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1. Check-in with your employees daily
A Gallup report showed that 1 in 5 employees left a job because their employer didn’t support their well-being. During this crisis, physical and financial well-being are even more crucial than ever. Top practices for your company to consider include:
Daily check-in with your team and asking about their health, physically and mentally.
Make sure they can always get timely support when needed
Having regular small surveys within the company to see how they were doing/feeling
Providing necessary health-care materials from reliable sources
2. Recognize regularly and frequently
You can’t see your employees and it’s harder to see their performance? True! It’s also more difficult for your employees to feel recognized as they are not sure whether you see their work. Set smaller goals, shorter milestones, and be even more observant to spot opportunities to recognize your team members.
It’s important to show your appreciation for your team’s effort during this tough time. Although it’s not a good time to splash out on rewards budget, it’s an opportunity to take advantage of non-monetary rewards. A thank-you message, or a shout-out to a colleague during an e-meeting, and small gift-rewards relevant at this time can be some great options for employee recognition.
3. Communicate more often
Sunil Prashara, President & CEO, Project Management Institute shared with Forbes his experience with the remote teams around the world: “We have worked to ensure that the human connection doesn’t get lost as the full organization adapts to working remotely. Each morning, I host a 15-20 minute virtual meeting discussing topics not related to ongoing projects. We keep these meetings very positive, sharing everything from best practices for working virtually to showing off new colleagues (e.g. employees’ kids, pets and plants). It’s been an effective and lighthearted way to keep employees connected, and we’ve been seeing conversations that started during the morning meeting continue to evolve on our internal collaboration tool, Yammer, throughout the day.”
Communication is the key to prevent misinformation and demotivation within your team during this crisis.
4. Provide rewards relevant during the lockdown
Besides other adjustments related to company policies, employee rewards should also be adapted accordingly. You probably want your employees to stay safe at home at this time, thus rewards should also be supporting it. Work-from-home-friendly rewards ideas prepared for you from EveHR team include:
Online shopping vouchers
Essential grocery goods vouchers
Mobile and Internet top-ups
Online bookstore and learning courses vouchers
Fresh fruits
5. Remember to celebrate important occasions
It’s time for an e-party! There are numerous ways for your team to celebrate special occasions together regardless of the lockdown. Do you normally send small gifts or vouchers to people celebrating birthdays? Make sure to recognize them online and send some e-gift so they feel they don’t miss out on any company recognition because of the lockdown. Others will also notice and appreciate this extra effort from you.
Another great idea - “Happy lunch” is a fun way for your team to spend time together. Every week, plan at least 1 hour to enjoy lunch or some snacks with the whole team during a video call. This is also an ideal alternative for one’s birthday party or company’s milestones.
6. Provide a sense of security
It’s not a secret that during the coronavirus pandemic people are much more concerned about their health. This stress will also have a serious impact on your team's productivity and wellbeing.
The most practical solution for this is to provide your team with timely support. A manager should appear to be available whenever anyone needs to talk. Providing free access a medical hotline s another option to think about.
7. Communicate and align goals
About half of all U.S. employees -- remote or not -- don't know what's expected of them at work. The number could even increase much higher as the whole team works remotely.
As a leader, make sure you communicate clearly and early with everyone about the company's goals, your expectations and detailed KPIs for all employees. Ask your people to verify their understanding and check-in on progress more often because remote work creates more risks of losing the alignment during the process.
Click here to learn about 3 free tools from EveHR to increase employee engagement during the time when most of your employees work from home.
