It’s been over a year since being put on lockdown, and many technology teams are being asked to come back into the office. Yet, it appears that many people would rather quit than return back to work. But why? Is it the fear of contracting COVID-19? The flexibility in work hours and dress? Or something else?

Here’s what Flexjobs found in a recent survey they conducted in April 2021:

This survey may not be an accurate depiction of your team but it can help open up a conversation with your employees on what they prefer: remote work, in-person, or a mixture of both. If you made the decision to continue letting your tech team work from home, keep on reading to learn the three best practices to manage them moving forward in 2021.

Ways to Manage your Remote Workers

Communicate Often

When it comes to having remote workers, it is vital that communication lines are open and functioning correctly. Depending on how many employees you have working remotely, it is important to set regular meetings and even conduct virtual company events to help your team stay motivated. Especially with the nature of the technology industry, most employees had to adjust to working from home because, during their typical day in the office, they were surrounded by their coworkers. At Raso Solutions, we conduct weekly Fun Fridays that usually consist of quick activities that we can all enjoy.

Set Clear Expectations

This means letting your team know what you expect of them! Do you want them to follow specific protocols before reaching out to you, or do you have an open-door policy? Do you care about the timeliness of your weekly calls, or do you consider yourself pretty lax? Be detailed about your expectations, and don’t be afraid to let them know when they didn’t meet them. This will help your team have a better understanding of you as a leader and overall team cohesiveness.

Avoid Micromanaging your remote workers.

It is essential to track your remote workers’ progress to push initiatives to the finish line! There are so many great tools for this purpose, i.e., ClickUp, Trello, and Sharepoint.

As a manager of remote workers, it can be highly stressful when deadlines aren’t met, and progress isn’t being made, but that is why those expectations need to be set in the beginning. Communication needs to be one of those expectations to avoid micromanaging altogether.

Business News Daily said it best, “Not even the most efficient boss can actively micromanage all of the employees on a larger company’s team. Doing so will increase not just your employees’ stress levels, but yours, too. Plus, you could quickly find your workflow lacking organization.”

If you find yourself struggling to manage your remote workers, take a step back and review your current management style based on our suggestions above. What is going well, and what can you improve?

Looking to hire new people for your technology team? Connect with a Raso Solutions hiring expert today! Visit www.rasosolutions.com/quote