We here at WAHVE have offered up plenty of reasons why organizations – and retired professionals – should consider shifting to remote work. And there are plenty of great reasons why both companies and workers should consider such a move:

• Higher productivity
• Better work-life balance
• Happier employees (lower absentees and turnover)
• More flexible work options
• No commute
• Larger pool of talent
• More agile operations and ability to respond quickly to or not be as impacted by disaster or significant events

Each one of these points support why we feel organizations and retired professionals should be looking for work-from-home employment opportunities. But let’s talk about the elephant in the room – when organizations and individuals are not prepared for the transition to a remote work environment, things can go wrong. In that situation, remote work does come with some distinct disadvantages. They include:

• Employee feeling of isolation
• The need to increase communication all around
• Team disconnects
• Lower social interactions
• Employees not suited to autonomy
• More technology dependency
• Bad management style

Fortunately, these disadvantages can be overcome. It takes conscious effort and changing the way employees are managed and how they themselves separate their work life and personal life.

Organizational Switches

For organizations, there are some key changes needed to make a smooth transition to a remote or hybrid workforce.

Communication. The largest switch a company needs to make in order to have a successful remote work setup is in how they communicate with their employees. Remote workers need to feel connected to the goals and projects within the organization. We recommend opening up more channels of communication – instant messaging, email, video calls, phone calls, daily check-ins all help employees and employers reconnect. Employees feel more supported, and employers can empower employees to be part of the team.

Team effort. Speaking of teams, part of the communications objectives should be to get your teams talking more frequently. Designate (or have them select) the communication platform that best suits their collaborative efforts. Set regular, targeted meetings to keep teams abreast of the progress of each person on the team.

Benchmarks. For all employees, having a target helps with staying on task. Managers should be working more closely with employees to set goals and check in on progress. It isn’t difficult to see when an employee needs additional help or resources if your managers are regularly staying in contact with them.

Tech tools. When your team goes remote, even on a part-time basis, your technology has to keep up. If your tech is outdated, update it. The money you invest in the best tech you can will pay you back tenfold in more productive employees.

Social activities. Your team in Poughkeepsie needs to feel connected to team members in Wichita, Seattle, and Miami. That’s where social activities help. Celebrate the milestones via video parties. Have a weekly video happy hour. Get them together once a year for a weekend retreat. Every chance you get, let them get to know each other and bond.

Alternatives for some. Not every employee is going to thrive in a remote scenario. Not every employee wants it, either. If your employee is struggling, offer hybrid options or full-time in-office work.

New management approach. This all highlights what’s probably the most impactful change an organization can make, which is to change how we manage our people. Trust more, oversee better, communicate much more. Let your employees work during their best hours. If they’re meeting benchmarks and deadlines, that should be the measure of success, not how many hours they clocked.

Remote and hybrid work has strong advantages, both financially and through employee retention. Still, even the best remote work models need to sidestep the disadvantages that could, if left unchecked, lead to frustration. Build a plan for overcoming the most common pitfalls as you’re revamping your employee work model. Those who are able to make the transition smoothly can reap solid benefits.