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Businesses are moving further away from an “office-first” culture and toward one of flexible working -- during the past 12 years, the number of people working remotely has risen by 159%. It makes sense, then, that businesses should also be thinking about how to create a remote work policy.
Formal policies carry the benefit of providing clarity and transparency for both employers and employees on the company’s remote work or work-from-home policy. This is especially important now as the world has been plunged into enforced remote work due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Speaking from experience, businesses that don’t create and implement formal remote work policies will struggle to successfully manage the way their employees telecommute, or work away from the office.
Not only does the lack of a company policy cause problems and confusion, but it can also disrupt your workforce and generate a mutual feeling of distrust.
To help businesses combat problems early on, we’ll go through the considerations they need to make before creating a policy and what a successful remote work policy looks like.
A work-from-home or remote work policy is an agreement or set of guidelines a company uses to outline expectations and responsibilities for employees who work either from a remote location or from home.
These policies typically include information on:
A remote work policy (also known as a telecommuting policy) can cover both employees who work remotely on a full-time basis and employees who occasionally work from home.
Businesses all over the globe are pivoting to remote work, but many are forgoing a formal remote work policy.
HR policies take time and resources to compile and roll out, but that’s no excuse for not having a formal remote work policy. Without one, businesses open themselves up to myriad liabilities.
Here are a few aspects to consider before creating your business’s remote work policy.
This question ties into the rationale behind your decision to allow employees to work remotely. Businesses should be wary of granting remote work as a “reward” for tenure or seniority since doing so carries the risk of alienating other employees.
Remote work should be offered as part of a strategy that aims to bring efficiency to the organization and flexibility to the employees.
Here are some other things to consider when defining which employees should be eligible for remote working/telecommuting arrangements:
A large part of successfully handling telecommuting is learning how best to remotely manage employees. This includes how often managers should check in, how often they should schedule one-on-ones, and which remote tools to use.
Broadly speaking, this question can be addressed by looking at how often employees are permitted to work from home.
For example, if your policy states that employees can largely work from home whenever they want, you’ll need to make more concrete plans for connecting with them. If they are teleworking on a less-regular basis, you can be more flexible.
Here are a few tips for deciding how to connect with remote employees:
If you’re new to managing a remote team, measuring the productivity of your employees can be a daunting task.
Instructing employees to use a time-tracking tool to calculate the hours they work may give the impression you don’t trust them, yet you still need to make sure employees are supported well enough to remain productive while working remotely.
Here are a few ways you can measure productivity without appearing overbearing:
A remote work policy should include the following five aspects.
Be clear in your remote work policy about your expectations surrounding your employees’ availability. This means being specific about the times you expect your employees to be available for contact.
This part of your policy allows you to be as flexible as you’d like. Working remotely is not the same as working from an office, so it’s advisable to bear that in mind when deciding on a working hours schedule. Remember that the biggest benefit for employees of working remotely is the flexibility.
Be reasonable with your expectations, but be sure to include the following information:
Employees need the right tools to complete their work while telecommuting. It should go without saying that they need to have internet access, but what tools will you provide to help them complete their jobs?
Businesses need to be explicit about what they can offer employees who work remotely. If employees are expected to provide their own laptops or phones, put it in the policy. If the company provides all, or a certain amount, of the technology they’ll need, put it in the policy.
Additionally, it’s extremely important to let employees know what kind of technical support they can access when working remotely and experiencing technical difficulties.
Companies must consider the security of their business data while permitting employees to work remotely. In the absence of a secure and centralized computer network, businesses will need to be explicit about how employees are expected to handle confidential business data.
Remote work policies should include the following information relating to security:
As an employer, employee safety is still your concern even though your employees aren’t in the office. This section of a formal remote work policy should outline an employee’s legal rights and any liabilities they, or the company, will be subject to while working remotely.
The policy should include information on the following:
The key to creating a solid remote work policy is setting expectations early on, ensuring that employees are properly supported to work from home, and, crucially, evaluating the policy on an ongoing basis.
You’re unlikely to create a perfect work-from-home policy with your first draft, and policies can be difficult to execute the first time around.
There will be hiccups and roadblocks that you need to address, but ultimately, fine-tuning your remote work policy will help all employees remain productive and comfortable while working away from the office. Think of it as a remote work company policy template that can be built on.
Remember, guidelines will only get you so far. For any remote work program to succeed, organizations will need to fully commit to the philosophy behind it. Trust, transparency, and flexibility are all key to creating a work-from-home policy that benefits everyone.
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