To be productive, workplace relationships must be strong and resilient. Maintaining business relationships when your team is working remotely, however, can be difficult. A lack of face-to-face interaction with your staff might create a significant communication gap. This blog will show you how to stay in touch with your employees and maintain relationships while working from home.
Why Building Relationships With Your Employees Is Important
Let’s start with why it’s essential to establish workplace relationships, especially when working remotely, before getting into the “how.”
Maintaining relationships with your employees can significantly impact your team’s mental and physical well-being. Employee engagement is largely influenced by the development of meaningful relationships within your company. When employees feel connected to one another while working from home, their morale, job satisfaction, retention rates, and output all rise. In addition, employee workload is decreased when they have supportive peers who can assist them with difficult tasks and provide guidance and direction. They also give people a sense of security and reward.
Seven Easy Ways to Build and Maintain Employee Relationships While Working From Home
1. Less Emailing, More Video Communication.
Emailing all day can become tedious and ineffective. While working remotely, Zoom, Skype, and Facetime provide a better alternative for professional office communication. Emails are OK for quick questions but fixing a problem or brainstorming solutions/strategies is better face-to-face. In addition, because you and your coworkers can easily bounce ideas off one other while feeling connected to the outside world, video communication can make you more productive.
2. Schedule One-On-One Time with Your Employees Each Week
You should schedule time to speak with your employees weekly to ensure that everyone is on the same page. Prior to each meeting, make a list of everything you want to discuss and use this time to have a productive conversation. One-on-one meetings allow you to ask questions without interruption and enjoy human connection. You can meet as often as you need throughout the week, and emailing or texting can be utilized for urgent issues.
3. Stay Available and Communicate During Work Hours
No one expects you to sit at your computer from 9 to 5 every day. However, your employees would benefit from knowing when they may contact you. Communication is crucial in this situation. Setting up a time frame in which to work is the greatest approach to ensuring your coworkers know when you are accessible.
4. Work at the Same Time as your Employees
Setting a schedule that coincides with your employees can help you be more effective at work. Emailing questions to employees who have already signed off for the day is useless. If you work at different times, you might not be able to get the answers you need when you need them, and vice versa. You want to be there for your employees when they need you, and you want them to be there for you.
5. Utilize Communication Tools
Due to technological advancements, we now have a variety of tools to stay connected, making our lives and jobs more accessible than ever before. Your team can use collaborative technologies to communicate and engage with one another freely, whether professionally or casually.
6. Continue to Support Others
People’s cortisol levels, a measure of stress, were positively improved when they were supported by a partner who listened and acknowledged their feelings, according to new Wake Forest University research. “Safe haven support” is the term for this type of assistance. Foster partnerships that allow for both companionship and empathy, as well as the problem-solving required for the job.
7. Don’t Be All Business — Have Fun!
This is an excellent opportunity to get creative and come up with remote team-building activities. Consider the things you would normally perform in the office and adapt them to a virtual setting. Virtual birthday parties, virtual happy hours, early morning yoga sessions, coffee breaks, bringing your children or pets to the (remote) job, and much more are all possible.
By George Coaching & Consulting Firm Supports Your Leadership and Team Development Remotely
As you can see, even when working remotely, it is possible to create and sustain strong relationships. It will take some effort and planning, but with the above techniques, as well as the correct mentality and collaboration tools, your employees will no longer feel like another name in an email chain. Instead, everyone will feel like they have a commanding presence, and share a common bond with their colleagues. See some of our team development resources here.
At By George Coaching and Consulting Firm, we offer team coaching sessions and online leadership training that is tailored to your individual requirements and goals. Contact us today to learn more about our services to help your team become more profitable while helping you become more confident as a leader.
Meanwhile, check out our other work-from-home blog from last June: “How to Be A Coaching Leader with A Remote Team”