Challenges can arise at any point of time when the team works remotely and it is the leadership of the manager that can come beneficial for the employees to feel connected at such critical moments. Weather vagaries like floods, instant blackouts, shortages of food, and essential items can sound very challenging and it points to the crisis management framework designed by the company to support its employees at times of distress. A similar situation was the Covid-19 pandemic which affected a large number of people and it was their efficient crisis response that helped the workforce to stay united. So, the manager has the added task of handling the entire team and extending relief when they need it the most. The following points will help a manager to efficiently manage his team during a crisis,

  1. Encourage their employees to place their responsibilities above their business: The managers can send motivating messages to the employees and encourage them to share their problems so that they feel the necessary support at that time
  2. Follow-ups with the employees: The managers or someone on behalf of the manager must ensure that they are updated about the welfare of their employees so that it will provide them the necessary relief to help them solve the problem
  3. Setting priorities: The employees can be in distress, so advancing workloads may not prove beneficial to both the team as well as the employees. The managers must make a note of all the tasks that could be delayed till the employees manage to gain back their working capacity and recover completely
  4. Flexibility in deadlines: The managers must make sure that the employees are not burdened with the workloads such that they are not able to focus on their personal life or serving the community.
  5. Employee assistance: Employee assistance program(EAP) includes many elements like mental health management, managing stress, preventing the use of unwanted substances that can affect their mental health can be extended to the employees.
  6. Ensuring teamwork: Teamwork is all about unity. A team must be able to support each other and extend the needed support when any of their members feel difficulty in coping up with the deadlines.
  7. Ensure proper time for the employees to get back to normal will help them to realign with the team in an improved way which will help the managers to sensibly measure productivity using employee productivity monitoring software. Some software also provides the option to sign up for a free demo as well.
  8. Hosting active discussions will help the team to share personal experiences so that it will provide effective insights into unique strategies that have indeed helped the team member to come out of the problem.
  9. The motivation capsule: Encouraging words at times of distress can re-energize the employees and help them to handle their problems with the needed strength
  10. Effective leadership: The leadership qualities of the manager are always tested at times of crisis when the employees have reduced focus and many problems to focus on. So handling a remote team in times of crisis all depends on how the manager stays with the team as a source of constant support.

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