Remote employee engagement: How to boost employee engagement in remote and hybrid settings

Employee engagement can be challenging, especially in remote and hybrid working models where organizations have less managerial oversight than office environments.

• Why it matters: Employees are a primary driver of business success. Gallup research shows that companies with highly-engaged workers are more productive (18%) and profitable (23%) than disengaged employees. 

The tricky part: Many traditional engagement tactics don’t translate in the work-from-home environment. But, with a little creativity, you can minimize disengagement and instill a sense of belonging across different teams and time zones. 

Challenges of keeping remote teams engaged

Remote work offers benefits for employers and employees. Businesses can reduce overhead expenses and access a global pool of talented professionals. Workers get a healthy work-life balance and the freedom to work from anywhere. 
It’s no wonder remote work is on the rise. 

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Yes, but: There are significant obstacles that impact remote employee engagement...

• Communication: Without in-person cues, even strong virtual communication — written, video, or phone — can lead to delays, misinterpretations, or misunderstandings.
• Isolation: Remote workers are physically disconnected from colleagues, making collaboration difficult.
• Blurred boundaries: Remote workers struggle to set boundaries between work and personal time, leading to overworking or underperformance. 
• Limited career path: Remote workers are less likely to receive promotions and professional development, decreasing motivation, trust, and morale. 
• Technology: Remote teams may lack the digital tools required to perform their duties.

Understanding the problems remote and hybrid workers face is the key to addressing root causes of demotivation and discontent.

6 ways to engage remote employees

The principles of remote employee engagement — communication, empowerment, inclusion, and recognition — aren’t different from regular engagement. You just need to adjust how you apply them.

Here's how...  

1. Build a clear internal communications framework

An internal communication framework prevents work-from-home employees from feeling disconnected by making sure they're informed and aligned with your goals. Communication frameworks define how, when, and where certain communication happens. 

They stipulate...

• Language creates common ground in multilingual workplaces.
• Tone showcases brand identity.
• Formatting supports efficient data management.
• Channel use informs employees about what to expect from various communication channels.
• Chain of command tells employees who they'll hear from on certain communications.

The big picture: These frameworks keep everyone on the same page, minimizing errors and misunderstandings. Use our checklist to refine your policy for more engaging communication. 

2. Create virtual social touchpoints 

Peer-to-peer interaction has a powerful influence on employees. KPMG reports that workplace friendships improve mental health and wellbeing (78%), engagement (83%), and job satisfaction (81%). Moreover, employees believe that companies should facilitate these relationships through non-work-related activities.  

• Unfortunately, remote workers don’t have opportunities to connect and build relationships with each other. Engagement issues arise when they feel as though they are just a cog in a machine. 

✋ How to stop that: Designated Slack channels are great substitutes for regular check-ins or water cooler conversations. Employees can talk about the latest episode of a hit show or commiserate over the loss of a beloved team. 

• Set a code of conduct outlining acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Virtual spaces should be safe and inclusive.
• Structure social events so that everyone can participate. Video conferencing tools can facilitate virtual coffee breaks and happy hours.

Social opportunities for online employees encourages collaboration, knowledge sharing, and positive work experiences. These, in turn, boost productivity and business performance. 

3. Invest in the right technology and tools

Success in the remote work environment hinges on technology. Must-have management tools include...

• File sharing apps to keep documents in a centralized location so team members can readily access the information they need to do their job. 
• Project management software to organize workflow and track assignment progress. They visualize productivity and help keep workers accountable.
• Time management tools to help remote workers plan and manage their time effectively, minimizing employee burnout from overworking or underperformance due to distractions. They also help track billable hours for accurate labor costs. 
• Instant messaging and video conferencing platforms facilitate effective, real-time communication and collaboration. They also help develop personal connections through one-on-one meetings or virtual team-building exercises. 

A comprehensive tech stack for remote or hybrid work environments doesn’t just support seamless communication, collaboration, and robust management. It includes worker engagement.

💡 Pro tip: Our internal communication platform elevates written communication with engagement-optimized writing tools and templates.

