Remote Work Programs Require Sustainability to be Effective

An article on Gartner points out that from 2021 and beyond, the number of employees who will  choose remote work will  go up and require organizations to accommodate 40% more of such jobs. In addition to this, social media for HR professionals will undergo unparalleled revisions in terms of social media HR policy and social media strategy for human resources.

What are the actions that enable sustainable and effective remote work?

These corresponding steps must be taken to get the best out of your remote work initiatives:

  • Determine the amount of remote work your organization can support.
  • Continuously identify the work that can be done by a remote workforce.
  • Redesign and repurpose your business processes.
  • Construct outcome-based performance measures.
  • Keep close tabs on progress and milestones.
  • See if a remote trial period is necessary as this allows employees to try remote work and then determine if it works for them and if it is worthy of permanency.
  • Seek feedback from peers on employee performance – peer evaluation gains more primacy in remote work as managers are largely unaware about remote work peer interaction.

What could hamper remote work?

Since managers are unable to see their remote teams working, trust issues may arise. Remote workers may be ill-equipped or unprepared to keep up with the demands of the remote setup, which may lead to excessive stress, burnout, and low productivity. Technological pitfalls are still a real challenge to remote jobs.

How do you create sustainable and effective remote work programs?

  • Since mutual trust is the lifeblood of sustainable and effective remote work programs, create an organizational remote work culture that revolves around honesty and transparency.
  • Focus on creating a network of virtual, reachable, and skilled agents who are supported with adequate remote job equipment.
  • Create a blended work approach – combine remote, traditional, and mobile work to phase in the workload while retaining a certain level of comfort and avoid an abrupt shift.

Enroll in the Social Media in HR: From Policy to Practice certificate program brought to you by Genashtim in collaboration with eCornell to learn why HR professionals must leverage social media and internet tools to create advantageous environments for remote workers.

eCornell courses are approved by SkillsFuture Singapore for SkillsFuture Credit as well as by HRD Corp Malaysia.