Remote Work Best Practices for Any Working Environment

As businesses contemplate their return to the shared office, many of the positive habits built up from remote work are well worth keeping around. Here are the top remote team practices that are worth maintaining for those teams returning to work in person:

Focus on Goals, Not Tasks

Remote work tends towards goal-oriented, not activity-oriented management. Where an office setting can pressure employees to constantly appear busy, a remote work situation shifts focus from tasks to deliverables. Focusing on goals, rather than tasks or projects, requires organizational alignment but empowers more autonomous, motivated employees. 

Enable Clear and Open Communication 

Clear communication is crucial in a remote team setting. Providing several different communication technology options to collaborate across teams is beneficial, and we plan to use the remote workplace resources that have kept us engaged, motivated, and productive even when we’re back in the office. 

Providing Daily Check-ins

Whether it’s a Slack update, a phone call, or an email, daily check-ins are a great way to keep everyone on the same page and working towards the same goals. Regular updates provide visibility into what each person is working on, as well as reassurance that employees’ concerns will be heard and addressed.

Publishing Weekly Reflections

Providing a weekly status report (or “reflection”) not only keeps things moving in a remote setting, but builds positive habits, sets a consistent cadence, and builds transparency into work and priorities at every level of the organization. These reflections typically cover what’s been done and what the priorities are, and replace tedious goal reporting with a lightweight business process.

Accommodate Flexible Work Schedules

Employees face varying responsibilities while working from home. By focusing on goals, each employee knows what they need to do to accomplish, and is free to bend the traditional 9-5 workday to support their home life. Giving everyone the flexibility and autonomy to do their job on their own timeline is empowering and motivating to employees. 

If you want to talk about anything we’ve covered in this post or learn more about what Koan can do to help you enhance all of this, just let us know - we’re happy to help!