Doesn’t working from home sound amazing? You can work snuggled under a blanket with your PJs on, sleep during your breaks, eat whenever you want and relax while you work. Oh, and you are saved from the troubles of commuting every day. Also if you like to work in peace and the office hustle and bustle gets to your nerves, remote working is ideal for you. Factually speaking, research has indeed shown that many employees become more productive when working from home. But if we dig deeper into it, are all remote workers happy and productive?
According to Gallup, the employees who report positively about remote working are the ones who work from home part time. On the other hand, full-time remote workers report low productivity and disengagement. Since the COVID 19 pandemic has forced the entire world to work from home full time, these facts are quite startling.
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While it is true that there are numerous big shot companies such as Google have aced remote working, others are still struggling to get the hang of it. It’s not like remote working is a new concept, it has been around for years and was already on the rise. The biggest concern for companies these days is that the entire workforce has gone remote and it gets difficult to manage such a large number of employees.
Many companies are taking help of online communication and collaboration software programs such as Workspee, Slack and workplace by Facebook, to reduce communication barriers and connect with all of their employees simultaneously. Although these online tools significantly improve remote management, they can be of little use if not utilized properly.
Managing remote teams can fail badly if appropriate strategies are not employed. There are so many problems in telecommuting that can lead to a terrible remote working experience.
Here are ten common issues faced by remote workers
- Lower productivity
As mentioned before, remote working makes some employees productive, while for some it has a negative result. If your once efficient employees are lagging behind and their performance is going down, it is a clear indicator that remote working isn’t settling well with them.
- Poor time management and multitasking
Maintaining a balance between professional and personal life can be an issue with many remote workers. Also, juggling between different tasks might not be as easy for some as it would be in a real time office. When working from home, many employees falter when managing their tasks. This leads to a poor performance and lack of productivity.
- Too much distraction at home
One of the biggest issues faced by employees who work from home is that they are easily distracted and cannot concentrate. Friends, family, household chores etc. can take one’s focus off their work. While it is true that many employees say that working from home makes them more focused, same cannot be said for everyone. It’s something subjective and depends on the lifestyle of the employee. For someone who is living with a large family or has small children, concentrating on work can be very difficult.
- Late submissions and delays in projects
Meeting deadlines and completing projects on time is an issue many employees face. Due to distractions and time management issues, many employees are unable to submit their work on time. If your employees are struggling with meeting deadlines then working from home is becoming difficult for them to manage. You can directly talk to your employees and see find out what the issue is and then help them accordingly.
- Technology and network issues
Now this one is a genuine problem. Slow internet, network disconnection, hardware issues, and software problems are some technological issues faced by the employees. And it’s not really their fault. No matter how useful technology is, the truth is that it is unreliable. However, this issue can be resolved by keeping backups and being prepared for the worst. Sync your account on multiple devices and have two or three internet connections if you have to, but always have backups ready in case of a technological disaster.
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- Collaboration issues
When working from home, collaborating with your co-workers can be frustrating and extremely annoying, if not done right. Being physically distant makes it difficult to express oneself and it also makes it difficult to understand what others are saying. The quality of online collaboration depends greatly on the channel of communication being used. Like for instance if you are having a team meeting through group chats, emails or a phone calls you might not be able to communicate effectively. On the other hand, video conferences and virtual meetings can greatly improve online collaboration.
- Unrealistic expectations from the employees
A lot of managers and bosses burden their employees with tasks and projects that are difficult to perform when working remotely. A lot changes when shifting from a real time office space to a virtual one. Hence to expect your employees to perform the same way would be unfair with them. Having unrealistic expectations from the employees can demotivate and discourage them. It is important to more flexible and understanding with your employees when working from home.
- Employee disengagement and demotivation
It’s difficult to keep your employees engaged when they are working from home. It’s natural to lose interest in something that you can’t physically see. Moreover, physical barriers may also make employees feel disconnected and they may feel like they’re losing touch with their co-workers. In Gallup’s aforementioned survey, many remote workers say that they are demotivated because they feel like they are not an important part of their organization. Sometimes it can also cause job insecurity in the employees that can be very distressing and may lead to disengagement.
- Different time zones
This can be a huge issue for employees that located in different countries. Because of varying time zones, it can become difficult to manage group meetings and conduct collaborative tasks. Not only that, it becomes difficult to reach out to co-workers when required. Having different time zones can lead to communication issues that can badly affect an employee’s performance.
- Employee dishonesty and time fraud
When you check on your employees and find them online, are you really sure that are in fact actually online? Chances are that they have just logged in to show their presence and might not be actually working. A lot of times, employees just log in and start doing their personal stuff rather than doing work related tasks during their office timings. Apart from that, employees may also call in sick when in reality they just don’t feel like working. Working from home tends to make some employees lazy which leads to procrastination which in turn leads to dishonesty and lies.
There is absolutely no doubt that remote working has tremendous benefits for both the employees and their bosses. However, it does come with a set of issues that, if not resolved, can lead to a poor employee performance and bad management.
