Remember, back then, when you were in school – when there were school trips organized but you weren’t able to join due to certain reasons, but were feeling out of place after that, as that was all they talked about? Or something closer to status quo, having to find out colleagues have this special bond which makes them have tighter and smoother work relationship as they have been lunch buddies for awhile now?
Exactly what we will be discussing about. Because that, ladies and gents, is how important it is to have work culture implemented on all staffs. Be it in the office physically or working remotely, as it does affect the feel of belonging to the organization. As employees continue to work remotely, one of the top goals for organization should be is to maintain your corporate culture. Working remotely doesn’t have to change a particular culture which supports the best efforts of the employees to stay productive, and find happiness and fulfilment in their work.
Nurturing company culture is more than providing team building activities or company trips and celebrations, although they can help virtually. To sustain a remote work culture, employers need to create a virtual environment where team members still feel as one. Employees need to feel that their entire team is working hard and staying productive together, and that their contribution counts.
In order to achieve this, they must have regular contact with their managers and colleagues. Helping your employees stay connected to the company’s larger vision and goals encourages a sense of being part of something bigger than itself. This is important for employee engagement. So, now that we have understood the importance of maintaining work culture for all staffs, let’s move on to the ways and methods in implementing them in ensuring they do not disappear;
Trust Your Team Members
Employees who are treated with trust and respect will likely rise to the challenge and step up. Instead of over-monitoring or micro-managing your remote-working employees, which can affect their drive and productivity, find other means for your team to share work schedules.
When employees and managers are aware of the day-to-day work activities of their team members through workflow and communication tools—and not micromanage, that itself strengthens trust.
Strengthen and Focus On The Culture You Want to Develop and Eliminate Those Not Working
Work culture evolves whether you pay attention to it or not; In which you might already have one. Actively discuss your culture with leaders, managers and employees. If you like your current culture, look for ways to strengthen it while employees working remotely. If so, start by defining the culture you want to use to make remote workers successful. Ask each team to establish team norms that build their capacity to collaborate outside of the office and share them with other teams.
Keep and reinforce your daily reminders of the culture you want to have. For example, if you had lunch together once a week when you worked in the office back then, then have virtual lunch dates. How about weekly meets for support and updates? If yes, then it is recommended to continue meeting. And if your organization used to get together to share progress, set goals, and celebrate, continue that tradition while working remotely.
Embrace ‘Clarity’ in Interactions
Transparent conversation is essential for keeping your tradition at the same time as personnel are operating remotely. Employees want to consider you, particularly all through a disaster while task protection is probably one in every of their pinnacle concerns.
It has been studied that employees do want to listen from CEOs, leadership, and others approximately how the enterprise became being tormented by cutting-edge occasions and what became being completed to shield it—which includes their position, leaving them to feeling important and safe.
Address Mental Health Issues Your Employees May Experience
Indeed, it was taboo back then to be discussing such matter as it was never a norm for society to be talking about it. However times have changed. Employees operating remotely may enjoy intellectual fitness troubles, which include loneliness, mourning the beyond workplace, lacking day by day co-employee interaction, and situation for his or her task and financial future. A study stated that personnel had been experiencing intellectual fitness troubles because of social isolation and financial anxiety.
Employers can assist fight those intellectual fitness troubles withinside the identical approaches encouraged to enhance their way of life of caring, empathy, consideration, and gratitude.
Recognizing and Practising Work-life Balance
Remember those days when we weren’t able to leave home due to the lockdowns? Oh those days are long gone, and how grateful many of us are. However it isn’t for quite a number as it is still their lives. Hence in working remotely culture, it is crucial to recognize on ways to ensure work-life balance is being practised without them overworking themselves, leading to burnouts, happening to many nowadays, as well as providing flexibility.
For example, supplying nursery or child care for working parents. Oh what a great relief that would be, as they would not have to deal with work matters while a child is crying and clinging on to their shirts, leaving them feeling stressed due to having to deal with too much at one go.
Another way is to have regular recognition showing employees that their sacrifices and hard work are truly appreciated. This can be done by acknowledging the difficulties they face in their remote environment, by scheduling meetings and interaction time to a core of hours, and by respecting morning and evening family time. For example, your employees may need to start their children with virtual learning before they can start work, hence avoiding those times would be truly meaningful to the employees.
Conclusion
Indeed retaining work culture for all employees is always a work in progress. Building a strong remote work culture where your employees feel confident and empowered to do their best work is an ongoing process that takes a lot of time and hard work. Whether you’re transitioning your entire organization to working remotely or expanding the virtual team, organization needs to be armed with all the best practices and tools to make the transition as seamless as possible for your workforce.
The plan is to make the most of the culture and encourage transparency to create an environment where all would feel like one.
