Motivate, don't measure.

The last few months have confirmed what many of us already knew.  That monitoring the behaviour and performance of employees can help improve that performance.  However, when many, if not all, of those employees are working remotely, such monitoring becomes difficult.

However, the other, more important lesson learned from lockdown is that monitoring employee performance is less successful than creating high performance via a positive and supportive culture which creates engaged and self-motivated employees, eager to make their contribution irrespective of the type or level of monitoring.

Again, continuing to fully engage employees is not always easy.

Obviously, engagement starts with communication, so the various communication tools the have come into common usage ca be very helpful … but only if you:

• communicate in the right way
• communicate the right things.

Employees need information to do their jobs effectively. So shared file systems can also be important -ensuring employees can tap into organisational databases and reference files.

It can be  useful to allow communication about non-work-related topics - the equivalent of moving the water-cooler or other social focal point online - but there should be  a separate channel for this ... and clear protocols about what can, and cannot, be included on ‘official’ channels.

We are talking about culture here, so it is important to continually reinforce the organisation’s core values - by what is said and what actions follow.

Effective communication is always dependent on the will to communicate. If the will is there, ways can be found to make the communication effective. And if the messages sent show trust and a commitment to shared values, employees should be engaged and reassured.