Tips for Goal Setting and Accountability for Remote Workers

Establishing goals is crucial to keeping remote workers accountable and aligned with the organization’s vision and mission.

Today’s guest post is by Shiela Mie Legaspi, President — Cyberbacker

The pandemic showed us the value of remote work, not only as a solution to the immediate obstacles of the pandemic but also as a long-term shift in the workplace. However, many employers have struggled to cope with the differences in this new future of work, including how to help their workers set and achieve their goals for personal and professional development and productivity.

Accountability in the remote work landscape

One of the shifts employers have most struggled to embrace in the face of a remote and hybrid workforce is the lack of a method to hold people accountable for their productivity. In an in-person office, you can check in on employees by stopping by their desks or talking to them at the water cooler, but there is no virtual counterpart to these in the remote work landscape. Furthermore, constantly sending check-in messages can be overwhelming, distracting, and counterproductive, meaning employers must trust their employees to manage their own productivity.

At the same time, this productivity has obstacles that are outside the employer’s control, much of which is due to the increasingly blurred line between work and home. Though some employees might be lucky enough to have a dedicated home office or workspace where they can be in “work mode,” others may not have the benefit of such a divide. They could have increased distractions at home, like those from family members sharing the home.

Goal setting in the remote workplace

Similarly, the blurring between work and home has caused the merging of many personal, professional, and organizational goals. For example, a goal like improving productivity in the workplace can fall under all three categories, as it involves minimizing distractions in one’s own home and improving professional and organizational performance. Some of the most successful employees in a remote environment are those who can find a way to align their personal goals with their professional objectives, as this gives them greater motivation and stakes to achieve both.

The most effective and achievable goals follow the acronym “SMART,” which stands for “Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound.” For example, a goal of wanting to increase productivity would not fit these parameters,” but the goal of “complete three tasks by lunchtime today” is. By setting SMART goals, individuals create a metric by which they can hold themselves accountable for their success or lack thereof.

Still, these goals can only be as effective as the techniques one uses to hold themselves accountable for their progress. In the absence of direct in-person supervision, remote employees should instead turn to methods like self-reflection and self-assessment — often encouraged by their employer. For example, leaders could periodically send their workers surveys that ask them to reflect on their performance, rating themselves on a scale based on their efficiency and encouraging them to think of their strengths and potential areas for improvement.

Valuable accountability tools for remote workers

Several technologies have also emerged to help employees with their personal goal tracking. Some of these tools, like Asana, offer a total project management solution, allowing employees to organize tasks, set deadlines, create reminders, check KPIs, and celebrate milestones — among other functionalities. Other employees may use simpler tools, such as their phone or computer’s notes or calendar app, to manage their productivity and stay on track to accomplishing their goals.

One of the most underappreciated resources in the new remote landscape of work, though, is a support network. Surrounding oneself with trusted individuals is essential not only for collaboration but also accountability. Sharing goals with mentors and other trusted contacts is a great way to get encouragement, guidance, and motivation in the face of an inherently isolated work environment. The shared commitment to success created by this network can also be a great way to kickstart or sustain personal and professional growth.

Remote employees should also not ignore social media’s power, particularly business-forward platforms like LinkedIn. In the era of remote work, recognition can be hard to come by, but LinkedIn offers a platform for workers to connect with like-minded professionals who want to lift each other up and celebrate their successes. This sense of community can give remote employees a much-needed boost of encouragement when feeling alone and distant from the rest of their organization.

The paradigm shift towards remote work is filled with opportunities, but employees may still be overwhelmed if they approach their remote work with the same strategy as working in an office, and employers will find their success limited. By implementing and encouraging goal-setting strategies tailored to the new landscape of work, businesses can improve the productivity and success of their remote workers.

Shiela Mie Legaspi is an organizational development expert and the President of Cyberbacker, the leading provider of world-class administrative support and virtual assistant services from anywhere in the world to anyone in the world.

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