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28 Worcester Business Journal | May 29, 2017 | wbjournal.com I f you're like me, you place an incredible amount of importance on hiring – and retaining – locally based employees. As the president of Envision Digital Group, I wholly understand the benefit local employees bring to the table. Still, we do turn to remote work- ers from time to time. It helps us keep up with demand and exposes our team to a wider talent pool. We're not alone. A growing number of local businesses either rely on, or are considering using, remote workers to help get the job done. I've made it a point to embrace this trend and find a way to use remote workers as a complementary piece to our local team. What I've learned is unless you know how to manage remote workers, this type of profes- sional relationship could become toxic to your workplace. Here are a few tips, based on my own personal experiences, that could help you better manage your remote employees. 1. Activity tracking and accountability are key. Keeping track of the status of each project we manage is a challenge. It becomes more problematic when the person I need to talk with lives in another state (or even time zone). That's why we rely on web-based project management tools. We use Asana, but there are a number of tools out there including Teamwork, Trello and Basecamp. 2. Find the happy medium between phone calls and emails. Communicating with remote work- ers can be complicated. Phone calls aren't always efficient, and emails in 2017 are just not fast enough. We've established communication channels on both Google Hangouts and Slack, neither of which cost us a dime, as well as Zoom. 3. Don't spend too much time focusing on the when. Everyone on my team has the flexi- bility of when to go to work. I have team members who are far more pro- ductive at night, while others prefer to wake up at dawn and tackle heavy projects before most other folks get to the office. I'm not there to micromanage my team. This results in not only increased productivity, but also happier workers. 4. Make sure your remote workers feel like team members. For the type of work we do, collabo- ration is key. Asana and Slack help tre- mendously with this. But it's also on me, as the manager, to include remote workers in all team meetings and to publicly recognize their contributions as I do for my on-site employees. 5. Schedule regular check-ins and face-to-face meetings with your remote workers. When you hire remote workers, establish weekly one-on-ones to moni- tor the pulse of your operations. I also suggest meeting with your remote workers at least once a quarter to build camaraderie among your on- site and remote team members. 6. Get to know your remote workers as people. I'm well aware that technology can mute the human element. It's easy for me to shoot out Slack messages or assign Asana tasks to my remote work- ers, without ever asking them about their day. Engaging with your remote workers is critical. They – like everyone else – want to feel like they're understood and respected. 10 T H I NG S I know about . . . . . . C u s t o m e r s e r v i c e By David Low Low is the director for sales & marketing at Urgent Care Centers of New England/CareWell Urgent Care. K N O W H O W How to manage remote employees Y ou do your best to hire employees who are trustwor- thy, respectful and ethical. You check references, do credit checks and review their job his- tory. But even the most seemingly conscientious team member can pres- ent an unpleasant surprise: signs they are stealing from the company. Depending on many factors, this can lead to probation, termination, and/or police involvement – it can also be a legal minefield. Gather detailed evidence. Employee theft isn't always as simple as taking money from a cash drawer. "Padding an expense account is stealing. Sleeping while on the clock is steal- ing," writes Neil Ducoff at business education website Strategies.com. Data theft, which greatly jeopardizes your company, is stealing. Make sure you have witnesses, videotape or other means to back up the kind of theft you allege. Don't go it alone. Involve a third party before you confront the employ- ee or tell anyone else, but after you have gathered evidence such as docu- menting each incidence of theft you witnessed, analyzing documents or reviewing security videotape, writes Shelley Frost at SmallBusinessChron. com. "Hire a third party that specializ- es in detecting employee theft to con- firm your suspicions" before moving ahead, she writes, so you're on solid legal ground. In the employee interview, be empathetic. Patrick Murphy of Texas- based LP Security Consulting recommends first speaking to the employee – with a witness present – in general terms about company losses. Build rapport, he writes in a company website article, instead of diving in with allegations. "Empathy, regardless of how disingenuous, needs to be displayed by the interviewer … Confessions are the result of the person feeling understood and that what they did was wrong but they had justification (in their own mind)," he writes. BY SUSAN SHALHOUB Special to the Worcester Business Journal 10 1: C o n f r o n t i n g a t h i e f 10) Sharpen your problem-solving skills. By resolving difficult situations effectively, you create a partnership with your customer. People want to know you are looking into an issue, and how you are working to resolve it in case future issues ever arise. 9) Happy employees. Treating customers and employees well is equally important. Your staff is an ambassador for your brand. 8) Implement new technologies to meet rising expectations when it comes to customer service. Customers want to utilize different platforms convenient for them. 7) Get feedback. Remember you can always do better and loyalty stems from exceeding people's expectations. 6) Support the community around you. Work with partners in your community to expand your outreach and provide value to your neighbors. It's important to show consumers you care and have corporate social responsibility. 5) Anticipate needs. Get to know people and show them you have their best interests in mind. And always keep your promise. 4) Listen. Everyone wants to be heard. The key to giving someone what they want is to listen when they speak. Ask questions if you don't understand. 3) Be adaptable. Everyone is unique. You need to be able to handle unexpected events and act accordingly. 2) Communication is key. Body language, words and actions should be clear and convey sincerity. Always follow up. 1) Make people feel important. Say, "Thank you," and go the extra mile by asking if there is anything else they need. People notice and are more likely to come back. BY KHAM INTHIRATH Special to the Worcester Business Journal W W W Kham Inthirath is founder and president of Worcester marketing agency Envision Digital Group, helping local businesses find and connect with their target audiences.