Over the past years, the popularity of remote work has skyrocketed. Today, about 3.5% of the US population works remotely and by 2025, an estimated 70% of the workforce will be working from home.

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However, remote work isn’t without challenges. Even though remote employees are in general more satisfied than their in-office counterparts, they can often feel isolated and, as a result, less invested in the company’s goals.

So, if you’re wondering how to scale a business with remote employees, the first step you need to take is to make sure your remote workforce is satisfied and motivated. For this reason, we’re offering 6 hacks that will help you boost your remote team’s satisfaction.

1. Encourage Communication

In this day and age, when employee experience is becoming more and more important to a company’s success, failing to ensure clear internal communication can significantly harm employee satisfaction levels. This is especially true for remote workers who can often feel left out and lonely.

Creating a healthy remote work environment is as important as when working from the office. Frictionless communication with your employees helps you get to know them better, makes sure you’re on the same page regarding the job tasks and builds trust.

The good news is, there’s a great number of tools you can use to ensure clear communication, such as Slack and Zoom. You can also use WhatsApp Business to make sure that information reaches and is read by your team members in a timely manner. After all, for Millenials, who will make up 75% of the total workforce by 2025, chat is the most natural way of communication. With WhatsApp Business multiple users can efficiently collaborate on incoming conversations, pick up or assign conversations, tag each other, and chat internally, all without leaving the platform.

2. Invest in Your Remote Employees’ Growth

Employee development is good for both employees and businesses. However, many businesses have trouble incorporating professional development into their remote work culture. Research has shown that about 70% of employees in the States are likely to leave their current job and accept an offer with an organization that is known for investing in employee development and learning.

So as remote work continues to grow, it is very important that organizations invest in their employees’ growth as well. Talk to your remote team members to find out what your remote workers need and expect but also to provide regular feedback and coaching to ensure everyone has the required information and tools to do their best work.

3. Show Appreciation

Showing your employees that you notice and appreciate their hard work is one of the best and easiest ways to boost their satisfaction levels. However, many managers tend to forget it, especially when it comes to remote team members.

In an office environment, you are around your employees all the time, which makes it easier to show how much you value them. With remote staffers, things are a bit more complicated but there are still ways you can achieve this. Some of the easiest ways to show appreciation for your remote staff members include:

• Getting in weekly one-on-one video calls with them
• Providing regular feedback
• Praising them on a job well done during an online team meeting
• Sending them a handwritten thank you note gift for a successfully completed project

Remember, it’s not always about great gestures or financial bonuses, sometimes a small kind word can go a long way.

4. Organize Team-Building Events

You might be wondering how you can organize team-building events if your employees are working from different locations around the globe. Not only is this possible but it is also highly recommended as team-building events are vital to creating a healthy work environment and boosting employee satisfaction levels.

One way to circumvent the obstacle of distance is to organize a remote event where tall team members could jump in a group video call while sipping their favorite drinks and chat or play a game together.

Alternatively, if you have an opportunity, try to arrange monthly or annual in-person meetups (this is doable if, for instance, your employees are in the same country but work from different locations). You can go to a restaurant, a bar, or take part in group activities like hiking.

5. Avoid Micromanagement

Flexibility is the most appealing benefit of working remotely, so be sure to avoid micromanaging. Too much controlling and micromanaging is the fastest way to undermine your employees’ motivation and decrease their productivity, regardless of whether they work remotely or not. Not to mention, micromanaging someone who’s hundreds of miles away is almost impossible, so it’s best to simply not do it.

By allowing flexible schedules and letting remote employees do their job at their own pace, you will show that you trust them. As a result, they will like you more and will be more motivated to achieve better results.

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6. Offer Benefits

Remote work offers a number of benefits for employers such as cutting costs, but have you ever thought about offering your remote workers benefits such as pension funds and health insurance?

This is a great way to give them an incentive to stay with you longer while at the same time separating yourself from the crowd as not many remote-based companies cover employee benefits.

Final Words

With more people working remotely than ever before, clear communication with your employees is vital in order to ensure they feel understood and valued. Promoting a positive company culture that supports employee development and encourages engagement will improve your remote workers’ productivity and well-being, motivating them to stay committed to your company.