As higher numbers of employees shift away from centralized work spaces and into remote work, managers may need to take additional steps to keep those remote workers engaged with their teams and invested in company objectives.

Below are some ways to keep your team connected, motivated and productive even when they are working from home or from separate locations.

Keep Lines of Communication Open

Communication is one of the keys to keeping your team functioning efficiently, but it’s one of the first things to suffer when switching to remote work. You’ll want to have regularly scheduled group meetings and one-on-one check-ins as needed to keep everyone on the same page, whether that is daily, monthly or somewhere in-between.

Consider investing in digital tools and apps to help your remote workers stay connected.

And be sure to solicit feedback from everyone and implement some of their suggestions to improve team communication, tweak work schedules and provide support and resources where needed.

Allow for More Autonomy

One of the changes remote work brings is that it requires employees to work more independently.

While you will need to put in some effort to keep tabs on everyone while not being physically present, don’t be afraid to give some employees a little more freedom and flexibility.

Some employees will thrive under this new arrangement, while others will need more attention from you to stay on track. As their manager, you’ll need to be sensitive to who needs more supervision and who needs more autonomy.

Encourage Social Interaction

Another big change that remote work brings is the lack of in-person social interaction. For more introverted employees, this new model can be a blessing and will actually boost their productivity and feelings of job satisfaction.

But that won’t be the case for everyone.

Other employees may feel isolated. And that could make work feel lonely and unsatisfying.

So just as you would do in a more traditional office environment, try to foster a work culture that will make it easy for remote workers to make friends – both within the company and in their own community.

Transitioning from a traditional work environment to remote work brings both challenges and benefits. For more ideas about how to implement these changes, including how this shift could impact your budget and finances, contact Star Capital USA today.