It’s been over a year now since the start of the Covid-19 global pandemic began, and for many areas, restrictions continue to lift as people return to a new normal of life. With that involved many returning to the office as usual. However, not everyone will opt to go back to work, as some will continue to work from home.

Remote working looks appealing from the outside, but it comes with unique challenges for both the employee and the employer. One of those challenges is to ensure that the employee completes the work on time and stays engaged with the company.

How do you keep your remote employees engaged with work? We have five tips from GR-US.com to help.

Stay In Communication

Communication between employee and employer and employee and colleagues is critical for remote workers. It’s easy for the worker to feel too distant and not connected to the company without it. This can often lead to a lack of motivation and caring for the job.

Keep the lines of communication open for the remote worker. Encourage him or her to video conference into meetings, schedule regular phone calls, or even chat on messenger with colleagues on their breaks. The purpose is to keep some regularity of what it’s like working in the office.

Check-In On the Employee

As an employer, it’s easy to forget that you have additional people working for you if you don’t see them regularly. Don’t let your remote worker slip between the cracks because you only see him or her a few times a month or even a year (and maybe even never).

Make an effort to check in on the employee regularly. The hard part, though, is not to come across as micromanaging. Instead, you’re checking in to keep the employee connected and to ensure that the office is still available for help whenever needed.

Set Clear Goals

One of the biggest challenges of working from home is how easily someone can become distracted. It could be the kids are home, and the laundry needs switching or taking a few extra minutes in a break that soon turns into hours.

You, the employer, can help keep your remote worker on track and productive by setting clear and realistic goals. Have regular virtual meetings where the two of you discuss and set weekly and monthly goals, and be sure to check up on the progress.

Recognize Their Work and Dedication

Since working from home has unique challenges, don’t forget to acknowledge and reward the worker for a job well done and staying dedicated to their work. Even a small recognition by sending a company-wide email can be enough to give the remote worker a boost of confidence and motivation.

Learn What Motivates That Specific Employee

Want to know the best way to keep your remote worker engaged and productive? Ask him or her what works best. When you learn what motivates someone, you can then use that to help keep them on task and productive. Plus, it also shows that you care about your employee since you took the time to get to know their needs and motivators.

Remote working isn’t new to the world, but it is unique for many companies. Since Covid-19 brought many changes to the workforce, you may find that some employees prefer the remote work setting over the coming to the office. Learn to keep them happy and engaged, and your remote worker could be one of your top employees.