Extraordinary times ask for extraordinary measures. With the global outbreak of the Covid-19 Pandemic, people, corporations, and businesses find themselves in extraordinary and difficult times. With over half of the world in some form of lockdown, people are not able to go to offices. Remote working, wherever possible, is becoming crucial to keep jobs and businesses running.

The times of “I want everything in house” are changing and organizations now need to adapt to this new way of living, working, and keeping the show running. Some companies have had the globally distributed working model for quite some time whereas some are now compelled to walk this path.

The productivity of employees in remote working can be both concern and challenge and can vary for different industries and situations. It would be the prerogative and responsibility of leaders to ensure that productivity losses are in check and all known challenges of remote working get addressed in the best possible way. Hence, my suggested Do’s list for organizations is as below.

Do OVER Communicate ( you know that Over is in Caps– I am stressing it and you should too!). Regular virtual meetings with well-defined MoMs and follow-through actions

Clear and Crisp Task Assignments – Well-defined tasks with clear timelines.

Have more trust in your employees/partners/ vendors – they need to see success too!

More control over the process – Get your hands dirty in all aspects to ensure slippages are identified and addressed early.

Full transparency – Communicate your strategy, growth plan, expectations – let all know what needs to be achieved and work towards that common goal

Use best tools – Collaboration and communication tools, development process tools, Project Management, Continuous Integration, Code check, Automation testing, Reporting tools, Analytics – Use whatever ammunition you need to gain success. Reporting and Productivity Metrics- Data should beat opinions and biases. Have clear reporting and dashboards indicating productivity and other metrics.

Collaborate – None of us want to work in silos right? Imperative that all parties are involved and know their bits and parts for the larger good.