Marcus RichardsWorking from home has revolutionised the way office work. Businesses can streamline their processes and reduce costs, but remote working also comes with a unique set of challenges for management teams to address. Human resource departments need to make adjustments to a remote working culture to ensure employees are still supported while working from home. Here are some of the ways that businesses are changing their approach to human resources in the age of remote working.
Working From Home And Outsourcing HR
Many businesses are looking for new solutions to human resources when they begin to make the switch from in-house employment to working from home. HR is one of the most important elements of any business, but when employees make the switch to remote working the demands on the department change. This has led many businesses to consider outsourcing their HR responsibilities.
This can save time and money, while also helping business leaders to focus on the all-important tasks of growing their business and their customer base while developing new products and services. Citation is a group of employment law consultants that can take the headaches out of HR. They can give businesses the freedom to expand and the peace of mind that their human resource requirements are being upheld.
Maintaining A Feedback Loop
Communication is one of the most important parts of human resource management. Whatever approach you take to HR with a work-from-home workforce, you need to ensure that the lines of communication are always open and monitored. Whether sending an email or an instant message, the wording used must be clear and concise to avoid confusion or miscommunication. Remote workers can struggle to get second opinions from other staff members about messages. Clarity is important.
For both outsourced and in-house human resources teams, monitoring and maintaining communication with employees can be challenging. Every team needs to use all the tools available to them, such as email and business-focused social media apps, to keep in contact with employees and provide opportunities for feedback.
Mental Health And Working From Home
Employees working from home can feel isolated. This can be detrimental to their mental health. When a business switches to a remote working environment, human resource teams need to have a bigger focus on the mental health and welfare of employees. Though working from home does come with advantages, especially for work/life balance, it can also come with personal and professional challenges.
Working from home can also affect the physical health of employees. When HR teams take a more active interest in the physical and mental well-being of workers and make regular, informal check-ups on team members. This can have a positive effect on employees. Simply knowing that there is a team available to them for support and care in the workplace can have a positive effect on employees.
Working from home brings a lot of benefits, but also challenges. Human resource departments need to alter their working practices to accommodate working from home and the needs of remote workers. The tools are available and with the right approach teams and workers can become stronger when working from home.
