After all the debate, it seems that the world of work has settled into two distinct camps this year – those that do and those that don’t WFH (work from home).
Certain sectors, such as finance, seem more likely to demand full-time, in-person attendance at the office, while for others the norm is now hybrid or fully remote working.
But even within this latter group of employers, figuring out how to maintain a productive and positive working environment can still be challenging.
There are many questions such as: can we monitor employees who WFH and if so, what’s the best way to do it, and how do we mange those who are not delivering when WFH
Bridget Green, our Fractional In-House Lawyer and Head of People gives her top tips on how to make WFH work for everyone:
- It’s really a question of trust: Trust is at the heart of a successful remote team. Employers may worry about how to manage productivity remotely, they fear a lack of physical visibility means a loss of control. But, if you attempt to micromanage or monitor too much, it sends a message that you distrust your staff’s ability to do their job. A high-trust culture almost always delivers better results.
- Find tech solutions which enable collaboration: Communication is the key to helping staff who WFH feel valued and engaged, so technology such as shared task boards can really help. Encourage a culture of openness so that staff feel happy to share their concerns and feed-back.
- Don’t measure presence, measure productivity: No one wants to feel like they are being watched all the time, especially in their own home. Tracking when and where work is done doesn’t help you manage productivity effectively – measuring delivery and output is far more useful. Remember that staff do have an expectation of privacy so be totally transparent about what data you are collecting and what monitoring you are doing e.g using tracking software, counting keystrokes or taking screenshots. It is unlikely to ever be justified to covertly monitor employees WFH. Be clear about why you consider the monitoring is necessary and how you will use the data collected.
- Train your managers: Managers walk a fine line between showing an interest and being supportive and checking in all the time and micromanaging. Setting goals and regular catch-ups is a good start to finding a balance. Managers also need to model the behaviours they expect in others such as being contactable and responsive when WFH. Where there are genuine concerns about an employee failing to deliver while WFH, managers should follow your usual policy and process for dealing with performance/misconduct issues (as relevant).
- Make sure everyone knows what is expected: It might sound obvious but make sure all staff understand what is expected of them when WFH – different groups of employees might have different expectations, so be clear what the rules are. As with any other performance or disciplinary issue, employers need to be able to show that expectations were clear before they take any action.
- Update policies and procedures to reflect the new WFH reality: If your policies were drafted a few years ago they may well be out of date. For example, does your disciplinary policy cover behaviour when WFH? What about your IT, data protection and confidentiality policies (e.g. handling customer data when working at home)? Think about the impact across your organisation of staff WFH.
- Make it work or see your talent walk out the door: Times are changing, and the expectations of staff are very different to what they were before Covid. Businesses who have imposed full-time office working have seen staff vote with their feet and leave. This is particularly the case for working parents -WFH helps them to balance work and life and is now often a non-negotiable.
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