Build More Trust in Hybrid Settings It wasn’t long ago that the whole world came to a standstill because of the pandemic. Remote work became the new norm, if at all possible. Employees who still received paychecks while working at home faced new challenges. Leaders and executives, too, were caught unprepared as they were unsure of how to manage people who were only virtually present. The All-Seeing Eye Sixty percent of employers surveyed used tracking software to monitor employees working from home. Also, they checked the social media accounts of their workers more often to see what they had been up to. Companies justified the use of technology to “watch” employees. Also, many managers believed that their direct reports would not be as productive when nobody could “see” them. Many remote workers felt they weren’t trusted enough and soon developed negative views about their superiors. Trust Begins With You As a leader, do you need to monitor your remote employees closely? About 40% of more than 200 managers surveyed in 2020 were not confident with people working offsite. As a result, they tend to micromanage employees they can’t see. Why not cut remote workers slack and give them the benefit of the doubt? And if you want them to perform as expected, follow these tips to build trust instead. Check your biases Do you look down on remote work? If you believe it’s not beneficial, you’re setting yourself and your colleagues up for failure. Give it a chance! Set clear goals What tasks need to be done by the end of the day or week? As long as employees know these, you don’t need to check on them often or “look” over their shoulders. Asking for a progress report every hour is counterproductive. Schedule times for zoom and calls Be clear when you want people working from home to contact you. Call for zoom meetings only when necessary, as messaging or SMS for updates can be enough. Provide the proper equipment and support You can’t assume workers have the right equipment for remote work. Maybe, they need new software or faster internet connections. Think of your employees’ welfare Many studies show that working at home is not a vacation and can be stressful. Employees end up accomplishing tasks and unavoidable chores. Be flexible and help your remote workers cope. Sure, they save on travel and meals, but they might babysit, prepare food, answer the door and feed pets. When you show that you understand their situation and believe they’ll deliver, then you’re building trust.
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