This document provides guidance on staying productive while working remotely. It discusses challenges of remote work like lack of supervision and social isolation. It recommends establishing clear communication norms, using video conferencing, and providing social opportunities to reduce isolation. The Pomodoro technique of working in 25 minute sprints with short breaks is also suggested. Tips for remote workers include following a schedule, keeping a to-do list, creating a dedicated workspace, and taking breaks. For managers, it advises frequent communication with remote teams via video calls and check-ins with each employee.

1. Understanding Remote Work
A Guide On How To Be Productive At
Home

2. Contents
Why do we need to work from
Home
Understanding challenges of
Remote Work
Overcoming common
challenges of Remote Work
Adapting to Remote Work
The Pomodoro Technique
Tips and Guidelines

3. Why we need to work from home?
• In response to the uncertainties presented by
Covid-19, many companies have asked their
employees to work remotely.
• Although it is always preferable to establish
clear remote-work policies and training in
advance, in times of crisis or other rapidly
changing circumstances, this level of
preparation may not be feasible.
• Fortunately, there are specific, research-
based steps that managers can take without
great effort to improve the engagement and
productivity of remote employees, even when
there is little time to prepare.

4. Understanding Challenges of Remote Work
Leaders of an organisation need to understand the various factors that can make remote
work especially demanding These include:
Lack of face-to-face supervision: Supervisors worry that employees will not work as hard
or as efficiently. Many employees, on the other hand, struggle with reduced access to
managerial support and communication. Managers must reassure employees to reach
out if and should uncertainties arise.
Lack of access to information: Newly remote workers are often surprised by the added
time and effort needed to locate information from co-workers. Even getting answers to
what seem like simple questions can feel like a large obstacle to a worker based at home.
Creating and encouraging frequent dialogue between co-workers can limit this challenge

5. Understanding Challenges of Remote Work
Social isolation: Loneliness is one of the most common complaints about remote
work, with employees miss the informal social interaction of an office setting.
However, over a longer period, isolation can cause any employee to feel less
“belonging” to their organization and can even result in increased intention to leave
the company. Managers must update employees and their teams about
developments in the organisation to keep them connected to the company.
Distractions at home: Managers are encouraged to ensure that their remote
workers have both dedicated workspace and adequate childcare before allowing
them to work remotely. Yet, in the case of a sudden transition to virtual work, there
is a much greater chance that employees will be contending with suboptimal
workspaces and (in the case of school and day care closures) unexpected parenting
responsibilities.

6. Overcoming Common challenges of Remote
Work
Shifting your mindset- home
becomes your place of work
Dealing with distractions-
children/home chores.
Overworking/Time Management
Therefore it’s important to
develop a strategy to maintain
your focus.
With a few helpful tips at your
disposal, you will be able to take
control of your workload, while
also having time for yourself

7. Adapting to Remote Work
• Establish structured daily check-ins: Many
successful remote managers establish a daily
call with their remote employees. This could
take the form of a series of one-on-one calls, if
your employees work more independently from
each other, or a team call if their work is highly
collaborative. The important feature is that the
calls are regular and predictable, and that they
are a forum in which employees know that they
can consult with you, and that their concerns
and questions will be heard.
• Provide several different communication
technology options: Email alone is insufficient.
Remote workers benefit from having a “richer”
technology, such as video conferencing, that
gives employees many of the visual cues that
they would have if they were face-to-face. Video
is also particularly useful for complex or
sensitive conversations, as it feels more
personal than written or audio-only
communication.

8. Adapting to Remote Work
Establish “rules of engagement”:
Remote work becomes more efficient and satisfying
when there is set expectations for the frequency,
means, and ideal timing of communication with their
teams. For example, “We use videoconferencing for
daily check-in meetings, but we use IM when
something is urgent.” Also, if you can, let your
employees know the best way and time to reach you
during the workday (e.g., “I tend to be more
available late in the day for ad hoc phone or video
conversations, but if there’s an emergency earlier in
the day, send me a text.”)
Provide opportunities for remote social interaction:
One of the most essential steps a manager and a
team can take is to structure ways for employees to
interact with each other socially (that is, have
informal conversations about non-work topics) while
working remotely. This is true for all remote workers,
but particularly so for workers who have been
abruptly transitioned out of the office. The easiest
way to establish some basic social interaction is to
leave some time at the beginning of team calls just
for non-work items (e.g., “We’re going to spend the
first few minutes just catching up with each
other).These help reduce feelings of isolation,
promoting a sense of belonging.

9. The Pomodoro Technique
Take Breaks Using The Pomodoro Technique
Sitting for extended periods of time doesn’t necessarily result in more output.
Pomodoro Technique which follows this six-step method:
1. Make a list of tasks for the day
2. Choose a Task
3. Work on it for 25 minutes
4. Put a check mark on a sheet of paper after the 25 minutes are up
5. Take a five-minute break- This marks the completion of one "Pomodoro" sprint
6. After four Pomodoro sprints, take a longer break to recharge before getting back to work
from step 1 again
Continue this throughout the day until your workday is over
This technique can help you tick more tasks off your to-do list, while also giving you the time to
decompress and come back more focused.

11. Tip and Guidelines
Follow A Schedule
• The second most popular way
employees stay productive at home is
by having set work hours.
• Do your best to maintain the same
schedule you did when you went into
the office.
• Following a routine will help you feel
more structured and efficient, and it
will help keep your attention focused.
• E.g. start your day when you normally
would at work, take lunch at 12 or
1pm and shut down when you would
leave work.

12. Tips and Guidelines
Keep A To-Do List
A survey conducted by Airtasker revealed
that 30% of remote employees reported
that keeping a to-do list helped with
their productivity levels.
• Write down what you wish to
accomplish each day, so you are not
jumping from one assignment to the
next.
• This will also help prevent you from
being distracted by social media,
phone calls, and text messages.
• While you’re in work mode, turn your
phone off and focus on whatever task
you have at hand.

13. Tips and Guidelines
Create A Workspace Environment
• If you live alone it’s a lot easier to treat any
area of your home as a workspace. But you’ll
still need to make some type of separation
for your own sanity.
• Consider decorating one area or room so
that it has nothing to do with work.
• This could be your bedroom or sitting area.
You’ll need to feel like you have somewhere
to unplug.
• Then make sure your office space has
everything you will need for work, and that
it’s clean and free of clutter.
• Make sure that it is a welcoming space that
you want to spend time in.
• Working from home in our new reality is not
easy for many people. It’s important to stay
focused on what we can achieve during this
time, and where work is concerned, to stay
proactive and productive.

14. Tips and Guidelines
If you are in a managerial position:
• Frequent communication with your
remote-based team is critical.
• Set daily or weekly meetings via
Skype, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or
similar platform, where you and your
team discuss and prioritize projects,
including deadlines, so you can stay
on track.
• Ensure that you are all collectively
aware of the business-level to-do list,
and encourage each employee to
create their own personal list of tasks
too.
• Set up one- on-one time with each
employee to check in on them and
their family especially when we faced
with a crisis like COVID-19

15. We are here to support you.
Contact the Crisis Support Centre
(Mon-Fri) on 0860 111 646 for
support, advice, and counselling

16. Enhancing your business
and the
wellbeing of people touched by it