Mental Health for the Newly Remote Workforce

Keeping team members connected and informed is one way to battle the challenges of remote working. Regroup has the tips you need to make the transition work for everyone.

October 3 – 9 is Mental Health Awareness Week and concludes with World Mental Health Day on October 10, 2021. Since the onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic, many companies have changed their policies to send more of their workforce home or opted for fully-remote teams. For those new to this type of working environment, the changes can create a number of challenges — not the least of which is feeling isolated or disconnected from their teams.

Regroup Mass Notification has been a fully-remote workforce since its inception in 2006. Over the past 15 years, we’ve recognized the special requirements for maintaining a healthy environment for distributed teams and have created what we believe is a close-knit and communicative setting for our team members.

This goes beyond providing the tools each team member needs to do their job well. Setting our team members up for success also demands we make allowances for setbacks that can occur in a remote work environment. For some team members, this may mean a feeling of isolation. For others, it can mean always feeling ‘on’, even when the workday has ended. We understand these potential issues and structure our communication efforts in ways that overcome them.

At the heart of Regroup’s value proposition is communication. Our platform was initially introduced as an emergency alert platform serving the needs of higher education, their students and staff. Over the course of our evolution, Regroup has expanded into a number of vertical markets such as healthcare, enterprise, manufacturing and entertainment. Because of this continual expansion and innovation, Regroup is used for everyday communications as well as critical alerting.

It is no surprise that one of the most popular uses for Regroup has become communications for distributed workforces.

Striking a Balance for Remote Workers

Since early 2020, remote working has been on a steady rise across the globe. And, while some individuals have adapted well to the changes, it is an environment that can create unhealthy effects.

A newly remote worker may experience any number of issues when beginning a work-from-home arrangement.

• Trouble unplugging from work
• Loneliness due to reduced interaction
• Isolation caused by lockdowns
• Uncertainty over career progress

It’s important for remote employers to recognize these potential issues and put into practice the right communication protocols that keeps the entire team connected and productive.

Tips for Communicating in a Remote Work Environment

Many of these challenges can be overcome with planned messaging to employees. Reminders and other means of reaching out can help team members feel more connected and comfortable with their new environment. This communication initiative can also help companies ensure the wellness of their staff by keeping them top of mind and demonstrating good will towards team members.

Planned messaging can be used for a variety of communications and is an effective way to keep everyone in the loop.

• Daily reminders of work and non-work related items
  Consider sending team members reminders to stretch, push away from their desk or take a few minutes to themselves. It can help break up monotony and promote healthier habits.
• Make mental well-being a top priority
  Be proactive in checking with team members. By using mass notification, you can reach remote and traveling employees wherever they are.
• Establish additional channels of communication
  For departments and teams, it’s important to have a dedicated approach to communicating. For this purpose, allowing team leaders to act as channel administrators makes department communication less cluttered and on point.
• Understand warning signs from team members
  If an individual is having trouble coping or performing duties, the time to act is now. Communicate openly to address additional needs or if the team member is becoming depressed in their new environment.
• The Right Tools for Remote Work
  Along with tools like Slack or Microsoft Teams, Regroup is an outstanding complement for companies working and managing employees remotely. Regroup’s platform delivers to email, text/SMS, mobile devices, landlines, intranets and more. And, it delivers even when power is out or cellular towers are hobbled.

True ease of use makes Regroup popular with managers and administrators while its secured, encrypted end-to-end structure ensures your messages are always safe.

With Regroup as part of your overall communication strategy, you can improve employee outreach easily and make sure your entire team is connected, no matter where they are.

Your Next Steps

We invite you to schedule a one-on-one demo of the Regroup Mass Notification platform today. You’ll see all the ways Regroup can be used for daily operations, special communications and emergency alerting. To keep your entire team safe and informed, there is no name more trusted than Regroup Mass Notification.