In a world where more and more people are working remotely and may only see their colleagues face-to-face on an irregular basis, companies are having to work harder to build team rapport and connect employees to each other. One of the best ways to overcome these barriers is through the use of technology. A whole host of companies now exist that aim to help companies improve the performance of their staff through better distribution of information and more regular virtual connections.
Intranets and sharing information
One of the first things that many companies struggle with when a large proportion of their workforce goes remote is getting information to all staff in a timely and efficient way and registering whether or not they have read it. One of the best solutions to this problem is the use of an intranet service such as Omnia intranet. These services bring together all of a company’s digital assets such as documents, news updates and company policies and present it in a way that is easy to access and navigate. They also often include instant messaging services and other tech like email.
Once a service like this is set up, it’s important to make sure that staff use it. While some companies choose to enforce this by making sure that staff log in a certain number of times a month and reprimanding those who do not, there are actually far more effective ways of driving adoption. The best way is simply to make sure that the content on the intranet is useful to employees and that it makes it easier for them to do their jobs. If staff do not want to adopt an intranet then it suggests that the problem lies with the content on it, rather than the attitudes of the staff.
Building social connections
After a year or more of COVID-19 lockdowns, many staff are suffering from ‘Zoom fatigue’ and the last thing they want to do after a long day of working from home is log back on to a meeting platform and hang out with their colleagues. One way round this is to encourage employees to build up one-to-one relationships with their colleagues and develop these in their own time.
Employees can help this by providing time for employees to share their interests with one another during work time. While there may be a temptation to ensure that the conversation remains work-related at all times, it can often be far more effective to allow employees small moments to build their relationships with each other. This can increase their workplace happiness and ensure that they stay at the organisation for longer.
