communication tools available today for employees to communicate with each other when face-to-face communication isn’t possible. Email, chat platforms, video conferencing, intranet, and message boards are just some of the tools that companies use for their employees to connect with remote teams. 

Having a variety of communication tools is important to keep a remote team connected, but using the right communication tools in the right situation can make a difference in the level of engagement you get from participants. 

For example, according to Microsoft, verbal and non-verbal cues in face-to-face meetings can build trust, and video calls are a helpful tool when in-person meetings aren’t possible. Use virtual meetings to hold regular team meetings or one-on-one catch-ups to help build relationships with employees who work remotely.

Project management software and other collaboration tools can help keep distributed teams updated and connected on projects. They enable you to create different projects, assign team members to shared tasks, share statuses, and set priorities. This will help to manage remote employees and ensure that everyone can easily collaborate on tasks.

Make sure they have the tools they need to succeed

Working remotely can be challenging, so it’s important to make sure that your remote workers have the tools and resources they need to be successful. This includes things like access to the right technology, support in creating a fully-equipped office space at home, and a clear understanding of company policies and procedures. 

Providing these kinds of resources will help remote employees feel appreciated, supported, and more connected to their work.

Encourage transparency and open communication

Transparency and open communication are key to making sure that remote employees feel included. Encourage team members to share information about what they’re working on and how they’re doing. This will help everyone stay on the same page and prevent feelings of isolation.

Check in often

Regular catch-ups are important when you’re managing remote teams. It allows everyone to remain on the same page and work smoothly towards a common goal. Make sure to schedule regular check-ins with your remote employees. This gives them a chance to voice any concerns and update you on their progress. It also helps to address any problems or concerns quickly before they turn into big problems. Checking in also makes your remote workers feel valued and appreciated, as it shows that you’re interested in their work and how they’re doing.

Don’t forget about social interactions

Don’t forget to make space for social interaction. Make sure to create opportunities for remote employees to interact socially. You can set up regular team-building or social events, even if they’re just virtual coffee mornings. It may seem odd at first, but practices like these can create a sense of belonging and community, which is missing when people engaged in remote work. Socializing with other team members will help them feel more connected to their colleagues and build relationships that can improve communication and collaboration.

Provide opportunities for discussion, feedback, and recognition

Everyone gets stuck sometimes, and this is true for remote workers, too. Be around to talk about the tasks they’re working on, or make sure they remember they have team members they can bounce ideas off. 

If you’ve been tasked with managing remote workers, make sure to provide both feedback and recognition for your remote employees. Getting feedback and being recognized for the effort they put in can make remote employees feel seen and are essential for keeping them motivated and engaged with their work. 

Conclusion

Making sure that a remote employee feels connected to your company is one of the responsibilities of managing hybrid teams. It is essential for keeping them engaged and productive. By following these tips, you can create a more connected and collaborative work environment for everyone.