7 Ideas To Engage Your Workforce Virtually

Remote working is the new normal for most business organizations. Although many employees are excited about the transition to remote working, employers are feeling a bit anxious about it. If you are also an employer, you can certainly relate. 

Your anxiety is natural if you are habitual of having your employees work in the office. It gives you immense satisfaction to see your employees working well in front of your eyes. But the pandemic has changed the picture completely.

With the prevalence of remote working, you may no longer feel the same satisfaction. Your employees are working from home and you can’t know for certain if they are working well or not. As a result, the transition to remote working is not much liked by employers like you. You want the conditions to become perfectly normal again, so you can reopen your office. But, as the pandemic lingers on, there is uncertainty as to when the situation will normalize. Despite all your anxiety, you have to adapt to this new change.

However, there is something you can do to lessen your anxiety and undergo the transition smoothly. There is something you can do to ensure that your employees are working well, even without supervision, and it’s nothing other than employee engagement. If you engage your employees, you’ll worry less about whether they are working well or not. Engaged employees are productive, self-motivated, and enthusiastic to perform well on their own and without any supervision.

So here are 7 ideas to help you engage your remote workforce virtually.

1 | Be An Inspiration For Your Employees 

Your employees are just like your reflections. If you work passionately, they’ll work passionately. If you are punctual, they’ll be punctual. This implies that you have the power to influence your employees and inspire them to work in a well-engaged manner.

To engage your employees, you have to become an example for them. You have to exhibit all the traits you want them to possess. This means that you have to be punctual, productive, and passionate about your work. For example, if you have a meeting with your employees via video conferencing, be present for the meeting on time. Don’t make your employees wait for you. If your employees see you exhibiting all the positive traits you wish to see in them,  they’ll be inspired to start emulating you.

2 | Appreciate Your Employees

This is one of the most important things you need to do to engage your employees. You have to appreciate them. It is not just about appreciating them for their big accomplishments or the great things they do. Rather, it is about appreciating them for who they are and every little effort they put in work. If you actually put appreciation into work, your employees will rarely let you down because your appreciation will motivate them to do better than they have done before.

As a result, you’ll see them becoming more productive whether there is supervision or not. To engage your remote workforce, you should start appreciating your employees for every little input.

3 | Give Them A Dose Of Motivation Every Morning

‘Motivation’ plays a vital role in employee engagement. If your employees are motivated, they are more likely to work with engrossment. Give your remote employees a dose of motivation every morning. For this, you can gather your employees virtually via video conferencing and watch motivational videos with them through screen sharing. This will set their motivation high and take them on the path of engagement.

4 | Introduce Flexible Working 

The pandemic has increased the household responsibilities which your employees have to shoulder. They have to maintain proper hygiene in their homes and take care of their family members and children who are also staying at home due to the pandemic. Under such circumstances, they may not be able to work well if the working hours remain fixed. They may have to perform multitasking to shoulder both household and work responsibilities well.

If this happens, their engrossment and engagement levels with work will remain low. To engage your remote employees, introduce flexible working hours. With flexibility, your employees will be able to focus single-mindedly on work. This will lead to an enhancement of their engrossment in work, which will further enhance their engagement level.

5 | Help Your Employees Keep Stress At Bay 

The pandemic has caused an increase in our general stress and anxiety level. We remain in a constant state of panic as if an invisible threat is following us everywhere. But stress is not good for employee engagement. It hampers your employees’ ability to work well by decreasing their concentration levels. To keep your remote employees engaged, you have to do something to help them de-stress.

Virtual group meditation sessions, get-together sessions, and gaming sessions are some effective ways to help your employees de-stress.

6 | Let Them Take The Charge And Work In Their Own Way 

Micromanagement is an employee engagement killer. Whenever you exert excessive control over your employees, they feel frustrated. This leads to a drop in their engagement level. On the contrary, when you let your employees take charge and work in their own way, they become more engaged with work.

To keep your workforce engaged, let your employees work in their own way. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t guide your employees. Try to do so in a soft and cordial manner without being too harsh or controlling.

7 | Keep Everyone Connected Virtually With Technology 

Employee engagement naturally increases when your employees feel connected to your organization. But it is hard for them to feel this connection when they are working from home. To keep your employees engaged, you have to do something to make them feel the same connection to your organization as they did in the office environment.

Try conducting virtual get-together sessions with your employees once or twice every week. During the get-together session, avoid discussing work-related topics. Only friendly communication should take place. This will help you keep everyone connected and drive a higher level of engagement.

Conclusion

Employee engagement is the key to keep your remote workforce productive. If your employees are engaged, they don’t need any form of supervision to work well. They are self-motivated to work well. Get rid of your anxiety regarding your remote workforce by engaging your employees using the 7 ideas given.