Five tips to help your team thrive when working from home
As the COVID-19 situation deepens, it becomes clear that we will be working from home for some time. But this does not need to be seen as a negative – it is absolutely possible for leaders to have teams that thrive in these difficult times.
If you give people the right tools — and a huge dose of trust – they will thrive in this new environment. The era of productivity versus hours is finally here. The 9-to-5 employees are evolving into ones that deliver in different ways and are held accountable by their peers. They will work the hours required to reach results – and it is most likely not 9am to 5pm. They might work from 7am to 10am, take a break to look after children who are now at home, and then continue later – and that’s OK. It’s about the delivery of outcomes, not the hours.
Shaping the new workplace is going to be exciting, for leaders and employees. But the key for any leader is to involve their team. Great leadership is about taking people on a journey – involve the team in discussions as you reinvent and design the new future model for your organisation.
Communication is key to ensure your team remains engaged. Here are some tips to help you along the way:
Tip One: Be effective when communicating to the whole team via Zoom
Be mindful of your body language and articulate slowly and clearly with a smile. Think before you communicate – what is the outcome I want to achieve from today’s session? Talk successful inputs and reinforce the behaviour you want to see from your team. Start and finish the meeting with your purpose.
Tip Two: Create an environment of support where everyone has a voice
Have a multi-purpose touch point strategy such as a weekly zoom meeting. Offer people the chance to opt in for a personalised one-on-one support session (if needed), start a team newsletter that is filled in by the team – they share what they are up to this week, wins from last week, challenges they are facing. This is distributed to everyone in the team. All team members are required to read through and help each other on their challenges.
Tip Three: Measuring with transparency
Find a way where profit and budgets are NOT talked about daily, as you will only get to a place where people operate out of fear instead of purpose. Sure, we need to understand the position the company is in, but it’s measuring the inputs that will return you the budget that will have far greater and quicker results.
Tip Four: Not all humans are equal
People want to work with organisations that give employees choice, freedom and flexibility. Know your people and what they prefer, and how they will perform to their best. What currency do they live for right now? What’s important to them in their stage or phase? Family, further education, health – tailor a plan so each individual employee feels valued, seen and heard.
Tip Five: Wake up and be a conscious leader
Many people will not be motivated to go back to working by the clock after the COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. People are at home now, evaluating their life and what they want from it – help get them there, and you will get more of them.
