How to Manage a Virtual Workforce

  

  

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This is the third in a series about how audio conferencing services and web conferencing can help you enjoy the benefits of remote workers while avoiding the common pitfalls of such working arrangements. This discussion focuses on integrating the remote worker’s office to meet the needs of your company.

Office Space

Any remote worker you hire should have a separate, fully functional home office, with all the machines and capabilities found in your office. This means ergonomically correct desks and chairs, quality telephones, fast computers, web cameras, broadband internet, fax capabilities, copy machines and the like. You must communicate all of these requirements to the employee and then verify they are in place.

In most cases, workers are happy to supply the necessary hardware at their own expense. If your company has specialized hardware or software that you will provide, be certain the employee signs a contract, specifying the rights and duties of each party in maintaining the equipment. You should also spell out what happens to such equipment should the employee relationship be terminated.

Training

Do not assume your employee knows how to use your company’s communications systems. Have a quick web conference to go over the different avenues of communication and address any training issues at that time.

It is also important that your telecommuters understand who your service providers are and how to use them. This can include mail services or office-supply vendors. Show employees the proper procedure for utilizing these services.

Hello, My Name Is…

Introduce the new employee to current staff with a photograph and bio. Open a dialogue by including the new employee in a web conference staff meeting as soon as possible after the hire. Connect the new hire with another worker who has been telecommuting for you on a long-term basis.

Settling In

It is best to get your employee up and running as soon as possible. Assign basic tasks that will familiarize the employee with your systems and then begin adding more complicated work as the days pass. Schedule fifteen minutes each afternoon for a web conference to address questions and direct work.  Finally, be sure to get them up and running with your conference call system -  conference calls are the great telecommuter equalizer as clients, workers and prospects are all dialed in, creating a veritable virtual office for communication and primed for collaboration.