Remote Work
Asterops is a big proponent of remote work. Many companies these days are telling employees they need to come back to the office. Asterops doesn’t believe this is necessary for work to get done, collaboration to happen, and new ideas to develop. Most companies successfully implemented remote work during the pandemic, so it is puzzling that they are going back to in-person work. Also, employees like remote work. It gives employees time back in their days, more freedom with their schedules, and the ability to do things while working (ex: doing a load of laundry, putting dinner in the oven, etc.). Employees give employers a lot of their time and the least employers could do is give them some flexibility with their schedules.
If you are deciding between a remote, hybrid, or in-person work environment for your company, below are some tips to help foster a successful remote work culture.
Do daily check-ins - employees need to be held accountable. If teams are smaller (6-8 or less) do daily check-ins with the team (also known as stand ups back in the office days). If your team is more than 8, break into departments or smaller groups (groups can rotate weekly) so that check-ins can still happen.
Turn your camera ON for meetings - there can be exceptions to this rule (ex: you feel absolutely miserable and can’t fathom getting out of your pjs, but can still attend a meeting), but having your camera on helps keep employees accountable. It also makes employees pay attention more as it’s harder to multi-task during a meeting when your camera is on.
Conduct quarterly meetups - while Asterops believes in remote work, in-person interactions are still important. If possible, quarterly meetups are a good cadence for getting the team together. They can be only fun or a combination of work & fun.
Welcome a new hire - when someone new joins the team, schedule meetups with employees on the team that live close to them (if possible) to welcome them to the team and make sure they are integrating well. If no one lives close to the new hire, be sure to schedule virtual meetups for them to get to know the team.
Offer a stipend for remote work - some people do like to leave their home to work – it’s very much a personal preference. If the budget allows, offer a remote work stipend and let people use it how they want (membership at a coworking space, money for coffee to work at a coffee shop, new home office setup, etc.). Be flexible in how employees use this stipend.
Communicate more than less - video meetings, chat messaging, phone calls should all be used frequently in remote work environments. Sometimes it is easier for things to get misconstrued in remote settings, so more communication is always better than less.
Pay the correct taxes - payroll taxes are different for every state & locality. It is important to deduct the correct amount of payroll taxes for each employee based on where they live. Gusto is our recommended payroll provider and makes it easy to run payroll for a remote workforce. They take all the taxes out automatically and pay the necessary state and local entities based on where employees live.
Asterops believes remote work is possible. Employees are adults and responsible for doing the work they are asked to do. It shouldn’t matter where that work gets done (or even when it gets done) as long as it’s high-quality work and meets the deadline. At times, employees are treated like children and it’s time to give them back some of their time and freedom to be adults.
- D