Ep 65 - Remote Work Competencies with Roberta Sawatzky

The Yonder Podcast

Jeff Robbins interviews Roberta Sawatzky, a consultant, business professor and researcher, about the takeaways from her recent remote work research study in conjunction with her son, Nathan Sawatzky.

Discussion topics…

• Why are employees feeling unsupported within co-located companies?

• What kicked off the remote work research project?

• The process of sitting down and talking to remote workers to conduct the research

• How remote workers collaborate with others outside their organizations and geographical locations

• Which competencies set co-located employees apart from remote workers?

• How do personalities affect where people prefer to work?

• Overcoming difficulties around communication, connection, and work environment

• Which competencies matter most for remote workers?

• Can you develop the skills to become a remote worker, or are they inherent traits?

• How to better interview remote job applicants for required competencies

• Why competent remote workers exhibit quiet strength and confidence

• Using StrengthsFinder when hiring remote workers

• Feeling under-supported as remote workers and what managers can do about it

• What type of feedback do remote managers need to give to remote workers?

• Giving remote workers a purpose, sharing how they are contributing to the overall goals

• Soft skills that managers need when they have remote employees on their team

• Building better support systems that can easily accommodate distributed team members

• Creating an assessment tool to help hiring managers determine if a remote candidate might be a good fit

Want to discuss your takeaways from this episode with us? We'd love to share ideas on Twitter @yonder_io!