The biggest factor in employee engagement? If you guessed managers, you’re right on track. Gallup’s research indicates that management is responsible for 70% of the variance in employee engagement scores. While some people appear to be “born managers,” most of us could use some training and development to lead teams effectively and develop our management styles.
Today, many managers are working on their leadership skills across digital lines. Even the most experienced leaders have had to flex new muscles due to the shift to remote work. As we continue to embrace hybrid and fully remote work environments, take note of the following management styles and tips.
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Actionable tactics to engage WFH employees
One of the biggest challenges about adapting to remote work is translating your current tactics to the environment. There are some management styles that work great in person but just don’t translate to the WFH life. Connections can be a challenge to establish and maintain in a virtual setting. It’s not impossible to connect and lead a team, but it requires a different approach.
Visibility
No matter the size of your team or the nature of your work, one of the most important things to do is remain visible and accessible. Because your team can’t just pop in to chat, you’ll need to find creative ways to make space for conversations outside of meetings.
Consider offering “open hours” each week to stay in touch. You can make these hours available on your schedule and even set themes each week (e.g., industry topics, best practices, work culture, etc.). You can even send team members gift cards to their favorite coffee shops to grab a cappuccino before the meeting. If you use Slack or another work communication platform, set up channels around these themes to keep the conversation going outside of your open hours.
Collaboration
As you build in time for unstructured conversations, look for ways to bring more collaboration to work. We all know how important team and one-on-one meetings are for overcoming obstacles, reaching goals, and tracking progress. Bring your team into the planning process for these meetings with shared docs.
Instead of sharing the agenda via an invite or right at the start of a meeting, create a shared document that can be updated before each meeting. The shared doc can contain a reusable outline that gets fleshed out each week. Encourage team members to add items, questions and review the agenda prior to the meeting. This method is an excellent way to ensure your virtual meetings are productive.
Engagement
This same idea extends to working sessions. If you’re in a hybrid environment, you may find it’s difficult to ensure everyone has the same level of visibility. Instead of leaving your remote employees out of the brainstorming process, bring them in with a remote collaboration tool. With an interactive smart board, your team can annotate, edit, comment, conceptualize, and more. No matter where your employees are located, they can work together as productively as if they were in person.
Vibe’s interactive whiteboard was designed with remote teams in mind. Whether you’re brainstorming on a new project or working on a go-to-market plan, you’ll love being able to take collaboration to new heights.
Want to see what Vibe could do for your team? Get a free, no-strings-attached demo. And learn even more about the future of remote collaboration in our State of Remote Collaboration Report for 2021.
Vibe offers a collaborative solution combining an interactive digital whiteboard and innovative smart software. Increase engagement and efficiency at your brainstorming sessions, virtual training, and classroom sessions by integrating your favorite applications with video conferencing and an infinite, mess-free writing canvas. Collaborate today with Vibe.
Looking for the latest in interactive whiteboard technology? Check out Vibe today!