Remote Work Strategies for Small Business Employers

If the pandemic taught small businesses anything, it is that every organization must be prepared to deal with rapid change. Many small and family-owned businesses are still coping with the aftermath of a sudden change in operations. Remote work is just one of those changes.

Owl Labs reports that 74% of employees are less likely to leave a job when some form of remote work is possible. This is good news for the small businesses that are 2 x more likely to offer some form of remote work opportunities. However, it is necessary to have strategies in place for companies and employees to create a successful telecommuting culture.

Here are the best strategies for small businesses to get the same results as an in-office environment while opening the door for a larger pool of quality candidates and remote work opportunities.

Remote work strategies for employers

Only 44% of companies do not allow any form of remote work, so if you want to get the best candidates you need to be prepared with remote work opportunities. It is ultimately up to your employees to follow policies and maintain performance standards, but it starts with clear communication of policies and expectations and ends with tracking employee performance to maintain standards.

Supporting remote employees while furthering the interests of the company requires a delicate balance. Here are some tips to keep employees and the company on track.

1. How to stay on top of your team while working from a distance

It takes a level of trust to allow remote work, but that doesn’t mean these employees don’t need supervision. It is important to stay abreast of the activities of your team and make sure projects or goals are on track.

Team meetings, occasional coaching, email, and KPIs might work to stay on top of your team in person, but these tips will help you keep that momentum remotely.

• Adopt a time tracking tool. The most budget friendly option for Google users is the Toggl Chrome extension. Toggl allows you to create schedules including breaks and track activity during work hours.
• Use a project management app to track progress for specific projects. Basecamp has been one of the most popular project management software for years, but it has been updated and optimized for today’s telecommuting environment. It also allows you to create and monitor task lists.
• Require self-reporting by your employees on progress and metrics. Email is usually sufficient if you are managing a small team of 10 or fewer employees. For example, salespeople working remotely could be required to report weekly on how many pitches vs sales made.

2. Building a team spirit across multiple cities or countries

Building team spirit requires creating connections between employees and the company, and 85% of managers believe teams being formed virtually is the new normal. Onboarding, including training, has long been the mechanism for doing so. The 4 C’s of onboarding as developed by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) – clarification, compliance, connection, and culture – are even more important with telecommuting teams.

For employees that are not new to the organization but are shifting to remote work, creating opportunities to collaborate within the team builds team spirit. Setting subgroups of the team in competition is also a great way to build team spirit. You can also provide team objectives that cannot be met without teamwork.

3. Software used to create a team vibe with maximum interaction

After you foster team spirit you must maintain that team vibe with as much interaction as possible among team members. According to PwC, 70% of executives are prioritizing remote collaboration tools. Choosing tools that encourage or require interaction that also double as project management tools are best.

Asana, Trello, and Slack are the three most popular team collaboration and monitoring tools. Slack has the added benefit of being designed to support team building and training sessions with features like trivia games.

4. Being able to demand dedication and consistency while supporting team members

Maintaining virtual dedication to the company requires similar strategies as in-office employees. Demanding consistency requires first providing employees with expectations and the tools they need to meet them.

Experts from the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) are consistently pointing out that demanding dedication from employees is a two-way street. As a manager you must also be dedicated to helping your employees be a success. Engaged employees are dedicated employees.

This requires providing training and opportunities for professional development. TalentLMS found that only 70% of remote employees get consistent training, which could account for the large number of managers who feel they don’t get enough out of their remote employees.

5. Hosting virtual team building events that bring everyone together

Most small businesses today recognize the value of teambuilding, but are often lost as to how to implement team building activities online. Meanwhile, teambuilding activities become even more important when teams are working remotely with little communication or without collaboration.

There are several ways you can host virtual team building events. The Offsyte platform offers a wide variety of virtual team building opportunities. Here are a few that could also be implemented with more time and effort on your own.

• Virtual murder mystery as an alternative to an escape room
• Ceramic painting kits sent to team members to complete during team meetings.
• Trivia games, related to the company or industry or of a completely fun nature.
• Virtually visit animal sanctuaries or exhibits
• Variations on favorite game shows
• Mindfulness meditations and self-care activities
• Stress busters in the workplace

While in-person team building might be done on a monthly or quarterly basis, virtual team building should be done on a weekly or monthly basis.

Key Takeaways

Telecommuting is a challenge for small businesses. Luckily, in this post-pandemic world there are more inexpensive and budget friendly options for businesses and teams of all sizes. The best tools for employers include:

• Toggl for tracking time and activity during working hours
• Basecamp for complex project management
• Slack for employee engagement and collaboration
• Offsyte for virtual team building

These are the best tools for small businesses, but there may be others that are better suited to your industry. By keeping productivity, consistency, communication, and collaboration as the primary objectives, any company can foster the right environment for successful telecommuting.