Staying Connected While Working From Home
Tips for staying connected with your people as we continue to shift into a work from home environment.
Given the recent shift to working from home in response to the pandemic; communication is important, now more than ever. Businesses and organizations continue to meet digitally in order to keep their people healthy and safe. While this is a great way to comply with the global pandemic, working from home can bring communication challenges. Here are some tips to stay in-the-loop for companies who work from home:
CHECK IN
It is important to check in on your people to see how their tasks are coming along, set expectations, and make sure task ownership is clear.
Establish frequency of check-ins: Determine what would be easier for your team -- a daily or weekly check-in to stay connected on what tasks need to be accomplished.
Set clear benchmarks for completion of tasks: Clearly explain what a completed task would look like and how your team should express/communicate its completion. Each task should have a deadline to meet, and expectations to follow.
Delegate project tasks: Every person should have a specific role with specific tasks. It would not be helpful to have two people working on the same task and not know about it! If a task needs more than one person, make sure those people know they are working together.
Alert your people of updated procedures: Amidst the pandemic, work from home procedures are ever changing. Sending weekly or biweekly newsletters is a good way to make sure that everyone is up-to-date on any changes.
MINIMIZE INFORMATION OVERLOAD
If you have already been working from home, we are sure you’ve spent more than enough time on Zoom. There is only so much time we can spend in an online chatroom without losing our marbles.
Reduce online meetings by setting a meeting agenda. This will keep meetings short, concise, and on-topic. Pass along any other information effectively via:
Email
Text
Voice call
It is important to keep the attention of your people, and keep them from feeling fatigue with long, drawn-out meetings.
Even though working from home has its communication challenges, there are plenty of ways to keep communication running smoothly. By checking in and keeping information from piling up, your people will stay connected. If you are looking for a good system to send out reminders of meetings, reminders of check-ins, or relaying information via text, call, or email, REACH Alert has a solution. We can help you keep information as concise and effective as possible.