Remote work is in full swing with more and more companies adapting to the changing trend. Researches conducted in recent years boast the beneficial effects of remote work and how it has added to employees’ productivity and efficiency.
While we do not ignore the pros of remote work, we cannot help but notice the glaringly obvious cons. Employee retention is one such issue hindering smooth working in remote work settings.
Most of us mistakenly believe that remote work implies increased employee satisfaction and happiness. That, however, is not the case. Although some employees benefit from the situation, others might not feel the same.
Triggers Affecting Employee Retention in Remote Workspaces:
A survey exploring the reasons for lower employee retention rate concluded that:
- 62% of employees leave their jobs because they think the job is a poor match for their skills and abilities.
- 58% of employees face training and performance challenges in their work.
Another study reported that remote workers feel shunned and ganged up on . They are more likely to think that their colleagues mistreat them, badmouth them, lobby against them, and make changes without notifying them.
Similarly, another study revealed that remote employees are likely to quit because of loneliness and low engagement with their fellow employees.
These negative feelings have a snowball effect, slowly but gradually they amass into something unignorable and might become the reason employee quit their remote jobs. Employee retention, in such a case, becomes almost impossible.
Lastly, employee retention rates may also be affected by newer, more plausible opportunities offered to remote employees . With little to no physical interaction, it can be hard for companies to keep an eye on their employees’ activities.
So, whether an employee is registering for a new job offer or signing up for an interview, the company is unaware of the situation whatsoever. It can neither propose a better offer on-time nor offer better facilities to retain the employee hence, lower rates of employee retention.
So, how can you ensure a high employee retention rate in a remote work environment? We are here to offer you some strategies that might help you maintain a low employee turnover.
Strategies To Help Retain Remote Employees
Here are a few employee retention strategies that should be a definite part of your employee retention program. The use of these tactics will help you make sure that employees stay with your organization for a long time.
1. Seamless Communication
Remote work or not, communication lays the foundation work for smooth working. Having uninterrupted, seamless communication can transform your relationship with the employee.
Communication is often a challenge for remote teams since there is no physical interaction and employees hardly connect outside the office setting.
The challenging situation demands an effective solution; one that can help keep all the team members on the same page. Inconsistent communication or the absence of the same can result in miscommunication and frustration.
If an employee cannot approach you in times of need, the work might inevitably be delayed for a long time.
Similarly, the lack of communication can also give rise to negative emotions for other colleagues. They might question the roles, responsibilities, and performance of other employees.
Communication is a two-way process so, as a team leader, you must initiate conversations to make sure everybody is involved and there are no misunderstandings whatsoever.
To make sure employees communicate regularly you can sign up for a communication tool such as Slack , Skype, or Zoom . These tools will not improve the quality of communication but will also play a critical role in the accomplishment of assigned tasks.
You can arrange weekly face-to-face meetings with all the team members to go over the details of their tasks. Also, you can keep everyone united with regular chatting and feedback exchange.
All in all, maintaining consistent communication should be your priority when you transition to remote work.
2. Set Clear Goals and Expectations
When you assign tasks to your team members, you have to make sure that every one of them is clear about the goals and expectations of the project.
Any gaps in this aspect can lead to problems in the future. You have to ensure that the individual goals of the employees align with the organizational goals.
When assigning roles and responsibilities to your team, make sure that each of them understands their work, has a clear idea of the things expected of them and is not confused about their goals.
Clarity, in this respect, will help you make sure that tasks are completed on time and there are no loopholes of any kind in the process.
3. Pay Timely
Remote workers gave less supervision and more freedom . While this is a piece of heaven for the employees, it can be torturing as hell for employers.
On one hand, they have to manage their employees while working remotely, on the other hand, they have to make sure that their talented employees are not poached by competitors. So, how can you make sure that your employees stay loyal to your company? Simple, make sure that they are paid timely and are facilitated with amenities.
There is nothing more encouraging than money, you cannot undermine the value of money when it comes to working.
You can set a proper system of payment so that each one of your employees is paid on time. You can also offer incentives to motivate them for better work. Also, keep reminding them of the perks your company offers so that they can weigh the pros and decide for themself.
4. Quick And Easy Onboarding
When employing new recruits, you have to make sure that they get onboard without any hassle. New recruits are almost always filled with anxiety and nervousness, so as a leader it is your job to make sure they get acquainted with the work environment and smoothly take over their responsibilities.
Remote workers might feel out of sorts since they have never experienced the live setting and are unacquainted with the staff, this can make them feel vulnerable.
