Remote Workers: 5 Must-Have Features to Support Them in 2021

Remote workers are the norm in today's world. Many of us have felt WFH's challenges. From issues with isolation or creating a sustainable routine, it has been a major transition.

As 2020 draws to a close, HR teams are reflecting on this tumultuous year. What have we learnt from the challenges of remote work? In 2021, we will likely see a more hybrid workplace, but remote work is not a thing of the past.

So how to use the experiences of 2020 to create more strategic HR? We offer 5 remote-friendly features of an HR System. These will help you connect and engage with remote teams.

1) Company Updates

Human resources teams have doubled their efforts to build community . Remote workers often experience isolation. As they work away from the office environment, working support networks can collapse. Company updates are a great way to bridge the remote work gap.

Be creative. Video is a great way to hammer a reassuring, simple message home. Workplace from Facebook and other internal social media platforms offer live streaming services. Why not live stream some fun, handy tips for remote work?

Live streams are also great for manager town halls, as employees can ask questions in the chat function. Updates ensure transparency and avoid the silos that can occur during remote work.

Make sure you use a range of communication methods. Use internal social media, like Motivosity or Slack, to create fun updates on company news. Not only does this enable you to communicate updates on HR policies and processes, it fosters a sense of belonging despite the distance.

Ways to Improve Engagement on Company Updates

• Use fun social media, such as Motivosity

• Create live streams for manager town halls or HR updates

• Use internal social media for recognition to boost morale

• Post company updates on a range of channels

2) Employee Profiles

Employee profiles don’t have to be bland. They’re a great way to foster connectivity between team members.

Make sure employee profiles tell a story. What are an employee’s interests and hobbies? You could even ask employees to complete a personality test or strengths test and post the results on their page.

Sometimes when we aren’t interacting in person, we forget the human beings behind the emails! Misreading tone in messages is a common remote work communication error. A customized employee profile can be a starting point for keeping us grounded.

Benefits of Employee Profiles

• An opportunity for employees to express themselves

• Fun way to build community

• On internal social media platforms, employees can post appreciation or recognition on a peer’s profile

• Helps fully remote employees get to know new hires

• Improves employee engagement with HR strategy as employees have a sense of ownership

3) Survey Feature

Managers and HR are not in the office to check in on employees day to day. Employee experience is in some ways invisible to HR teams.

Surveys can help with this. Use online providers to create customized surveys. A regular well-being pulse survey is a great way to check-in with remote employees. Measure the prevalence of isolation or overworking, so you can better support your people.

Don’t limit your use of surveys to ‘remote work’ issues. Remember that working from home changes how employees interact with all aspects of a company. A Diversity and Inclusion survey is a great way to check in with your diverse teams. Your DE&I strategy may need adjusting as employee experience shifts during remote work.

Benefits of running surveys for remote workers

• Guage sentiment of newly remote employees

• HR informed on where to prioritize resources

• Employee voice at all levels

• Support for remote work can be targeted and evidence-based

• Clarify problem areas for immediate action

• Online surveys quick and easy to complete

4) Check-ins & Real-time Feedback

Even the most independent of employees can feel a lack of guidance during remote work. Frequent check-ins have become a must.

Check-ins are an opportunity for managers to track progress on projects. They also place tasks into context, improving collaboration.

When we are working from home, it’s easy to slip out of healthy routines. Morning and afternoon check-ins can provide some much-needed structure.

Feedback is also key to supporting your remote employees. Gallup research indicates that only 19% of millennials strongly agree they receive routine feedback at work. A culture of ongoing feedback is crucial for remote employees, who often experience uncertainty about manager expectations.

Real-time feedback reassures employees. Managers must make a conscious effort to recognize excellent work or highlight areas of improvement day to day, as remote work erodes the usual opportunities for informal feedback.

Remote work means HR and managers should be more intentional about communication. Create a virtual open-door policy so that employee concerns are addressed quickly and use surveys to gauge employee sentiment.

Benefits of employee check-ins during remote work

• Help employees build routine

• Improve collaboration

• Reduce isolation

• Opportunity for employee recognition or feedback

• Open the floor for questions

5) Customization

Your HR management system is the new office space for your employees. It’s their interface with your brand, culture and people. Choose a customizable system so that you can incorporate your company’s unique values and processes.

During remote work, you’ll want to run surveys that address relevant aspects of employee experience. A customizable survey form that allows you to use a range of question types is a great resource.

Benefits of Fully Customized HRMS

• Create a personalized feel

• Reflect your brand imagery

• Optimize surveys for relevant information

• Incorporate tailored HR strategy

Must Have for Remote Workers: an HR system that bridges the distance

Work from anywhere poses many opportunities for employees: from flexible work arrangements to better work-life balance.

Nevertheless, communication and feedback are in jeopardy – and it takes a well thought out strategy to address this. Technology bridges this gap, and can even address some underlying issues with traditional HR practices.

Our message is simple: choose the right HR system to support your remote workers. PeopleGoal offers completely customizable apps for HR teams. To find out more, why not take a look at our App Store?