Work from home has resulted in the majority of the workforce succumbing to the mental stress, pressure of adapting, isolation, and to deal with the insecurity of possibly losing their jobs.

Couple with the abrupt shift to the new work arrangements, remote employees are truly facing a lot of challenges thrown their way.

As a result, productivity and efficiency have taken quite a significant hit and have got companies scrambling to remedy it somehow.

Without any prior plan to move to a sudden remote work structure, it’s understandable that employers are finding it difficult to maintain the same level of efficiency as before.

This article will highlight five ways through which your remote workforce’s overall productivity and efficiency can be optimized. Let’s take a look.

1. Cross-Functionality

A cross-functional team or CFT is basically made up of team members who have diverse job roles in your company, be it sales, marketing, development, or customer service.

Cross-functional teams promote more efficiency because of the diversity that it brings in the team. Now, a single problem can be approached from different viewpoints which in turn allows you to arrive at the most feasible solution.

Such teams enable greater knowledge sharing and also reduce the effort of approaching other teams to get things done.

Additionally, CFTs provides its team members with a customer-centric approach that will enable them to produce business results that truly elevate the customer experience.

2. The Right Tools

Having the right set of remote work tools can really take efficiency to the next level.

The most important hindrance to efficiency in a remote workforce is streamlining the processes across teams and employees. It’s important that everyone is kept on the same page and any update is communicated effectively.

To ensure such a smooth workflow, the right set of online tools is your best friend in a remote world. The right tool is the one which fits your business costs, requirements, and increases the efficiency of your remote teams.

Here are a few tools that’ll prove to be hugely beneficial for any team:

• Video Conferencing Tool
• Chatting Applications
• File Storage Tools
• Project Management Tools
• Time Management Tools

3. Promote Mental Wellbeing

It is a world full of panic and chaos right now. From layoffs to catching the coronavirus, stress and anxiety are at an all-time high. The mental health of everyone, including your employees, are very likely to be in a downward spiral.

To function and work at their optimum, a healthy mental outlook is just as important as physical health. Maybe even more so. Now, that the world has gone remote, many employees face the pressure of being socially isolated from their peers and loved ones.

It’s essential as a leader that you address the importance of mental wellbeing and take specific measures to promote it among your remote workforce. Here are a few tips:

• Conduct regular virtual meditation classes.
• Hire an office counselor.
• Hold frequent team-building activities and icebreakers.
• Ensure a good work-life balance with regular breaks.

4. Goal Setting

The main objective now is to prioritize the tasks that need to be done over tasks that can be kept in the sidelines. The best way to do so is by setting relevant goals and measuring the outcomes through KPIs (key performance indicators).

Goal setting in the remote world should focus on 3-4 tasks that are substantial to the company and focus on getting them done.

Measuring SMART goals and ensuring that employees reach their quotes, is an effective way of measuring productivity without the need for micromanagement.

5. Work-Life Balance

The world might have gone remote, but the amount of work has quite possibly doubled. People are more overworked than ever, with managers blurring the lines between work and life.

The work arrangements might have changed, but the possibility of burnout still remains the same.

Employees are being made to work 24/7 simply because they are “at home”. It has quite possibly taken out the wrong notion that “work from home” is all fun and games.

To see an increase in work efficiency it’s important that employees are still made to feel like there is a fine balance between work and life.

Encourage the regular timings of work and ensure that your people get the required time to rest and rejuvenate.