As of Monday afternoon (16th March 2020), the government strongly advised that we avoid non-essential contact and travel, recommending we work from home where possible. Some organisations may already be fully equipped for remote working as it is already embedded in their culture and practices. Whereas, for others the shift to remote working may be seen to pose a threat to business continuity and workplace routine.

Whichever party you fall under, the Clear Company understands that everybody will be experiencing some uncertainty and disruption whilst we transition towards our peak of the global pandemic. Here, we offer some practical advice on how to introduce an effective remote working policy and for those who are already a step ahead, we discuss how to develop your policy, culture and workplace structures to ensure you and your employees are getting the best out of remote working.

Practical Advice

Ensure all employees have the resources they need:

• laptop
• work phone
• secure remote access to the corporate network/intranet
• access to corporate emails
• Set up a team drive to ensure content sharing and access is available
• Set up virtual conferencing to ensure meetings can go ahead as usual

Remote Working Policy

• Make requesting remote working easy
• Give employees the autonomy to decide whether they want/need to work from home
• Train line managers to understand and implement policy
• Update policy in line with Government guidelines – this needs constant reviewing and communication throughout the organisation

Going a step further

Creating a culture of trust is key to ensuring this change is successful for all:

• Align your remote working policy with reasonable adjustments – for some employees Covid-19 may pose a serious threat to their own wellbeing or their family’s; communicate your remote working policy with these employees and show your support
• Give employees the platform to voice their concerns or troubles working from home
• Lead from the top – take personal responsibility and set an example by working from home where appropriate
• Offer virtual career coaching and support
• Communicate how working from home is good for business
• Organise a daily team-check in – a short call to ensure that all is ok, answer any questions and keep that personal contact.
• Minimise excessive job demands and support boundary management – there is sometimes a tendency for people to ‘over work’ at home to prove their worthiness; ensure that all employees know that the expectations are just the same as in the office

The Clear Company are here to support you in these unprecedented times with all of the assistance, guidance, learning and implementation support required to successfully manage business as usual