Remote work is on the rise — five in ten U.S. employees have remote capable jobs, and 81% of them work from home at least part-time.
As this trend continues, setting clear employee expectations is essential for maintaining productivity.
Let’s look at seven steps every business leader should take to do just that.
What are remote work expectations?
Remote work expectations are predefined guidelines for remote teams to follow when working from home. They set the standard for how many hours employees need to be online, where people are permitted to work and what equipment they should use.
Establishing clear expectations ensures employees understand what you expect from them when they’re working remotely. Whether you use a remote work policy template or build your own, the key is to provide guidelines for day-to-day activities such as:
- Standard work hours
- Virtual meetings and communication
- Equipment use and data security
Why is it important to set employee expectations for remote work?
Creating guidelines lets remote workers know what you expect from them. It ensures team members understand your performance standards and eliminates confusion over deadlines and goals. By holding work-from-home employees accountable, you set the stage for:
- Greater transparency: Setting employee expectations increases trust among remote team members since people know how, when and where to communicate what they’re working on — and when they need help.
- Better communication and collaboration: Remote team expectations ensure each person understands who’s responsible for what, making it easy to communicate on projects and goals.
- Faster turnarounds: Holding team members accountable keeps projects moving forward when everyone’s working remotely.
- Improved work-life balance: Clear expectations show employees not only how but when they should be working, reducing the risk of burnout from unnecessarily working nights and weekends.
How to set employee expectations for remote work in 7 steps
Ready to create clear guidelines for your remote employees? Follow these seven steps to ensure everyone’s aligned on expectations.
1. Designate communication channels
Effective communication is the backbone of any successful workforce. But in a remote setting where face-to-face interactions are limited, it’s especially critical to create an environment that supports the free flow of information. For this reason, the first step is to establish clear communication channels. Document your policies on which communication tools to use, what to share and when it’s appropriate to schedule a meeting instead of engaging in lengthy email chains.
2. Schedule regular meetings
Regular check-ins are crucial for fostering a sense of connection among remote teams. They empower team members to discuss progress, voice concerns and share important updates. They also help keep feelings of isolation at bay. Decide how frequently you want to meet, but don’t overdo it — a bi-weekly video call is enough to nurture a sense of belonging for most remote employees.
3. Define schedule expectations
While most employees are more productive when working from home, flexible work arrangements increase the temptation to “slack off.” According to one survey, eight in ten remote employees spend a significant amount of time on non-work distractions during work hours.
Prevent this by setting clear expectations on when you expect employees to work, including start and end times as well as breaks. Flexibility is fine — making it easy for people to tend to personal needs is a great way to promote well-being — as long as you document your expectations for work performance. Pick the schedule that works best for your team and communicate it clearly.
4. Clarify performance standards and goals
In an office setting, the natural cadence of in-person interactions makes it easy to touch base on projects and timelines. For remote teams, you have to be intentional. Decide how you want to track productivity, whether that means monitoring work hours, setting specific goals or evaluating performance. Then communicate your expectations to the team. This way, they know exactly what’s expected of them — plus when and how to deliver results.
5. Provide data security guidelines
Remote work environments increase your risk of data breaches, which makes security policies a must.
- Will you monitor employee activity?
- Limit or ban working on personal devices?
- Provide VPNs and other security measures for the home office?
The answers to these questions may vary based on industry and business size, but how you communicate them doesn’t. Clearly articulate your expectations for data security and privacy, and document what will happen when someone fails to follow your policies.
6. Establish a support system
While the benefits of remote work abound, it also comes with drawbacks. This is especially true for full-time remote workers, who often face feelings of isolation. One quarter of fully remote employees surveyed by Gallup say they experience loneliness on a daily basis. Many also struggle to understand how to get support when they face project setbacks or delays.
To combat these issues, spell out specific support options. Some organizations provide training and development programs to increase exposure to new experiences and skills. Others offer in-person team-building activities to foster camaraderie. Regardless of your methods, let employees know exactly where to go when issues arise.
7. Seek feedback and make adjustments
Setting remote work expectations is not a one-and-done activity. As your workforce grows and evolves, so should your policies. Collect regular feedback from your team to discover what’s working, what’s not and what needs to change. Then update your expectations accordingly. This is one of the most important aspects of remote work accountability, since it prevents you from creating policies in a vacuum.
Easily manage your remote workforce with ActivTrak
Establishing clear expectations and policies is one of the best ways to build a successful remote work environment. But how do you know if you’re doing it right? This is where ActivTrak comes in.
Our remote workforce software collects and analyzes daily employee activity data to reveal key productivity trends. More than 9,500 hybrid and remote organizations use it to:
- See how different policies impact productivity
- Understand how remote employees spend their time
- Uncover offsite data security and compliance issues
Ready to elevate your remote work strategy and ensure team productivity? ActivTrak provides the insights you need to make data-driven decisions. Get started today by signing up for a free account.
