It is common to face challenges in the workplace from time to time, whether that is working on a tight deadline or finding a new way to approach a problem. When the physical workspace is removed from the equation, the current challenges remain and a new, unique set of challenges arise. These obstacles not only affect productivity, but also employee well-being in the long term. Understanding the challenges of remote work can help you identify how to create a return to office plan that will resolve the problems employees are facing. 

Guide to Returning to the Workplace READ MORE.

Employee Motivation

Remote work can quickly feel monotonous. Employees are not interacting with each other as frequently, they are not moving around throughout the day, and their work may seem as though it is going unnoticed. The combination of these factors can lead to decreased motivation. By bringing employees back into the workplace, they will have the opportunity to engage with their colleagues, receive more feedback, and reconnect to the purpose of their role to feel more fulfilled overall. 

Lee Daniels, Head of Workforce, EMEA and UK at JLL says, “By helping their staff engage again, employers stand to gain from employees who feel more fulfilled and empowered and who understand how their work purpose is intrinsically linked to their organisation’s purpose.” When employees feel connected to their work they are going to be more productive and make higher quality contributions. 

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Giving and Receiving Feedback

Offering employees consistent feedback not only creates a sense of accountability within your company culture, but also offers employees the opportunity to continue growing professionally. In a remote work environment, an employee’s work can be difficult to assess. This means that employees are not receiving the feedback they need. According to JLL, more than a third of employees believe that their work in the past 18 months has not been sufficiently recognized. Returning to the office can help create a more consistent flow of feedback.

When a team is working collaboratively in an office environment, you can more easily observe interactions, and identify contributions from employees to provide meaningful feedback. This creates clearer lines of communication to help employees feel more encouraged, reconnect them to the business goals, and understand areas for self-improvement.  

Barriers to Effective Communication 

While there are a variety of platforms and tools available that allow remote teams to communicate more easily, it does not mean that communication is always effective. One common communication barrier that employees face is unresponsive co-workers. When working in office environments, employees can simply walk over to someone’s work area, ask a question, then continue their task. With remote communication, employees may be waiting hours, or even days to receive the answers they need to complete their work. This slows down productivity and can create frustration among team members. 

Along with unresponsiveness, messages are more easily misconstrued with virtual communication. Face-to-face discussions allow each individual to read the other person’s body language, hear their tone of voice, and better interpret the intention behind the words they are saying. When you move communication to email or chat messages, all non-verbal communication is lost, and the intention and tone of communication can be lost in translation. 

Unreliable Networks and Technology

Technology is at the center of remote work. If an employee experiences an internet outage or their computer stops working, they may not be able to successfully complete their work for the day. Alternatively, they may seek a different location to work, such as a coffee shop or library, where the network may not be secure. This could potentially create security issues. Office environments offer better resources for when technology issues arise. These issues can be resolved quickly and employees can stay in their workflow. 

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Ready to resolve the challenges of remote work for your team? Key Tower offers a variety of functional, and collaborative office spaces to give your team the tools they need to thrive. View our current availabilities today!