Remote work is an entirely different ball game. With that comes the need for its own work from home etiquette. Not only does it require teams to adapt to a new environment, it also demands staff members to adapt new work cultures. 

As remote work in the Philippines is relatively young, there is still a lot to learn about the do’s and don’ts of this work setup. In this article, let’s delve into the basics of work from home etiquette. 

Why is Work from Home Etiquette Important?

As work setups change, so do expectations in how we perform at work. As work-from-home arrangements also blur the lines between time spent at work and life, teams often encounter difficulties in communication and coordination. Workplace management becomes much harder to enforce and maintain.

This is why it’s important to stick to a set of rules in a new business environment to prevent remote work woes. How can we do this? 

2 Do’s of Work from Home Etiquette

The following are three points you should do as part of your remote team’s work from home etiquette.

Do set boundaries

The lack of boundaries between personal and professional life has become so commonplace that it’s easy for people to get vexed when one crosses the other. This is especially true for companies that require location monitoring. 

Setting boundaries allows companies to reduce the friction caused by distance and miscommunication. It also provides employees freedom of mind and peace, because no work email will disturb them after work hours. 

Designate working and personal hours. To make keeping track of everyone’s time easier, use apps like Capataz to automate remote work timekeeping and keep everybody in the loop on who’s available for work or not. Capataz also offers employee location monitoring that does not make staff members feel violated. The mobile app will automatically stop sharing the employee’s location during their lunch hours and after logging out of work.

Do prepare a conducive environment for video calls

Even if meetings are virtual, a degree of professionalism is still expected from employees. During video calls, be mindful of your surroundings. Improve your home set-up. Invest in lighting, microphones, and even improving your video background. Make your space private and quiet, so everyone in the meeting won’t be disturbed by your barking dog or a distracting child.

2 Don’ts of Work from Home Etiquette

Make sure your work from home etiquette avoids doing the following points.

Don’t hold unnecessary meetings, especially video calls

Some meetings could have just been an email—that’s the painful truth of work life. Unnecessary meetings can consume so much time and delay work from getting done.

Additionally, holding video calls can be particularly exhausting to employees. In fact, it can cause video call fatigue, which leaves people feeling more exhausted while working from home.

Sadly, this can be more common in remote work in the Philippines. Make sure you’re not wasting anyone’s time by first checking if your agenda actually warrants a meeting with everyone present. Otherwise, simply draft a lengthy email for their reference.

Don’t forget about time zones

When managing remote teams, especially for global companies, it’s inevitable for an employee to be in a different time zone from yours. Deadlines should consider differences in factors such as time zones, among others. The same applies for when scheduling a meeting. Make sure to take into consideration a time that works best for everyone.

Make Remote Work in the Philippines Better with Capataz

Setting a work from home etiquette doesn’t have to be too big of a culture shock. Use Capataz to implement a more convenient way for workplace management. With Capataz, managers can have access to employee location monitoring and remote work timekeeping, inspire productivity through positive feedback and quick responses to employee requests, among others. 

Curious what else Capataz can do for your remote team? Book a free demo with us now!