Are your staff working from home? Don’t forget to say thank you!

The past year has led to many changes in the business industry. 2020 was a huge learning curve for businesses and employees alike, as many started working from home for the first time in their career. With lockdown restrictions and remote working practises came a whole new set of challenges in the workplace. It’s been challenging to boost team morale when office parties and socials are no longer an option. 

Fortunately, there are various ways to praise and reward your staff that can motivate them. It’s more important than ever to say thank you to your team and let them know that you appreciate them. In Europe and America, employees have been working for longer hours. In the US, the average working hours have increased to a whopping 11 hours since the start of the pandemic. 

Remote working makes it harder to establish a work/life balance for many of us. Employees find themselves working later and longer at home. A simple thank you is a powerful way to motivate your workforce and improve their productivity levels. If your employees are currently excelling, let them know how impressed you are to ease their stress a little. Lockdown and the pandemic were a stressful and highly anxious time for everyone.

Face-to-face work social events still can’t take place. However, you could host online quizzes and cocktail nights over Teams. If your team used to have after-work drinks on a Friday, recreate this traditional virtually. Social events can help your team to feel united and less alone while working from home.

If you have a big celebration or anniversary coming up, you could send out cocktail kits to all of the team. You can enjoy a mixology lesson over Zoom together and have a small cocktail party. Or you could engage in a virtual cooking lesson together so that you are socialising, eating and learning a new skill. Genius!

Make sure to keep an eye on your teams’ birthday celebrations and organise gifts to be sent out to them. Personal gifts and letters are a brilliant way to show your appreciation and support to team members. You could even award gift cards to team members who have achieved a promotion or big success lately.

Small rewards are a great way to keep your team on the ball and focused on the next success. Send a personal thank you card to each team member to remind them of how grateful you are for their hard work.

Set time aside to connect with your team. Consider offering one-to-one meetings with each employee to see how they are handling remote working. You might be able to ease any of their worries and reassure them if they are struggling. Furthermore, working from home can be an isolating experience, so it’s crucial to schedule social time for every team member.