As businesses work to contain the spread of the Coronavirus, protect their employees, and adhere to government advice, more and more employees will work remotely or from home. This may sound like a good solution, and some may even prefer it. Others may find certain aspects challenging. For instance, some may find it isolating and miss the office chats, and some may find it difficult to motivate themselves while they continue to worry about what the future holds. Here are some tips from our Employee Assistance Program, Access EAP,  to help manage and support your employees when working from home:

1.Communication is key

Communicate, communicate, this is key to ensure that working from home is successful. Communicate clearly the expected deadlines, tasks, and regular contact. Communicate that the channels are open so that employees let you know if they have challenges and ask how you can support them.

2. Routines

Create a structure for employees or encourage them to have a structure; this helps with focus and motivation. Allowing people to develop their own structure allows them to feel in control. For example, some people like to work early 6 am, and others prefer to focus on tasks that require concentration later in the day.

3. Set boundaries

Just because your people are working from home, they should not be “at work” or “on-call” for longer than their normal workday. Practices such as sending email/requests within business hours can assist with this.

4. Your home environment

Many organisations require that the work area has appropriate lighting and ergonomic positioning, not the bed or couch. Discuss what that means for the nature of particular work roles with your people.

5. Dress to impress

Encourage a “dress code” as this psychologically prepares people for work, putting them in the headspace for work. Relaxed, smart casual rather than pyjamas or tracksuits.

6. Measure success! 

Ask your employees what they are working on and what their goal is for the day, this provides structure but also reassurance for both manager and employee

7. Take breaks

Model taking breaks away from the computer as you would at work, encourage proper lunch breaks and /or exercise.

8. Keep connected

Encourage connecting regularly with colleagues during breaks via phone calls, video, or facetime chats. It is important to talk about the Coronavirus but to keep to the facts. Encourage employees and colleagues if they are working from home to minimise their exposure to the news and media to certain times. Being alone and constant exposure will impact on employee’s wellbeing and needs to be monitored.

9. Face to face (virtually)

Have team meetings via video or teleconference. Video works particularly well as you can see each other and respond to verbal and body language cues.

10. Check in one each other

Depending on the team or individuals set up a buddy system where colleagues check in or support one another. It’s important to keep each other on track or help each other if someone is struggling. When employees cannot see each other they may feel hesitant to interrupt but it is important, so no one struggles on their own or feels isolated.

Have any other strategies? Tell us in the comments below.

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