Work from home arrangements have become incredibly common recently.  If you’ve never had remote employees before it can create some anxiety.  “How will I ensure they’re working?  They’re probably going to screw around all day.”  Your mind will come up with endless lists of concerns that can mess with your mojo, but the actual source of your stress may surprise you.

Common Concerns – Take Care of the Easy Stuff First

1. Are they working? –Your team performs some sort of production.  Whatever they produce, you were probably tracking it in the office, and you’ll continue to track it remotely.  You can absolutely tell if they’re getting their work done using the same metrics you’ve always used.
2. Are they doing good work? – What was your method of quality control before going remote?  It probably still works remotely, maybe with some small adjustments.  If all else fails, add in some random spot checks or have employees check each other’s work anonymously.
3. Are we going to be successful? – Your productivity metrics are likely compared against a goal on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual basis.  That doesn’t really change based on the location of your team. 

Noticing a theme? The same things that made you successful (or unsuccessful) in the office still apply in remote work. The list above could be much longer, but you’ve undoubtedly realized by now that not that much is changing. You and your team will do a version of the exact same things you did in the office.

That was kinda basic, why am I still anxious?

Yes, it requires a little extra planning, a little magic from your IT department and a decent internet connection but overall, its business as usual.  So why is sending your team home still making you cringe?

The real issues are the human tendencies to mistrust what they can’t see and to resist change.  Our brains have a huge portion devoted to visual processing and because of that, we tend to think we need to “see it to believe it.”  Initially, our brains won’t want to trust that work is getting done if we can’t be there to observe the process or influence it with our presence.  Also, it’s a huge change sending your team home, especially if you’ve been managing an in-office team for multiple years. Of course this is going to feel uncomfortable. What you’re feeling is perfectly normal.

Forging Trust in the New World

To move beyond the pain of change, it’s time to get painfully honest with yourself and ask the question… do you trust your team?  Does your inability to see them face to face change who they are? Does your inability to see them face to face at work change how much you trust them?

It might take a week or two for folks to find their groove, but long term they probably won’t significantly change their work habits (good or bad depending on the person).  If they did good work in the office, they’ll continue at home. If they were always late to the first meeting due to traffic, they’ll continue to be late due to internet outages, power failures, and pet-related predicaments.

A new working arrangement is actually a great opportunity to add some improvements to your program. Here are a few ways to reinforce your infrastructure and pave a remote road to success.

1. Set Great Expectations – The best way to hold folks accountable (and part of being a great leader) is to tell them very clearly what you expect.  If the old goal was to produce 100 units of work per day, let them know that’s still the goal and that it’s business as usual.  Put your expectations in writing and stand by them. “Be on time for meetings and if your internet goes down, let me know and we’ll conference call you.”
   • If your team has concerns that they can’t perform as effectively from home, this conversation will allow them to verbalize those concerns and allow you to address their validity.
2. Discuss Metrics at All Levels – Metrics are part of the language of success, so make sure you’re talking about them regularly with your staff and your boss.  Does your team know their metrics and if they’re on track to hit their goals?  Measuring performance gives your staff a guideline for their work, gives you peace of mind the work is getting done, and gives your boss confidence that your team is on track. 
   • If you’re not confident you can trust the metrics to monitor the work, take the opportunity to make some confidence-boosting changes.
3. Schedule Communication, Even When It’s Random – Going remote can inhibit communication, so make sure you have a strategy to keep everyone connected.  Recurring calls like team meetings and one on ones provide stability, but brief unexpected chats can add a personal touch.  Schedule blocks of time on your calendar (just your calendar, not your team) between scheduled meetings for friendly unstructured chats.  Get creative and use technology to keep your team connected beyond typical meetings.
4. Leverage Technology – Your company probably has a ton of it. Use it well, use it often, use it to fill the gaps. Not a tech person? Find the techiest co-worker you can at your company and learn about what you’ve been missing. You might even have someone on your team who has a few ideas of what might be helpful. Remote work is not new and technology exists that can help.
5. Take a Chill Pill – Working from home can lead seasoned managers to make newbie mistakes like micromanaging.  Resist the urge! Ask for feedback to ensure you aren’t falling into crappy fear-based management strategies and creating new stress.  If your team members are each pulling their own weight, meeting their goals and showing good quality of work, does it really matter if they’re watching reruns of Seinfeld in the background?  Focus on what’s important and help your team find their new groove.

Still Not Quite There?

If you’re still feeling anxious about the new arrangements, you need to ask yourself the all-important question of why.  Where is that anxiety coming from?  If you can identify it, you can plan around it.  The biggest mistake you can make is not taking the time to understand the anxiety and how it’s triggered.

This can be a great time to check in with other managers and peers in your network and hear how they’ve set up their teams to be successful working from home (just make sure you’re being selective in who you take advice from).  This is also a great time to work with a business coach.  They’ll help you really dig into that anxiety and come up with strategies and actions to move forward with confidence.

Have you discovered a secret of successful work from home arrangements?  We’d love to hear about it in the comments below.