Remote Workers: Are You Neglecting Your In-House Team

A challenge for remote employees is that they are out of sight of both you and their team-mates. Since nature abhors a vacuum, employees fill that information void with what they imagine to be true, based on the evidence at hand — and few people make up a best-case scenario.

Some of the more common complaints we hear from them include:

• I only hear from you when there’s a problem.
• Team members go through the manager rather than come directly to me — don’t they trust me?
• Of course, the promotions will go to those who are under the boss’s nose every day.
• I’m missing out on all the real information that happens when people work together, the casual hallways conversations and the spontaneous meetings where the real work happens.
• I really hate getting group emails telling me there are doughnuts in the breakroom. If I can’t come, don’t invite me.
• Head office thinks the world revolves around them.

Remember the biblical story of the Prodigal Son? One child stayed home, did all the work and the other one came home and got full honours? Needless to say, the stay-at-home son resented the situation. The same thing is going on in your office whether you want to admit it or not. Some of the most common complaints are:

• Why do they get to work from home? I’d like to work from home but they (meaning managers) don’t trust me enough.
• Why don’t those other people respond when I need them? They won’t get back to me in time, it’s easier to just ask my manager.
• Why is my manager always communicating by email and teleconference, would it be so hard to talk to me like a person? And if we are going to be on the phone does it matter if I’m in the office when it happens?
• We get all the dirty work because we’re close at hand.
• We have all these new processes in place to double and triple check our work. Managers don’t trust us any more?
• Those people working at home think the world revolves around them.

So what are managers doing that creates these tensions? Here are a couple of key things.

First, be aware that until people get to know, trust and even (yes it matters) like each other, they will want to go through you. You have the most solid relationship with any of them.

You’ve seen it: “will you please pass this on to X”, or the more subtle version, being copied on every email. Get out of the middle and let both parties know they have to work together and not involve you unless there is a problem or a decision they cannot make. Then stand back and don’t get involved — for some managers that can be difficult.

Second, be aware of sensitivities, however silly they may seem. Don’t send remote employees news about the pizza you’re bringing in unless there’s a reason. (Tip: I had a manager that used to send Starbuck’s coupons to remote employees so they could get treats, too.) They’ll just feel like all the cool kids are getting invited to a party they’re not. Keep your remote team up on office news (not gossip) and keep the home team apprised of what’s happening with those team members who are working elsewhere.

Don’t discourage the employees that do work together from collaborating and working together in a way that makes sense. If hallway conversation or visiting cubicles gets results, let them visit. Just be sure to keep remote employees into the loop.

Last, share the pain of time zones and distances. Sometimes one group will have to accommodate the other by being on a webinar at some ungodly hour. Just make sure the pain is proportional. Recording Web meetings and teleconferences and posting them for those who cannot attend will help people stay connected.

You don’t really like one group of employees more than another. And if you do, then keep it hidden, like Mum and Dad did.