For our second installment in our work from home best practices and guidelines series, we are sharing the perspective of our leaders – the managers at lotus823! Our talented managers are dedicated to pivoting the way we communicate and collaborate while ensuring productivity.
Managing a team remotely has presented new challenges that are foreign to many of us, but we have learned so much in a short period of time. Check out how our management team is adapting to the current situation and the key takeaways our Co-founder and Managing Partner, Allison Hernandez had to share while participating in the Working From Home Best Practices Webinar Panel Discussion on April 2nd!
Advantages of Working from Home
- Increased efficiency. By removing interruptions, distractions, and other situations that come up regularly while in the office, our team has been able to completely focus on their weekly tasks on their own. Home, for many of us, means peace and quiet. Our productivity shows in our results, which is something we refuse to ignore.
- Employee wellbeing. During these unsettling times, many of us feel concerned for our health, as well as the wellbeing of our loved ones. Being able to work remotely provides our team with peace of mind knowing they are staying safe and are able to be with their families. It also provides the opportunity to spend more quality time at home, which we know brings joy to so many.
- No commute. By eliminating time spent in traffic, the team is able to prepare for their workday without as much stress and anxiety involved in getting to the office. It also saves money on gas!
- Going the extra mile to stay positive. Our vibrant colleagues always bring so much enthusiasm and passion to the work we do each day. Working from home presents a new, exciting challenge of finding ways to connect and emulate the same energy digitally. Our team is always up for a challenge, and so far, we haven’t struggled with this one!
Disadvantages of Working from Home
- Challenging collaborations. Due to the nature of our work, we are constantly feeding off of each other’s ideas and visions. Being able to ask the co-worker next to you their opinion on a project is not as natural as before, while relying on technology. Fostering human interaction is always encouraged at our workplace.
- Delayed connections. As many of us are wearing multiple hats at the moment, our responses to each other may be delayed as opposed to when we are in an office setting. We overcome this challenge by setting aside time each day to discuss our day-to-day duties.
- Loneliness. We will admit, we are missing the faces of our colleagues, friends, and office pups. Being cooped up inside is less than ideal, but we continue to promote virtual meetings whenever our colleagues need a pick-me-up!
If you are managing your team remotely, there may be some confusion of best practices and how to promote productivity while in a new work environment. Read on to learn more about what has been working best for our managers!
Tips for Managing Remotely
- Consistent communication. While working remotely, we continue to maintain normalcy by hosting our regular weekly meetings for each client account and bi-weekly check-ins to discuss each member’s individual professional development goals. Even though we can’t be together, we can continue to communicate regularly – something our team does best! We meet at our weekly 1-on-1 meetings via video chat.
- Trust. We are truly grateful to manage a self-motivated team that does not require micromanaging. Upon informing our staff on the weekly client tasks, we feel confident knowing all work will be completed with professionalism. We also encourage our team members to reach out any time they may need help with meeting a deadline.
- Relying on digital tools. As we WFH regularly on Fridays, we had already implemented a variety of software and tools to increase productivity and promote collaborations. We use Amazon Chime regularly. Chime is our chatroom that allows our team to connect with each other privately, or within their client teams and includes the ability to do video conferencing and screen sharing. These tools have been a vital asset to check in with our teams and ensure productivity and transparency. Another tool we have begun integrating into our processes is Zoom. This video communication solution allows us to connect with our clients and prospects, as it is widely popular and available to businesses across the world.
Social distancing has nothing on us, thanks to technology! Video chat and virtual conferences have helped us tremendously while working from home. Check out some of the benefits we are reaping from video chats!
The Power of Video Chat
- Virtual human interaction. While we can’t be together in person, we can connect virtually with the technology we have available! Being able to see our colleagues’ smiles on video calls allows us to feed off of each other’s energy and emulate similar interaction we participate in at the office. It also reminds our team that we are always available to talk through any challenges face-to-face.
- Keeping morale up. One of our highest priorities is to keep our team’s spirits up and add an element of fun to our current situation. lotus823 loves happy hour, so we thought, why not host a virtual happy hour! We encouraged our team to grab a beverage (completely optional) and join a company-wide video call to connect and share some laughs at the end of the day. With all the stressful news and challenging situations, this reminded our team how truly blessed we are to have each other! Although we are unable to be together for birthday celebrations, we are continuing to celebrate by hosting video chats and sending the employee their favorite birthday treat they enjoy every year in the office while working from home!
- Encouraging time outside. Spending time outdoors and getting some exercise in seems to be one of the most beneficial and safe activities to participate in right now. Having video calls while taking walks is a great way to get it all done! We are able to discuss important details while taking care of our bodies. We call that a win-win!
To learn more about working from home, check out the webinar panel discussion Allison participated in on April 2nd below!
If you enjoyed this blog post, check out the first installment focusing on tips for employees while working remotely!