5 Simple Steps to Support Your Remote Team

Supporting a remote team can be a daunting task. Whether you are a new remote-first company or a business experimenting with hybrid and remote transition models, you will need to have solid mechanisms in place to support all your remote employees.

Many of your remote employees will be working from locations across the globe. You will need to familiarise yourself with their particular needs and goals, as well as fostering a supportive working culture across your team. Here we outline 5 important steps to take so you can support each individual employee and your team as a whole while working remotely.

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1. Employ Your Staff Compliantly

Though not a strategy in itself, employing your remote staff compliantly can be immensely supportive. This entails employing people in line with local employment law of the country where they are residing, even if they are digital nomads.

Employment law varies significantly from country to country. Generally, it will cover things like:

- employer healthcare contributions
- pension or superannuation funds
- maximum working hours and overtime
- paid and unpaid leave entitlement

As an employer, meeting these standards is mandatory. But that isn’t the only benefit. Employing compliantly can give your employees the security they need to thrive. With access to healthcare, pension, and holidays, they will be able to take care of themselves properly and channel their renewed energy into their work.

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2. Remote Benefits

While local employment law also covers basic benefits like healthcare, additional benefits can help create a supportive work environment for your distributed team.

Additional healthcare packages geared towards the needs of remote employees can help your staff access the healthcare options they need. Companies like Safetywing offer packages specifically for remote teams as well as digital nomads.

Progressive benefits like flexible working hours and additional holidays can also really help keep your employees engaged in the long-term. This can give them the flexibility they need to maintain a work-life balance and get the right amount of rest to stay motivated and focused on company goals.

3. Remote Work Allowances

Remote work allowances preceded the COVID-19 pandemic, but have definitely gained traction in 2020. Companies can opt to pay for home office furniture and technology, like software, good headphones, or a standing desk. 

Though it sounds simple, a holistic work environment can really help your employees feel supported and nurtured. This is why Vitrue VIDA offers AI-driven software to analyse remote workspaces for well-being factors. They can help you redesign your employees’ remote offices into functional and supportive work environments.

By providing remote work allowances, either as a one-off or a regular benefit, you can ensure your remote team is sufficiently outfitted to keep healthy and on the ball.

4. Communication Channels

One of the best ways to support your remote team is to make sure they can communicate their needs easily. Providing the appropriate software and systems ensures they know how to reach out and engage with one another.

Apps like Slack, Zoom, or Airmeet can help you create effective and organic everyday communication dynamics. They are easy to use and have different functionalities for different occasions. Whether you want to set up a team meeting, one-on-ones, or open a channel for people to share remote working concerns, these platforms can help you create a mutually supportive working culture.

5. Learning and Development

Access to learning and development is essential for ensuring your remote employees can improve their skills and build resilience. Employees everywhere are faced with the need to upskill in order to meet ever-changing industry demands. Remote employees require additional strategies to ensure they are receiving the training they need.

You will want an offering that allows the learner to choose how and what they learn. Make sure these conditions are available to everyone in your team. One of the key things is to ensure your training repertoire includes options that are relevant to all remote employees regardless of their role. 

The key is to make sure your training platforms are user-friendly and learner-driven. This will allow your remote employees to shape their own learning and create a training plan that suits their individual goals.

Create a Supportive Work Life

Learnerbly specialises in workplace learning. Our software caters to remote employee development and training as much as to those in a traditional office or hybrid work environments. Whether working from abroad, at home, or while travelling the world (in a post-pandemic future), we curate learning resources for all your employees no matter where they are.

At the same time, companies like Omnipresent take over the logistics of compliant employment and remote benefits. From payroll to onboarding and off-boarding, they can support you in creating a dedicated and supported remote team across 150+ countries. They themselves are a remote-first team and can help you create bespoke benefits packages for each individual remote employee.

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This article was written in collaboration with Omnipresent.

‍Omnipresent makes it fast and easy to employ remote talent in over 150 countries. They take care of payroll, benefits, compliance, taxes, and admin so you can focus on growing your business.