Sometimes, all employees need is to lend them your ear. Many problems get resolved only by giving them a good listen because employees really did not need a resolution and a new corporate law on it, rather all they wanted was to pour the frustration out.
While human resources (HR) all around the globe is worried about whether they can manage the employees effectively who are working remotely or not, I would like to throw a question to all of the readers, can human resources themselves work effectively when held remote?
Got Addled???
Don’t worry! We’ll dig deep into the topic and find out what’s the truth.
For some people, HR working from home is a bizarre concept. They consider it a professional blasphemy (is it even a word? But you got the gist, right?). In this pandemic age, home is the new office and not even HR has remained unaffected by it. So, the pandemic has given the necessary push to HR to work from home which previously was not considered a very fancy idea.
- Online Tools are Strategic Weapon for HR
When not on-site, HR needs some type of online connectivity with their employees so that they can resolve their problems, keep an eye on their performance, and be aware of their emotional wellbeing. Many a remote software is in the market to cater to the purpose, but the performance of cloud-based software is usually impeccable. These tools will keep the teams close and connected in the time of social distancing.
Software-As-A-Service (SAAS) is a solution that has enhanced performance than on premise software and they can also get attached to the back office SAAS tools like resource planning, and accounting software, etc.
- Be Flexible and Organized
The above heading may seem to be an oxymoron for many, but believe you me it is the key to success when working remotely or from home. HR needs to be flexible because employees are not working from the office so, they lack the basic elements i.e. the corporate environment in homes due to which they may miss out many technical assistances or guidance they had their beck and call in the office. They are on their own to deal with the new arduous and hefty task, so be flexible with them. On the other hand, HR needs to be organized in a way that it must craft a concrete plan for employees to follow. Flexibility in daily operations and tasks is a must while the organization of the bigger picture is also indispensable.
- Become All Ears when your Employees need you
Man having video call on smartphone; image by Harry Cunningham, via Unsplash.com.
Sometimes, all employees need is to lend them your ear. Many problems get resolved only by giving them a good listen because employees really did not need a resolution and a new corporate law on it, rather all they wanted was to pour the frustration out. When not staying in a common vicinity, listening goes in the back yard and much focus is put on two-way communication, but certain conditions do not really require two-way communication. For example, Peter’s complaining about Harry’s always completing the task at the eleventh hour can get only resolved by listening to Peter and not saying Harry anything as long as he’s completing the task within the deadline.
- Conduct E-learning
Build the company’s own learning hub by conducting e-learning training sessions so, that the employees do not lag behind in learning new technologies and techniques in this highly competitive world.
- Maintain Check Ins and Check Outs
Who wakes up in the morning with alarm’s sound? I don’t! I only wake up to check in my office on time. A single step taken by HR will enhance the employee’s attendance and regulate them to come and leave the virtual office space on time.
- Check on the Emotional Wellbeing
Expert human resources always check on the emotional well-being of their employees to get the best out of them. But when away from their employees, HR may miss this aspect. Also as everywhere, there are strict quarantine laws and people are subjected to isolation. Always make sure to give individual attention to each employee and notice strange changes in their behavior. Make sure to give the necessary condolences on any loss and ask about each employees’ family’s health in the wake of the second layer of the corona virus.
Summing Up
In these testing times, human resources are in the sheer need to put an extra effort into managing the employees as the entire human race is on the verge of becoming succumb to a heinous virus. The HR needs to walk the extra mile in making sure everyone in the team is fine.
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