When your team is working remotely, it can be hard to help them maintain a sense of urgency and immediacy with their work tasks. Working from home can feel somewhat isolating, and when people don’t feel as plugged in to the rest of the team as they once did, their productivity can tend to dwindle. Support everyone’s ability to use their time efficiently and help them feel as though they’re part of a team with some extra attention towards keeping them engaged. Here are some things that you can do to make people feel supported, excited, and engaged while they’re working remotely.

Foster Collaboration

Rather than relying on traditional emails, using a project management program can help remote workers stay on task and work well collaboratively. A good program will enable people to work on documents simultaneously and stay in regular communication. Also, it makes sure that all of the information people need about a project is in one place and easily accessible. Lastly, it creates a forum where people can feel connected to one another, ask questions, and provide feedback.

Establish Personal Connections During Meetings

While you need to use your meeting time productively, make it a point to start meetings with an opportunity for personal interaction. Just having the chance to exchange a few friendly words with a boss or coworkers can help a remote employee feel less like he or she is in no man’s land. The positive interaction can make a big difference in promoting positive sentiment and letting people feel like they can still be who they are and express themselves.

Create a Recreational or Team-Building Activity Online

Having fun together virtually isn’t as difficult as it may seem. Come up with a few ideas of games or activities that people may enjoy doing together online. Some examples would be competing in a trivia game, video game, or a viewing party. Send an email survey with your ideas to find out what speaks to the greatest number of people. Remote employees will appreciate having a chance to stay in touch with one another without discussing work assignments, and it’s a great way to help people feel more at ease about working independently.

Ultimately, the transition to working remotely can be harder for some employees than others, but it’s important that managers be sensitive to people’s individual needs. Giving people the tools that they need to be productive and the connections that they need to feel valued will help your team thrive.