10 tips to give your offshore workers a stronger sense of belonging
Key takeaways:
- Offshore workers are critical players in any business.
- Limited or no physical contact between remote employees and their employers can make them feel alienated at times.
- Companies should prioritize making offshore workers feel like part of their in-office teams.
- Making offshore employees feel like part of the team benefits companies in immediate and long-term ways.
All employees, offshore or on-site, are critical pillars in a company’s success. Unfortunately, offshore workers’ lack of physical contact with the internal team often causes them to feel distanced, both literally and metaphorically. Therefore, companies should take measures to bridge the gap and give their remote workers a stronger sense of belonging. Here are ten ways to give your offshore staff a strong sense of belonging and make your collaboration process smooth.
1. Allow them to own decision-making processes
You can give your offshore workers a strong sense of team belonging by allowing them to own decisions during the collaboration process. When assigning them duties, make them feel that you trust them. Let them know that they own decision-making processes that directly affect their working relationship with you. This way, your decisions and interactions will strengthen your relationship.
2. Give them a voice and lend an ear
Give your remote workers a voice and listen to their opinions since they don’t get to meet you physically. Create an environment in which they can voice ideas, concerns, and questions. Utilize online platforms like Slack and Microsoft Teams to include them in internal team chats and allow them to bond with other employees.
3. Develop and optimize their problem-solving skills
Develop and optimize your offshore workers’ problem-solving abilities. Every remote worker is an asset, and you should allow them to utilize their skills to solve in-house and customer problems. Nothing makes a worker feel like part of the team like showing them they’re a part of the solution. Appreciate them accordingly when they contribute to solutions.
4. Don’t micromanage them
Strike a balance between managing workers and not giving them any control. You hired them remotely because you trusted that they’re responsible workers who don’t need physical supervision.
Therefore, clarify their tasks and allow them to perform them within stipulated deadlines. It’s fine to check their work progress, but don’t micromanage them. If you decide to check on them virtually, do so to motivate and help them perform their tasks better.
5. Assign leadership
This point balances our previous point because you still need to appoint a leadership team to oversee remote employees. Taking a completely hands-off approach will make your offshore employees feel like you have left them out in the cold.
Therefore, appoint a leader who understands American/British culture and that of your remote workers. The leader/s should create a sense of connection between the team and your home office. This leadership should be instrumental in training, supporting, and appraising the offshore team. It must also create a sense of accountability and care for your remote employees.
6. Motivate and incentivize your offshore workers
Make your offshore workers feel like part of your team by motivating and incentivizing them. Recognizing their achievements should constitute your culture. Send them small notes and congratulatory messages when they complete a task or achieve a major milestone.
7. Be flexible and adaptive
Don’t distance your offshore workers by being rigid. Remember, we live in a dynamic world with shifting trends. Things that matter today might become obsolete tomorrow. Therefore, create a flexible working environment that suits your remote team’s needs and adopt what works best for the moment. Adaptivity and flexibility will boost your remote team’s performance.
8. Invite your remote workers to meetings
A meeting can become a “knitting” tool to cement connections between your office and offshore employees if done well. Inviting these workers to meetings using relevant technology helps them understand your company better. It’s one way of familiarizing them with your home office’s culture, values, and processes.
9. Maintain timely and sufficient communication
Timely and sufficient communication is an indispensable key in making your remote workers have a strong sense of belonging. Always share all necessary information on tasks promptly to enable them to meet your expectations. Give them clear information regarding ongoing tasks and projects. This way, they will always remain on the same page with the head office.
Share these details with your offshore team:
- Customer specifications
- Customer expectations or personalities
- Project details and vision
- Personal responsibilities and duties
- Department or project goals
- All relevant details that give them sufficient understanding to succeed in their jobs
10. If possible, visit offshore locations annually
If possible, visit offshore locations annually. If you have remote offices where your team operates, make an effort to go there. Your physical presence and spending time with your team members speak volumes.
These visits show your offshore workers that you care about them and about strengthening bonds between your main office and them. You can host a retreat for them to interact with you and your team if it’s within your budget. Taking time together to have fun and engage in various team activities cements the connections more deeply.
Annual visits also enable you to meet overseas team leaders to plan and review your company goals in that region. So, leverage them to get your overseas team closer to your home office whenever possible.
Begin your outsourcing adventure with Doxa7 today
Offshore workers can be just as important as on-site employees. However, the physical distance between them and the home office can make them feel estranged. Fortunately, you can bridge the gap and make them feel like part of your team with the tips above.
In addition, partnering with a reputable Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) firm like Doxa7 will help you pick the right employees for your business. Doxa7 helps small and mid-sized businesses succeed in making their remote workers feel like part of their team. We craft our offshore team management solutions to suit your company’s unique needs.
We align our remote team management solutions to give you excellent results. Our solutions include proprietary talent matching, business-friendly terms, and capabilities tailored for global competitiveness. Contact our team today for a free 20-minute consultation to forge the best path forward.
