Employee Engagement and The Remote Worker

After reflecting on the Todd Rose podcast I posted about last week, I have been thinking a lot about the staggering numbers around employee engagement, or lack thereof. I disagree with Monica Padman's fact check.. I'm seeing up to 68% of employees aren't engaged. 

I can't help but wonder if there is a correlation between a decrease in employee engagement and an increase in a remote workforce. 

According to a Forbes article, "The 2017 Gallup poll identified the remote work sweet spot, finding the highest rates of engagement among workers who spent 60 to 80% of their time out of the office." This may tend to negate my theory, but hear me out. 

As a 100% remote worker myself, I love the benefits of working in my pjs, taking care of a sick child and continuing to work, and not having to commute in sub-zero temps. However, I do miss the relationships in the office, the organic coffee chats, and being part of the community.  I am a connector by default, I love to find people I think would help others thrive, I am passionate about sharing podcasts or other stories with people who I know would enjoy them. I am a bridge builder, and an outgoing introvert. Being at home, by myself, day after day, can be lonely. When I made the transition almost 2 years ago. I didn't realize how lonely I would be. All I thought about was how much more I would get done with 3 extra hours a day (for not commuting or getting ready for work)… spoiler alert... I don't know where those three hours went, but they certainly aren't me getting any time to catch up on anything good. Luckily, I had worked for my company for the previous 4 years and had already built some pretty solid relationships across the organization.  However, like all relationships, without tending to them, they start to crack.

Good relationships, not only between workers and managers, but also between workers and teams are key to employee engagement. According to a study by Qualtrics (State of Play, US Employee Engagement Trends 2018), 79% of people who trusted their teams "a great deal" were likely to be excited to go to work in the morning. 

The Forbes article mentioned above does a good job of talking about how the managers can help in the "plight of the remote worker", but I think there is some responsibility that needs to be put on the remote worker as well.

What is the responsibility of the employee to stay connected to the office:

1.  Make time to connect: Not only with your boss, but with a mentor, peers, other people in the organization. Are you new to an organization and working remote? This is even more necessary. In todays' world we work in cross functional teams, and you are much more likely to get a "yes" from someone who you have built a relationship with. I recently had two "coffee breaks" with some colleagues over the last few weeks. We talked about family, life, and work. Giving and receiving feedback about career plans is one of my favorite things to do with my collection of wonderful peers I have met throughout the years. Its harder as we have all gotten busier to make these times, but they are important in both tending to your network and growing your leadership skills.
2. It's ok to not be all business all the time: I really struggle with this. Small talk is not my forte, but I don't get to chat around the coffee pot anymore, so take the first 2-3 minutes of a call (while everyone is trying to figure out how to use skype desktop share) to check in on your team or your customers. What is going on in their lives, what is keeping them motivated during the day? How can you be of service to them today?
3. Find a routine: This may not feel like a way to stay connected to the office, but by creating some sense of belonging somewhere, you may find yourself more attached to the belonging of your organization. Whether its a gym, or a co-work space, finding a place where you can socialize and have that chit-chat is grounding and continues to allow you to stretch that connection muscle.

I truly am blessed to be able to do a job I love from the comfort of my home, but using these three tactics mentioned above has helped me feel tethered to my office. Do you think remote teams and remote workers have a similar employee engagement ranking to those workers in the office? What tips do you have for remote workers and/or remote teams to stay engaged and build trusted relationships amongst their teams?