Remote Work Not Possible Without Trust, Employers Say
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Today's topic is "Remote Work Not Possible Without Trust, Employers Say"

Remote working is gaining momentum at small businesses in the US. It's hard to find definitive statistics on how many people work remotely, but Gallup's most recent survey in 2016 showed that 43% of employees worked remotely in at least some capacity, up 4 percentage points from 2012.

But even as remote working grows, business owners find managing offsite employees involves more than videoconferencing and messaging apps like Slack.

Owners say a remote operation can't work without trust between a boss and employee. Tyler Forte is CEO of Felix Homes, which is based in Tennessee and has employees in California. He used to check on his staff all the time, but "over time, you develop trust with the employee," he says.

"People have this idea that if you have a remote team, they won’t work," says Emma Rose Cohen, CEO of Final Straw, a maker of reusable straws. "It's the opposite – if you hire the right people, they're self-starters, and self-starters are often people who work too much."

She watches for signs that any of her 15 employees are spending too much time on the job, and when they tell her they feel stressed, Cohen says it's time to take a break.

But remote work is a bad fit for some employees because they can feel disconnected from co-workers. That can be countered to some extent through messaging channels that allow everyone to contribute to a fun discussion. Cohen, for example, has chats for specific topics like pets or podcasts.

Jazmine Valencia has seven employees: three in her Los Angeles office, three in New York and one in Chicago. Her remote staff can feel left out when the onsite team discusses issues.

"I have to over-communicate and make sure everyone is on the same page," she says.

Nicolas Vandenberghe's company has 42 employees in 15 countries. His business makes software to help companies manage meetings – but when he needs a serious brainstorming session, he flies staff to where he is so they can meet in person.

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