5 tips for staying in touch with work-at-home colleagues

The "new" working from home has already left many marks. Positive, but also negative. One of the most frequently heard disadvantages is the lack of contact with colleagues. This lack of contact can greatly increase feelings of isolation. So it is important to do something about it and actively seek contact! But how exactly do you do that? In this article we share 5 tips to stay in touch with your work-at-home colleagues in a positive way.

Tip 1: Corona survey

Do you know exactly what your employees are currently up against? What are their struggles or what makes them happy? Of course, you cannot look inside the heads of your employees... Step 1 is therefore to gain insight into the wishes and needs of your employees. So that you can take action on that basis. Therefore, draw up a survey around corona. In it you can, for example, ask questions such as:

• Do you manage to work effectively from home?
• What do you run into, when it comes to working from home?
• How do you feel the organization handled the situation?
• How can we support you in working from home?

Make sure your survey is no longer than 5 minutes and communicate that it is only open for a few days. This way you lower the barrier to participation and increase the likelihood of response. Based on the feedback you receive, determine what actions the organization can take. For example, is there additional demand for mental support? Do employees want more frequent consultations? Do they indicate they prefer to start a little later? Analyze the answers and see how you as an organization, manager or supervisor can support them.

Tip 2: For and by employees

Working from home can cause colleagues to miss a sense of belonging. Therefore, give employees the opportunity and space to organize activities for and by each other, in which everyone can participate voluntarily. Perhaps an employee is a star at zumba and enjoys providing an online zumba class for colleagues. Perhaps someone else can cook really well and would like to organize an online cooking demonstration, sharing a delicious lunch recipe. The great thing about this is that you find out what your colleagues' talents are and get to know your colleagues from a completely different angle. This way you can also enrich each other's knowledge and stay in touch.

Besides sharing their own knowledge, you can also let employees work together on their professional development. For example, we-learning modules are available in SkillsTown's online platform. These online courses are aimed at working together on the personal development of employees. Think for example of the we-learning Working together on sustainable employability, Working together on 21st century skills and even Working together on collaboration! A great way to ensure that employees do not stand still in their development and remain in contact with colleagues.

Tip 3: Online coffee machine

In the office, the coffee machine is the place where the latest gossip comes in, but also where you share good ideas and get inspiration.

Just because we can't go to the office now doesn't mean we can't have low-key conversations or exchange ideas and inspiration. Even getting together informally with colleagues can be done online. Many companies use interactive programs such as Slack or Yammer. Here, in addition to work-related channels, create places where you can "drop in" on your colleagues for a chat at any time of day. For example, in addition to the business chat group, create a second chat group that clearly distinguishes between work-related conversations and small talk.

Tip 4: Start a walking competition

Taking a daily walk is good for mental and physical health. Therefore, encourage your work-at-home colleagues to exercise during the day. And they don't have to do that alone. Nowadays there are handy apps that allow you to walk 'together' from a distance.

For example, the app "Ommetje. This app was developed with professor of neuropsychology Erik Scherder. Through the app you can start a walking competition with colleagues. Indeed, 'Ommetje' keeps track of all walks and with this, colleagues can earn points and different badges. Through a ranking you can see which colleagues make the most detours. This way you encourage each other to keep moving.

Tip 5: End your work week together

Surely one of the most enjoyable aspects of working in the office is the Friday afternoon drinks. Just because we now work from home doesn't mean these have to disappear completely. Instead, organize an online VrijMiBo!

There are countless options for filling out Friday afternoon drinks, even online. For example, you can organize a pub quiz, setting up questions for your colleagues. However, that takes some time. Fortunately, there are also plenty of websites that have pub quizzes ready for you. You can request a pub quiz from ArtPub or even use a free pub quiz from Kahoot. To make your drinks even more fun, there are websites where you can order drinks boxes and have them delivered to your colleagues. You can do this, for example, at Absoluta or Digiborrel. Enough possibilities for a fun way to spend your VrijMiBo!

Getting your employees started?

Do you want to share knowledge internally to stay connected with colleagues? Or offer them online training in the areas of working from home, dealing with stress and increasing work happiness? As an online training provider, we offer a variety of courses to give employees the right tools to do these things. Curious about the possibilities of such a personalized platform with online training?

During our online demonstration, we will show you the personalization features, give you a taste of our wide range of training courses, and provide personal advice on how to deploy and implement the platform.