5 Ways that Businesses Can Successfully Manage Homeworkers During Coronavirus

Many of London’s PAs and office support workers are currently working from home. Whether this turns out to be a new and temporary arrangement or a permanent plan, mass homeworking poses a new set of challenges for businesses. As a leading London recruitment agency, we’re already experienced in home working. So today, we’ll tell you what you need to know to manage your homeworkers successfully.

1. Get the tech right

   In 2020, homeworking is possible in a huge number of roles. That said, everyone needs to have the right technology, and it needs to work properly. In an office environment, employees will often defer to IT staff, taking a hands-off approach to their tech. Working from home, they’ll need to be more hands-on. Make sure IT support staff are available by phone and know how to walk inexperienced individuals through different processes.

2. Set clear expectations

   When people are homeworking, communication is more vital than ever. There’s no stopping off at someone’s desk to see how something’s getting along. Therefore, your expectations must be very clear. These expectations apply to both the specific work itself and to things like availability, time at their desk, flexibility, etc.

3. Engage

   With remote working, it’s possible for employees to feel cut off and isolated. Various channels should be used, and used often, to engage homeworkers. Schedule times to engage through phone calls and video conferencing. Just because it’s harder when someone’s not in the office, don’t hold back on getting in touch. Ensure you have an effective digital communication workspace where everyone can easily get in touch and seek support when needed.

4. Trust

   While there are challenges with homeworking—such as children or a growing laundry pile—trust your employees. Most will feel the need to demonstrate greater productivity at home. The lack of office distractions can even prove helpful. Remember that the focus is achieving an overall goal, not clocking up hours of presenteeism. However, if it becomes clear that an individual isn’t working as you’d expect them to despite clearly-stated expectations, you may need to address the problem directly.

5. Consider organisational culture and socialisation

Within the workplace, there are multiple interactions throughout the day that are unrelated to specific tasks. However, these myriad of conversations and interactions underline business values, goals, culture, and ideas. With homeworking, this element of office life can disappear. If it’s your thing, make sure that there are still “town hall” meetings online. Or if it’s what normally happens, send invitations for the office lunch hour yoga meet—just do it online. Don’t lose those unscheduled moments of business growth and energy.

Love Success is a leading London PA & office support recruitment agency.
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