Advice on COVID-19 inspired remote working for employees and employers

As COVID-19 spreads, remote working seems to be a way to counter the virus. In light of this, a site that allows you to anonymously review companies has shared some tips on how employers can manage their teams whilst working remotely and how employees can maintain a level of professionalism.

Glassdoor,  five tips for employers are:

  • Honour regular one-on-ones and team meetings: establish a sense of structure and framework.
  • Adopt real-time collaboration apps: apps like Slack and Asana can facilitate collaboration and line of sight into the status of deliverables.
  • Establish virtual drop-in hours: set up a virtual office by using a video conferencing platform that allows people to pop in and out to have live conversations with you. 
  • Embrace video calling: seeing each other live retains connections and replicates the in-person conversations you would normally have in the office. 
  • Schedule time to blow off steam: remote workers need time to bond with their colleagues. Host a standing virtual cocktail hour or create a Slack channel dedicated to a shared obsession.

 

Five tips for employees are:

  • Dress the part: when you look good, you feel good, and you’ll always be ready to jump on any last-minute video calls.  Get dressed, don’t wear your pyjamas all day.
  • Keep your calendar current: keeping people appraised of your availability, even if it’s to step away to grab lunch, is especially important when you are not in someone’s direct line of vision.
  • Know when to step away from your desk: everyone needs a break from their screens at some point; step away to recharge and return ready to take on the rest of the day.
  • Figure out how you focus best: whether you need music to cancel everything out or complete silence to concentrate, change your environment accordingly.
  • Honour quitting time: working remotely can make it hard to set boundaries between work and home. When the day is done, close your laptop and walk away.

 

The disease has forced office workers in China to stay at home and work remotely. Daniel Zhang, chief executive of Alibaba, a Chinese multinational technology company explained how the Sars outbreak 17 years ago helped to boost E-commerce.

In South Korea, in order to protect employees, many businesses have started to adopt a system of remote working.  Intel and Microsoft in South Korea, have advised their staff to work from home and to actively use video and teleconferencing.

Twitter has told its 5,000 employees to work from home. This is mandatory for those who work in Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan.

Jennifer Christie, head of HR at Twitter said:

Our goal is to lower the probability of the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus for us – and the world around us.

 

 

 

 

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Darius McQuaid

Darius is the editor of HRreview. He has previously worked as a finance reporter for the Daily Express. He studied his journalism masters at Press Association Training and graduated from the University of York with a degree in History.