For the past 18 months, our Managing Director Evelyn Chow has felt like a race car driver waiting for a pit stop. She has had no break.

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed unparalleled demands on leaders like her as they are forced to rethink business strategies and develop new ways of leading remote teams.

Amongst all the problems she has to grapple with, the one that hit her the hardest was how to engage with people.

“The challenge that stood out for me was about how I can continue to keep the team engaged, maintain a good level of team collaboration, and engage well with clients,” she shared in a 15 July webinar hosted by SPECTRUM Global, which offers curated workspaces.

Titled “Shifting Gears for the Future of Work”, Evelyn was one of three business leaders who talked about their challenges and lessons learned during the pandemic.

Despite coming from three different industries – Human Resources, Legal Services, and Media and Entertainment – the biggest issue they faced was the same: maintaining effective team engagement levels in a remote work environment.

They all had to innovate and adapt their management style.

Fostering Employee Engagement in the Era of Remote Work

Regular Check-Ins

Because information can no longer flow as organically as it did when everyone was in the office, the leaders have had to make time to check in on their employees regularly to ensure that they are well-supported and staying on top of their organisations’ priorities.

This approach will provide employees with the opportunity to receive constant feedback and positive reinforcement for the work they do, which in turn, boost team productivity and engagement levels.

When the pandemic hit, Evelyn was quick to introduce mentorship programs and restructure work meetings to be smaller in size, more informal, and frequent.

“Apart from our fortnightly meetings, we decided to have smaller team meetings because it allows people to interact at a more intimate level, brainstorm, and discuss ideas which sometimes can be harder in a larger group,” she said.

The Group CEO of Apollo Entertainment Media JP Chen seconded the effectiveness of breaking up into smaller groups, especially for the training of new hires, as it encourages deeper learning.

In-Person Social Activities

The shift to remote work has reduced spontaneous, informal interactions between co-workers which are necessary for fostering bonds that feed productivity and innovation.

Recent research from Microsoft found that employees are becoming more siloed and feeling more disconnected than before pre-pandemic days. To address this issue, leaders should actively plan and encourage social activities outside of official meetings.

Evelyn launched a buddy system to encourage her employees to catch up in pairs over coffee whenever possible. JP’s team built trust and camaraderie by going for running and swimming sessions together.

Azmul Haque, the Founder and Managing Director of Collyer Law LLC, continued catching up with his team over meals every quarter while being in compliance with the rules. Despite being separated into two tables, his team was able to get a picture of everybody from a distance.

“We try to make sure that while we are socially distanced, we are not emotionally distanced,” Azmul emphasised. “It is really important to make people feel a sense of community – that they are part of a bigger team and not just working by themselves.”

Embracing Technology

With a plethora of technological solutions available in the market, leaders can leverage them to be more innovative in the ways they engage remote teams.

To replicate the office environment as much as possible, Azmul found an app that reminds his team of a member’s work anniversary or birthday so that they can send an electronic card along with their wishes. It became really fun for the team as people get more creative in their messages by including emojis and memes.

Such tools will make employees feel recognised and appreciated for their work, thereby strengthening their emotional connection to the organisation.

The Importance of Leadership Clarity In Times of Change

A clear and well-communicated vision is essential for organisations to succeed in navigating through a crisis.

As Evelyn highlighted, “I feel that it is really critical, especially in the face of so much uncertainty and rapid change, that we need to be as clear as we can in terms of where we are heading. I do not expect us to have all the answers and I think that is reasonable, but there should be some level of clarity so that we can communicate to our teams. The teams will then be secured with the knowledge of where we are heading and how we are going to craft our action plans.”

Leaders also need to pay attention to implementation as even the best strategy can fail without the right structures, processes, and people in place.

“Execution is key as well. We need to think very clearly about how we are going to translate that vision into reality. I am not saying that you should do that alone, but to involve your team,” she added.

From Survive to Thrive: Unlocking Opportunities in the Way Forward

In every crisis lies opportunity. Although the pandemic has caused severe business disruptions, it has also presented new opportunities.

The formation of strategic alliances has become more prominent as firms collaborate with one another to gain new competencies, build economies of scale, and accelerate growth.

Within the entertainment and media industry that used to be competitive, JP has now developed a close working relationship with other players in the ecosystem including his competitors. This allows them to share resources and achieve scalability when rolling out regional exhibitions, despite not travelling.

The rise of remote working has also opened the doors for organisations to embrace a global talent pool. From video interview platforms to digital collaboration tools, and to centralised cloud-based applications, it is no longer necessary for employees to be in the same office in order to contribute to work effectively. Firms can now source the best talent from anywhere in the world as long as they have access to the internet.

In all scenarios, technology has become a key enabler for new work practices that will shape the future of work for many years to come. At the same time, leaders must not overlook the human element as organisations evolve moving forward.

Evelyn summarised,

“We are in a great position today with so much support and so many good options out there. It is just a matter of having the right mindset, making sure you get the right understanding of the different types of products out there, and paying a lot of attention to change management implementation.”

To gain new insights and perspectives on the future of work, watch the full webinar recording here.