Australia has a very small total number of confirmed coronavirus cases compared to most countries. One of the reasons why Australia has managed to shield its population from the pandemic is because the government imposed strict measures to slow the spread of the virus. That meant that life had to change quickly. After the lockdown came into effect, most companies had no choice but to allow their employees to work from home.
Should I set up a fully remote business?
Now that more than a year has passed since the first confirmed COVID-19 case in Australia, both employers and employees noticed that working remotely may be better than a traditional office environment. There’s a good chance that a lot of new businesses will be working remotely even after the pandemic becomes a thing of the past. In case you plan to set up a fully remote company, here are some helpful tips that you should follow.
Communicate your objectives clearly
Communication is extremely important when you’re talking with your employees in-person, but it’s even more crucial if your staff is working remotely. That’s why you should communicate your objectives clearly whenever you assign someone a new project. With proper communication, you’ll significantly reduce the risk of failure, mistakes, inefficiency, and misunderstandings.
Schedule regular staff meetings
In a remote work environment, it’s recommended that you schedule staff meetings either at the beginning or end of work hours each day. Take half an hour each day to discuss current projects and future objectives with your employees. Hosting these meetings will help you establish company-wide communication on a daily basis and will keep everybody in the loop.
Provide employees with equipment
In a traditional work environment, you have to provide your employees with equipment that they need to do their job. If they’re working from home, they’ll only need a computer. Keep in mind that some of your employees might not have a good enough computer to do their job efficiently from home.
Talk with your staff and check whether someone needs better equipment. Many business owners rent laptops in Australia for their employees. This gives them access to quality computers at a fixed monthly rate and helps them avoid large upfront costs. Apart from computers, your employees will also need a number of software tools to make communication and collaboration easier.
Change the onboarding process
It’s much easier to build relationships with new employees in person, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do it effectively remotely as well. It will just take a bit more effort on your part. Take the time to plan your onboarding process and how you’ll help new employees understand your processes. Encourage your staff to talk with new employees via video chat and make them feel welcome.
Prepare your managers for the transition
Your managers will need to put in a lot of effort to learn how to manage remote workers. A lot of people get lonely from time to time when they’re working from home. Managers should be there to schedule regular one-on-one meetings with employees, host virtual events, and provide encouragement and support to the staff every day.
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