When intaking a new recruit walk them through the company culture, introduce them to everyone and make sure they feel at ease, and can communicate with other team members. Face timing with the whole team can also help strengthen the bond between employees.
Since you cannot arrange a welcome gathering, welcome them with a face-to-face gathering, allow them to mingle with others to promote a healthier work relationship within the team.
This will ensure smooth and seamless working in the future.
In addition, employees who have never worked remotely might also feel a similar sense of nervousness. To lessen their burden, you can help them adjust to the ins and outs of remote work. Give them time to adjust to the changed circumstances and offer help wherever, whenever necessary.
5. Offer Training and Mentorship
Remote employees tend to feel detached from the work environment. The detachment can hinder their progress and their development.
As a team lead, you have to make sure that none of the employees feel left behind. You also have to ensure that they learn and grow while working remotely. Lack of enrichment in their skills and talent can slow down their wheel of development.
You must offer training and mentorship to all the workers working remotely to make sure they grow and develop their skills for betterment in the future.
Honing employees’ skills and helping them develop their talents can not only help them but will also prove fruitful for your company. You will be able to leverage their skills for better working.
To help them develop their skills you can:
- Offer mentorship to guide them through different processes
- Let them take up courses to improve their work
- Hire a trainer to train them for specific tasks
- Offer constructive criticism to make sure they enhance their work for the future
- Provide timely feedback to encourage them for their work
Your efforts, in this respect, can help build a stronger , more lasting relationship with your employees. Furthermore, it can help employees gauge and improve their performance.
6. Create a Proper Reward System
To minimize employee turnover, you have to leverage increments, incentives, and words of encouragement.
Firstly, praising your employee for their work can boost their morale and encourage them to work even harder and better in the future. Your verbal praise can kickstart their abilities leading to better work efficiency and more productivity. For better effect praise them on a conference call, it will not only boost their confidence but will also push others to work harder.
Secondly, annual or biannual increments can help in employee retention. Increments are an effective way of acknowledging employees for their efforts and hard work.
Lastly, incentives can also work in your favor. Incentives show that you recognize the extra effort employees have put into the work.
Additionally, paid holidays can also do the trick for you. What better way to reward an employee than to sponsor a week-long trip to the mountains or a foreign vacation?
All these rewards can play a pivotal role in enhancing your employees’ confidence and cementing their loyalty to the company.
7. Avoid Micromanagement
One of the things that can blow off the employee-employer relationship is micromanagement. Remote work is all about freedom and flexibility, and you cannot do that with 24/7 surveillance.
Although maintaining consistent communication is necessary but unnecessarily hogging your employees’ time can be damaging for their work lives. Not only will you push them to dissatisfaction but you might also affect their mental health.
You have to trust your teammates with their work. The best you can do to ensure productivity is to:
- Be approachable and help them whenever needed.
- Track time via time tracking tools.
- Give them the freedom to form their own rules for remote work.
- Provide timely feedback.
- Communicate with them regularly.
- Make sure they are clear on their roles and responsibilities.
- Encourage timely completion of tasks
All the above-mentioned pointers will help you make sure that employees are satisfied with their jobs.
8. Tracking
Tracking your employees’ activity should be at the top of your priorities. Keeping an eye on the performance of your employees can help you and the employee in multiple ways.
As a team lead, you:
- Get insights into the working of your employee.
- Can identify issues and suggest strategies for improvement.
- Can offer timely feedback to help employees improve their performance.
- Can make sure that employees complete their work on time.
- Can ensure that they are not lagging in their work schedule.
Tracking can be beneficial for employees as well since it helps them gauge their performance. With the work schedule in mind, they can improve their performance to make sure they accomplish their tasks on time.
Tracking is a valuable tool that works well for both parties. Since you work remotely, you can employ the use of online tracking tools to do the work for you.
Final Thoughts:
Remote work is here to stay and might even become a norm for companies all over the world. In these trying times, you have to go out of your way to make sure your employees are comfortable and satisfied since employee turnover can lead to dips in the overall processes of the company.
In addition, hiring recruits is also a tedious task. So, you have to retain your employees to make sure your talent pool remains enriched with the best of the best.
We have just given you a rundown of the best employee retention strategies that might come in handy when working remotely. Make these 8 strategies a part of your employee retention program to make sure all of your employees stay with your company for a long long time.
What do you think about these strategies? Is there anything you would like to add? We would surely love to hear from you. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Till next time, Sayonara.
The post How To Ensure High Employee Retention Rate in Remote Work Setting? appeared first on Productivity Land .