7 steps to TRANSFORM your failing remote recruitment team

When it comes to working from home, I can guess that most of your recruitment consultants would jump at the chance, right?

Who could blame them?!
​
In fact, in a survey carried out in 2019 by Buffer, a whopping 99% of respondents said that they would want to work remotely for the rest of their career, or at least be based from home for part of the time.

Source

Under normal circumstances, the work-from-home request requires a lot of thought and consideration.  

Will your consultant stay motivated? 

Will their revenue drop? 

What software and systems will you need to put in place?

Will the entire sales floor come knocking on your door asking for the same privilege?

A very difficult decision indeed. So we can only imagine your sheer and utter panic when you were obliged to transfer your entire sales force to remote working following the recent COVID-19 lockdown.

I mean, at one point you MAY have been tempted to consider remote working requests for your top billers, but now you’re expected to have your whole team working from home?!

Even the guys that are coasting?!

The answer is yes, my friend. Even the coasters.

But it may come as a surprise to hear that, although your team’s prayers have seemingly been answered, a lot of home workers are actually struggling with this new transition. 

In another recent survey conducted by the Institute of Employment Studies, the preliminary results have shown that a massive 50% of U.K. workers were unhappy with their work-life balance during the first 2 weeks of lockdown!

So it appears that working from home is with its flaws.

Well, that’s bad news for you as a manager of a sales team. You need your team engaged, united, & performing now more than ever.

The good news is, lots of companies in the world successfully operate in this way already… you just need to cover a few key points to ensure your team’s morale and performance remain in top shape. 

So, I’m here to help you make this work for you AND for your team. Here’s how.

1. ENVIRONMENT

First and foremost, nobody enjoys looking at a pile of mess let alone working in one.

Have you thought about your team’s working environment? It’s quite possible they’re in a dark, cluttered room that does nothing for their mental clarity.

Hold a competition with your team to makeover their home work spaces (however big or small) without spending any money. Encourage them to get creative! 

Grab some flowers from the garden!

Make use of that old paint in the garage!

Pin up some family photos!

Clear that mountain of paperwork that’s been collecting dust for the last decade!

A nice working environment = mental clarity, and that’s the formula you should be leading your team with.

2. STRUCTURE

One of the hardest parts about working from home is ensuring your team achieves the same amount of activity as normal. 

BUT

...there are tons of new distractions at home that they won’t be used to tackling.

Get your recruitment team structured by holding a virtual whiteboard meeting 3 times a day where your team pledge what they will achieve AM + PM, with a final review at the end of the day.

Maybe they commit to sending 2 CVs in the morning, and making 10 sales calls in the afternoon.
​
Try using Miro - a free virtual whiteboard where your teams can collaborate & share their daily pledges.

Just be sure to remember to review the whiteboard pledges twice a day to see how everyone performed against their targets. This will hold everyone accountable, and accountability is key when it comes to success.

​3. TIME MANAGEMENT

One of the most common issues with remote working is not being able to 'switch off' after work. Remote workers have a tendency to take long casual breaks and, as a result, compensate by working later into the evening.

Try using Cuckoo to manage time better. This is a remote working timer where you can time power hours and breaks as a collective.

​4. COMMUNICATION

The results from Buffers' survey showed that 19% of respondents said that feeling isolated is their biggest challenge with working from home.

SOURCE

Feeling isolated can quickly turn to feeling demotivated. It’s vital you keep that team spirit alive. 

Here are two basic ways you can achieve better team communication:

• Zoom - Daily/Weekly team meetings
• Google Hangouts - instant messaging teammates throughout the day with the ability for video conferencing also

​5. INCENTIVES

Okay, so your budget might be tight and perhaps you’re holding off on paying bonuses out for now. But there are lots of other ways to incentivise your team on a budget.

With the whole country being on lockdown, it’s also important you pick incentives that are within reach and that your consultants can use whilst on lockdown. Here are 5 cheap incentives to excite your team even during lockdown

• Half day Friday for hitting weekly KPIs
• 6 months of Netflix paid for
• £50 cash bonus for sales competitions
• Online exercise / yoga class subscription​

(If you need more incentive ideas, read this: 10 Budget Incentives For Your Recruitment Team )

​6. INSPIRATION

When your sales team is working from home, you definitely need to inject some fresh i n s p i r a t i o n into their veins to keep motivation levels high.

Get your team members to take it in turns to source a 5-10 minute motivational video daily, and get everyone to watch this together on a Zoom call first thing in the morning. 

Not only will this boost individual motivation levels, but this will also boost the collective morale and create more unity across the team by sharing that moment together every morning.

7. MOTIVATION

This ties in with inspiration really well. The number one tip from successful entrepreneurs across the world?

VISION BOARDING.

Does your team know what their personal financial goals are?

Do they know what they will buy once they hit X amount of savings in their account?

All of your team can create an online vision board to get specific with the outcomes they want to achieve. If they’re saving for a holiday, a holiday to where and when and with who? 

Try Dream It Alive virtual dream board.

This is a great tool for building an online dream board that you can always have with you wherever you’re working (plus, your sales team won’t need to worry about getting the scissors and glue out!).

Conclusion

It may feel overwhelming adapting to this new way of working, but all it takes is a bit of careful thought and time to adjust.

It will take a few teething errors to get your team performing to the same levels you’re used to, but once you’ve nailed it, you might be surprised to find that they out-perform themselves in the end!

Just ensure you are implementing the right measures to keep your team’s morale high and work-life balance...well, balanced!