While most employers return to the office, some giant firms prefer a hybrid mode. Employees’ return does not signify the end of remote work. A considerable number of employees still work remotely. Owing to the lack of clarity with a good number of remote employees on the board, companies may not return anytime soon to official premises.
Thus, managing and directing have become tasking in the current situation. As a remote team manager, analyzing the employees’ performance and core skills is a complex deal to crack. However, it does not have to be a headache. You still share complete dominance to help the person sitting on the other side. Plan the interactions, and discussions, hold webinars for training and clear the confusion. In the case of an underperformer, hosting an a1:1 session could be a solution.
Underperforming employees are worth the attention. The reason is many of these employees perform brilliantly offline. If you do not attend to their problems, other employees may suffer performance too. The additional burden of managing work more efficiently on both ends affects performance.
It is essential to deal with such issues personally and professionally. Until the employee feels the connection, things will remain unchanged. This underproductivity may affect the company’s and employee’s growth curvature.
The article here states the best ways to deal with such issues.
5 Ways to Help Struggling Remote Employees
The situation here demands walking the extra mile and extending a helping hand to confused employees. What is provoking their anxiety? Why do they get overwhelmed with the task provided? It is paramount to detect the roots early. Here is how you could initiate the process.
Revise your Expectations
It is the most useful method to address your fears and aspirations. Before connecting with the employee, re-analyze the goals. Re-visit your expectations. What is it that you want employees to deliver? Are your messages clear enough to decipher and work on?
Have you provided employees with a clear overview of the project detailing everything? What is the reason behind the disappointment? Is it the delayed delivery or the way they present it?
Ensuring clarity on these aspects would help you break the shackles and get closer to your goals. You could revise the policies and engage with employees with a better motive, realistic expectations, and etiquette.
Host sessions if you suspect the underperformance is due to a lack of proper training—partner with an experienced senior colleague to help the person.
Understand your employee’s strengths
Employers often make mistakes by not utilizing the employee’s ability to the full extent. Before assigning them the task, analyze the core strengths. What could he be better? Is the task provided aligned with his expertise or knowledge?
Tap into their passion, hobbies, past work success, and work-life schedule. Modify your approach to align with their needs. Analyze whether they perform better in a team or solo. In a remote setting, employees generally prefer to work how they feel comfortable.
But if they are not performing well in that case, the manager must take the lead. Respect other responsibilities they might have, like- nursing a child, taking care of ill family members, etc.
Identify the most suitable way for them to work productively. In this case, they may benefit from a flexible work schedule. Balancing both worlds get more accessible with a comfortable plan.
Refrain from reviewing the work harshly
“Empathy” is an underrated skill that managing authority must have. If you are dealing with someone facing issues understanding a concept and constant failure, do not rebuke them. Many underperforming employees share this vague feeling of not performing up to the mark. But they must not let that sink in.
For example, instead of telling them to perform better or “I don’t think you are handling this task well,” say, “If you do it this way, it would be easy for you.” Always encourage them to work up to their potential. An employee that learns with clarity and delivers excellence on the table. They require a little pat on their back for the little win the rest follow.
Provide the needed tools for better productivity
In the rush of shifting the organizational setup from bricks and mortar to a remote landscape, employers missed ensuring sufficient tools. It could be a cause of underperformance for most of the employees overboard. For example, an employee may lack the knowledge to use a particular device.
He may be facing difficulties with the all-new workstation setup. So, businesses must circle down the requirements and the issues employees face dealing digitally. Invest if the situation calls for software that makes the task much more accessible.
Delaying in establishing a comfortable workplace may make employees leave frustrated. The efforts may go down the drain. And the worst, losing a resource is never good news for a firm.
If there is an immediate need for it and you lack sufficient capital to cover the costs, get a business loan at a low-interest rate. It proves profitable if you have a good credit score but lack funds. Searching for an immediate solution is better than losing employees in a row. Check the best quotes and get one for your re-defined business goals.
Introduce a remediation Policy
Although the above points may help the underperforming employees get the needed assistance timely, it is not enough.
It is essential to present a clear indication of proceedings that follow post-under performance. Mention the straightforward ways the organization will notify the employee of his under performance. It will help employees make necessary efforts towards task completion.
They would contact the manager for needed assistance and concept clarity. It helps the firms too. If an employee is not performing up to the mark, given several attempts, the firm may terminate them legally. Mentioning this in the policy eliminates the liability and the guesswork for employees.
To conclude,
Taking purposeful steps and managing the situation with empathy and personal understanding helps. The remote workspace would flow smoothly if a business has a well-defined process to track and attend to under-performance.
