Remote work is more popular than ever, but not every team has found its stride. While Gallup reported that 38% of remote employees feel engaged, compared to 19% of in-person employees, other research shows that 86% of employees who work from home full-time experience burnout.

Working remotely requires a balance. But how do you find it? What can leaders do to improve the employee experience? How can teams find their flow together?

Increasing engagement on a remote team takes the right people, processes, and tools. Here’s what you need to know. 

Establish Best Practices Together 

Consistency is one of the most important things to focus on for your remote team. While everyone will have different routines and experiences working from home, you can establish best practices as a team and ensure that your team's working experience is consistent and excellent. 

Here are some questions to ask and answer as a team:

• How frequently will we all check in with each other? 
• How will we check in with each other? Chat? Video call? 
• When and how often should we meet as a team? 
• Can we make time to connect without pressing work tasks? 

The last point should also be decided as a group. It can be beneficial to have time to talk with each other without focusing on work, replacing ‘watercooler’ talk in person. Some teams loathe this kind of interaction, while others will get lonely and disengage without additional connection. 

A great way to meet everyone’s needs is to host an informal coffee chat or working lunch on set dates. Maybe every other Tuesday, the team has a half-hour coffee break where people can pop in and chat. Give them space to get their work done, and don’t make these meetings mandatory. Leaders can encourage their teams to connect organically by providing opportunities, not forcing them. 

Use the Right Tools to Understand the Team 

A baseline understanding of each other’s preferences and behavior is crucial for remote teams. Since you won’t have everyday interactions to learn from, you’ll have to rely on limited personal information from calls and meetings. 

That’s where the right assessment tool comes in. By guiding a team through the assessment process, you simultaneously invest in their professional development, improve awareness of themselves and each other, and give them a way forward. 

“As a leader, you want to make sure that your team members also understand their own styles and the style of those in their own team,” said Vanessa Boettcher, Chief Operating Officer at TTI Success Insights. ”This will help them make the most out of their strengths as a team and perform at their best. When you create an environment of mutual compromise and respect aligned with clear expectations, you'll get the results you've worked for.”

Assessments create a shared language, giving teams the vocabulary they need to truly understand themselves and each other. You won’t have to guess at motivation or behavior—the assessments will provide the information you need to support each other and work together effectively. 

In addition to assessments, make sure your remote team has additional tools to support their productivity, organization, and communication. Use a project management tool to assign tasks, set deadlines, and align the team on next steps. A chat tool like Slack or Discord is a must for consistent and continuous communication. 

Empower Your Team 

Finally, establish trust as a remote team norm. Encouraging feedback, both positive and constructive, will help keep work transparent and effective. When the team is open and able to communicate, you’ll establish trust. 

Leaders can do that by not micromanaging their teams. Make your expectations clear, use the right tools to keep projects on track, then let your team shine. 

“What I learned as a leader during COVID is that you shouldn’t micromanage, but you should check in,” said Bobby Tyning, Vice President of Creative Services at TTI. “I would ping my team each day to see how they were doing and if they needed anything. Past the pandemic, when you’re remote, you can easily become invisible. Others might assume that you’re not working, but you can build trust by hitting deadlines, getting things done, and asking for clarity. Communication is key.”

Vanessa agrees that consistency is the key, from both leaders and workers. “When teams do have that clarity, when people know what they’re expected to do, you can see them perform with minimal supervision. As a team member, you don’t feel like someone’s behind you, stressing you out. As a leader, you don’t have to worry about constantly checking on your team members—you have enough understanding to see that they’re performing.” 

Focusing on communication, consistency, and trust while using the right tools can increase engagement on a remote team. 

Are you looking for assessment tools for your team? TTI is ready to help.