About 70% of people globally work remotely at least once a week, according to CNBC. While remote work means a better work-life balance for most employees, it promises a lot of benefits for corporations that choose to walk this path. The first benefit would be saving the costs in the line of transport allowance and the need to rent out offices.
A better work-life balance also means that employees will be more committed to their craft and become more productive. It will also lead to higher employee retention rates as well as an increased talent pool as geographical locations will no longer be a talent acquisition restriction. However, with remote work comes the problem of reinforcing the company culture as employees are no longer physically present in the brick and mortar offices.
The solution to this lies in creating conditions in which a strong company culture can coexist with remote work. Here is how to reinforce a positive company culture in a remote workforce:
The Undeniable Role That Technology Plays
With all the technology that supports collaboration and communication, today is the best time to have a remote workforce. In case you are worried that your employees will switch to doing personal errands at home instead of committing to the assigned job, time tracking software can help ease your worries. While such software promotes accountability, video conferencing software makes communication much easier.
On the other hand, mini remote control software can help in accessing workplace resources remotely and offering support to customers. Simply put, a strong remote culture can never be reinforced as long as you fail to invest in the necessary technology. This technology should encourage not only collaboration but also communication between the different teams.
Start By Creating and Refining Your Company Values
Investing in all the technology in the world will be futile as long as you do not already have a strong culture to support it. For instance, using technology that supports collaboration will never be possible in a team that is anti-collaboration. The first step is to start by creating a culture that will support your workforce both while working in-house and remotely.
It would be wise to involve employees in the creation of the governing policies as this often leads to them embracing the culture more than fighting against it. In case a certain policy has a high probability of causing friction as employees adapt to it, it is wise to use subtle strategies to introduce the change. As long as employees know what is expected of them, you are on the right path to reinforcing your company’s culture.
Document Your Culture
It is one thing to have a culture and another to document it. Documenting the expectations help to not only articulate them to the present staff members but also to those that are new to the job. As for the remote team, it is easier to learn about the expectations by reading the document as interacting with other people in the company face to face might be out of the question a good part of the time.
You should include every expectation of your company culture including the nitty gritty details that might seem trivial. Additionally, reinforcing the culture is a continuous process rather than a one-time thing, and you should focus on reassessing the document to add any changes that are needed.
Establish Regular Check-Ins
The aim of having a strong company culture is to encourage the inclusion of all employees by making them feel like part of a community. Without this, most people will feel neglected which often leads to employee turnover as well as reduced productivity. While it will be easy to check-in with your in-house staff, it is tough to do the same with your remote employees.
Schedule check-ins with them through video calls every once in a while as they help to display verbal cues, which can be lost in translation when using emails. Encouraging 360-degree reviews will also help in reinforcing your culture.
Conclusion
Great company culture should embrace inclusivity. As long as your remote workforce feels included, they can reach peak productivity levels. Consider the tips above to enjoy high employee satisfaction levels.
