March 2020
At a Distance: 5 Considerations for Remote Working
There are plenty of benefits to offering remote working to your team – particularly at the moment as some employers are taking steps to minimise the risk to their employees amid the current coronavirus pandemic. Though many start-up teams are still left demanding the option to work remotely as a precaution.
It’s good to act fast to reduce anxiety among your team during these times. However, you’ll want to consider a few things before you offer remote working to members of your staff. In fact, you may already be able to offer this, or perhaps are only a few simple steps away.
Here are 5 considerations for offering remote working…
PAYE Outside the UK
When it comes to working with remote teams, it’s always worth considering looking at talent abroad where possible. After all one of the benefits of working with a remote team is being able to tap in to talent anywhere. However you need to ensure this all stays above board when it comes to tax. Not all countries have the same arrangements with the UK, and as the employer, ensuring the right PAYE is being paid will be down to you and your accounting department. Luckily, the government has provided a thorough guide to overcoming this hurdle, available online. If you’re still unsure, it pays to talk to a finance professional to stay on the right side of tax law.
Getting the Best Tools
Remote working’s mass expansion has been made possible thanks to the rise in Cloud-based technology and the solutions its paved the way for. Obviously, if you’re going to implement remote working, then you need to make the most of these solutions and have them put in place before an employee orders their first latte and settles down to work in their local coffee shop.
You’ll be glad to know that there are plenty of tools available to help remote working take off smoothly (and stay under control), such as Lunar’s bespoke CRM solution, featuring integration with a multitude of third party apps. Well, we couldn’t not mention it, could we?
Understanding Expectations
Remote working success is built on a foundation of trust, and a huge part of that trust means meeting expectations – both between you and the employee(s). This means outlining what is expected from different members of the team, including catching up at regular intervals, and explaining the conditions for remote working (for example, if it’s two days in the office, three out).
On your side of the table, your team need to know what to expect from you, for instance, if they need help or want to catch up. Between you, you’ll need to foster the kind of trust which will leave both parties feeling confident, connected and ready to be remote.
Communication, Communication, Communication
Whether it’s through email, phone calls, WhatsApp or your bespoke CRM, you’ll need to work out how communication will be carried out, as well as how often. The best teams are the ones who stay connected and on the same page, and it’ll be up to you to work out how best to approach this challenge.
Managing this communication is also part of the package, and ensuring that everybody is adjusting to the new way of communicating will be a task in its own right at the beginning – but once everybody is used to the changes, it’ll come naturally.
Ask Yourself ‘Is it Fair?’
Finally – and an important aspect of remote working, but one that is often overlooked – you must ask yourself if the remote working scheme in your business is fair. Are you offering it to everybody, or just a select few? Will you consider requests from some but not others? Is there a way you can make the whole process fairer?
They’re tough questions to ask yourself, and yet they’re key to making sure the whole team is happy with the remote working opportunities on offer. Answer them honestly and act on your decisions to create a remote working opportunity to be jealous of!
What are you waiting for? Get started on your remote working journey with a cloud-based bespoke CRM from Lunar CRM – available with third party integration to enhance your experience (and keep your favourite apps). Find out more on our website or get in touch to arrange a free demo.