Increasingly, many businesses are seeing a shift from the traditional office setting to a more flexible work-from-home structure. Dexcomm has been on board with remote working for about ten years, so we have developed strategies and systems to effectively manage remote workers and create a seamless transition. Here are Dexcomm's top tips for introducing remote working at your business.
1. Figure out if remote working is a good idea for your business
Is your employee retention rate lower than you would like? Do employees complain about their work/life balance? Most importantly, have employees verbally expressed an interest in remote working? All of these can be signs that your business might benefit from implementing a remote working policy.
2. Establish a rigid remote working policy
Once you decide that your business would, in fact, benefit from a remote working policy, you must create an agreement between remote workers and the company. At Dexcomm, our work from home policy addresses work time frames, confidentiality, and performance metrics. Figure out what works best for your business.
3. Set expectations
We make it known to our remote workers that their computer and internet are essential. It's almost as if their internet connection and computer is the car they use to get to work. They cannot perform or get to their job without it. To mitigate any distractions, we make it clear that our remote workers should have a work station set up in a locked room, and be alone when they are clocked in. To ensure that they can effectively perform their job functions, we provide remote workers with a keyboard, monitor, and mouse. We check in with remote workers quarterly to assess their performance and see if any changes need to be made to their policy.
Key Points
When utilized effectively, remote working can increase a business' applicant pool and lower overhead costs and office expenses. Take some time to think about your business needs and decide whether remote working might be an effective alternative to a traditional office setting.