• Axios HQ integrates with your existing tech stack, including Slack, Gmail, Outlook, HubSpot, and Salesforce, to boost visibility across all internal communication channels.
• Check out this regional newsletter created with Smart Brevity to make it scannable, digestible, and memorable. See real employee communication examples. 

Also track key performance indicators — think open and click rates by campaign, segment, and individual recipients — in addition to creating messages employees want to read. 

4. Encourage flexibility and autonomy

The ‘butts in seats’ mentality doesn’t work in remote environments. First, remote and hybrid workers don’t have long stretches of uninterrupted work time. Second, it’s difficult to control people in different time zones. 

• It can also make employees feel like leadership doesn't trust them to manage their time.

The result: Staff who show up ‘physically’ but aren’t engaged. 

Empowerment and engagement go hand-in-hand. Giving remote and hybrid employees some freedom to choose when and where they work demonstrates confidence in their ability to deliver results. 

• Yes, but: You should still build guardrails (i.e., time management tools). Fluid work/leisure boundaries can lead to employee burnout. Teams should also be available for virtual meetings and collaboration. 

5. Celebrate employee achievements

Public recognition and rewards are surefire ways to keep employees satisfied and engaged. It seems like a no-brainer to appreciate high-performing employees, but it’s easy to overlook or take for granted in a remote setting. The last thing you want is for your remote staff to become unmotivated.

📊 By the numbers: Appreciation statistics show that acknowledging employees’ contributions drives engagement, productivity, and retention. 

• 81.9% of employees say they’d be more engaged if they were recognized for their efforts.
• 77.9% say they’d be more productive if they felt recognized.
• 83.6% say they’d feel motivated to succeed at work if they got recognition.

Employee recognition programs celebrate their achievements — outstanding performance, innovation — and milestones like work anniversaries and completing projects.

⚙️ How it works: Rewarding good performance can be as simple as an all-staff email blast to the entire organization. Other ways to celebrate employees include:

• Social media shout-outs
• Company intranet recognition wall
• Virtual award ceremonies
• Monetary awards (bonuses, gift cards, company swag)

A simple ‘thank you’ goes a long way, but recognition is more meaningful when it's timely, authentic, relevant, personalized, and public. It motivates the recipient to keep up the good work and inspires other team members to do the same. 

6. Collect feedback regularly

Frequent and consistent feedback is essential for remote employee engagement. These workers can’t drop by your desk for clarification, and they're not likely to call you, even if you're in the same time zone. 

🗳️ Survey your audience. Employee feedback invites staff to express their thoughts and gives leaders insights into gaps and issues. Pulse checks and engagement surveys are popular feedback mechanisms. 

• Pulse checks are short, single-question surveys that capture employees’ feelings about a specific topic in real time. They're ideal for immediate feedback on things like management style or company culture.
• Annual engagement surveys cover a wider range of topics. They record general sentiment and help benchmark engagement levels against previous years.  

Plus, the employee net promoter score (eNPS). This popular tool for collecting feedback measures job satisfaction and employee loyalty by asking employees how likely they are to recommend your company as a place to work. 

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Survey respondents rate the question on a scale from 0 (unlikely to recommend) to 10 (mostly likely to recommend).

• Promoters (9 and 10) are satisfied and highly engaged. 
• Passives (7 and 8) aren’t necessarily engaged, but are satisfied.
• Detractors (1-6) are both dissatisfied and unengaged.

The goal is to have more promoters than detractors. 

Get qualitative feedback too. The eNPS only tells you how many employees are happy or unhappy. In addition to employee surveys, consider more ways to learn why they are happy or unhappy:

• Add a comment section where respondents can explain their rating choice.
• Analyze metrics, such as employee turnover, absenteeism, and retention rates, to spot trends and patterns.
• Keep an open-door policy so employees can connect anytime. 

And act on the feedback you collect. It shows your remote workforce you value their input, creating a sense of respect, trust and belonging. 

|The bottom line

Remote employee engagement comes with a unique set of challenges, and these strategies remind us that the principles of employee engagement don’t differ — it's just the implementation. 

Providing remote workers the same communication opportunities as office-based staff comes down to technology. It plays a big role in facilitating remote employee engagement and lets an entire organization connect despite time zone differences

Go deeper: Learn how to build employment engagement with internal communication.