A few weeks ago, working remotely was an alien vocabulary for most companies in Nigeria. With the spike in the global pandemic COVID-19, it has become a welcome development as most organizations are allowing staff to operate from home to curb the spread.

It is normal to struggle with the new trend especially as employers are pessimistic about getting maximum efficiency.

We have put together a few tips to help both employers and employees maximize working from home.

1. RIGHT TOOLS: The first thing is to ensure that employees are well equipped with the right tool and resources to be as productive as they would be at the office. This means everyone should have proper devices and applications such as laptops and stable internet. Else be sure to hear excuses such as “my internet was poor that is why I didn’t send the mail”
2. VIRTUAL COLLABORATIONS: Because things aren’t quite the same, one-on-one meetings might be almost impossible at this time. Communication is key and there are a few platforms that make virtual collaboration easier such as Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Slack, Skype to mention a few. Having the appropriate app in place to conduct virtual meetings encourages employees to feel connected.
3. BE REALISTIC: Yes you need to be realistic with what your team can achieve remotely. Most people have probably never worked from home before and might see it as a mini holiday. Make sure to schedule regular virtual meetings and agree on the tasks that you can focus on individually, to-do lists will also help a great deal.
4. CREATE A WORKSPACE: If you are being totally honest with yourself, you can’t exactly stay productive if you are on your bed, popcorn in hand with Netflix on. Working from home is exactly what it is so WORK FROM HOME. Create a workspace with a comfortable desk and chair and minimize distractions as much as possible.

The COVID-19 Pandemic will not be an excuse during appraisals, so it is important that people take the opportunity to work remotely as seriously as possible. Frankly speaking, with fewer distractions from colleagues, random official calls and the boss calling you into his office at regular intervals which can be distracting no doubt, working remotely should be more productive and fun for most of us.

Feel free to explore.