While associations have been embracing remote working<\/a> for years, many organizations were not fully prepared to shift to remote operations<\/a> almost overnight. Yet, that is exactly what has been happening across the country. Association executives, managers and employees nationwide have been forced to make almost-instant course corrections to adjust to the new normal of remote working. On the bright side, we\u2019re all in this together and there are numerous resources to help those who may be feeling unsettled by the quick turn to working (and managing!) remotely.<\/p>\n Many employees find that the biggest challenge of working from home is setting firm boundaries for the work day. Ideally, you and your team should stick to your \u201cusual\u201d work hours when working remotely, especially when it comes to collaborative work that requires everyone\u2019s availability. For the most part, you should be able to keep your usual calendar items in place, moving them to virtual platforms as necessary (more on that later!).<\/p>\n When you\u2019re in the office, work breaks tend to happen organically as team members come by to chat or you get up to brainstorm with colleagues in another department. When working from home, you\u2019ll need to be more intentional about establishing breaks (and encouraging your team to do the same), so don\u2019t hesitate to build those into your schedule so that they don\u2019t fall by the wayside.<\/p>\n And, of course, the best laid plans can fall apart, especially if you\u2019re one of the many newly-remote workers who are also caring for relatives or children who are now home full-time as well. Think about how these additional responsibilities will affect the work day and build your routine around that as much as possible. Be forgiving: It may help to think of your schedule as a \u201ctrial run\u201d \u2013 stick with it for a few days, or a full work week, then take time to step back and assess which elements worked and which didn\u2019t, and revise.<\/p>\n Whether it\u2019s a function of technology access or learning curves (and possibly both!), be mindful that a whole host of typical tasks may take longer to accomplish when working remotely. Plan realistically to give yourself and your team some cushion on those particular items, so that you don\u2019t find yourself both frustrated and up against a deadline. Once you have a handle on which tasks seem to be more challenging to accomplish while working remotely, that may guide the framework for a daily\/weekly schedule.<\/p>\n Now, more than ever, accountability is key. While remote workers have long been dogged by the perception<\/em> that they may not be working as hard as their in-office colleagues, with entire teams now working remotely, it\u2019s the perfect time to establish a culture of transparency across all team members. Encourage colleagues to share their daily\/weekly workloads and to set goals. Recognize when they\u2019ve achieved goals, either as a team or through one-on-one acknowledgement.<\/p>\n As your team is getting acclimated, you may want to increase the frequency of check-ins. If your team doesn\u2019t already have a set meeting time each week, getting that on the calendar should be top priority. While you don\u2019t want to allow meetings to digress to a laundry list of technical problems, do provide a time for people to vent \u2013 especially since colleagues have probably experienced and resolved many common gripes and can peer lead on troubleshooting. Take the time to check in regularly with each of your team members individually, and identify what resources they need as they get accustomed to the new normal.<\/p>\n Companies have been quick to adopt the many telework solutions available \u2013 Zoom<\/a>, Slack<\/a>, GoToMeeting<\/a> and Google Hangouts<\/a>, just to name a few. By all means, take advantage of the capabilities across these channels, which will only improve over time as more workplaces adopt the technology. But be mindful of virtual workplace overload \u2013 just because a meeting can<\/em> be done by video doesn\u2019t mean it has<\/em> to be. Make sure that employees who may be new to the technology are given the support they need to adopt it successfully, and, like everything else, periodically reevaluate how well each platform is serving your team\u2019s unique needs.<\/p>\n For nearly everyone, the weeks ahead will be spent adjusting to myriad new stressors, and remote work may even feel like the least of it. Each of us will be negotiating this \u201cnew normal\u201d differently, and finding the right balance in this stressful moment of history will likely take some time.<\/p>\n Think about your office and team culture, and how you can translate that to a remote model. If you usually have a weekly\/monthly team lunch or teambuilding activity, keep that going virtually! Is your team naturally competitive and goal-oriented? This is a great time to set up a team activity to encourage team building and distract from the day-to-day stress \u2013 maybe it\u2019s a 10,000 steps a day challenge<\/a> or sharing Strava<\/a> workouts. Maybe a book or movie club and virtual discussion group would be a good fit for your team. You can set up a Slack (or similar) channel specifically for this, so that people can pick and choose when they tune in, so that it doesn\u2019t feel like \u201cone more thing\u201d to focus on if they\u2019re already feeling stretched thin.<\/p>\n Encourage employees (and yourself!) to prioritize self-care and build it into your workday. Think about what keeps you sane when you\u2019re in the office and then figure out how you can replicate those activities at-home, whether it\u2019s getting your steps in while on a conference call, taking a break to make and eat lunch away from your at-home office, a mid-day workout, FaceTime with family or whatever keeps you feeling balanced.<\/p>\nEstablish Flexible Routines <\/strong><\/h4>\n
Be Realistic and Accountable<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Find a Healthy Balance<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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