If you’re wondering how to engage remote employees in 2025, you’re not alone. Employee engagement has always been a challenge, but remote work has made it even more complex and important to get right. Employee engagement has long been a priority (and a struggle) for organizations. But with the rise of remote work, it has taken on a whole new level of complexity. Many companies find themselves struggling to effectively engage their remote employees, often resorting to superficial tactics. True employee engagement goes beyond gimmicks and “check-the-box” measures. It is rooted in work fulfillment, feeling valued, having a supportive boss and team, and much more. In this blog, we’ll explore the challenges of employee engagement and how to actually engage remote employees.
Remote Engagement in a New Era:
In 2025, the remote-work landscape has evolved dramatically. Research shows that fully remote employees report higher engagement (31%) than hybrid or on-site workers (23%), yet are much more likely to feel stress and isolation.¹
This means strategies to engage remote employees must focus not only on connection and tools, but on wellbeing, purpose, and autonomy. If you want to engage remote workers effectively today, you must address both productivity and experience.
Engaging the workforce is difficult, even if you all work in an office. We believe that’s largely due to:
That’s why Gallup research has found that engagement rates have been low both in the US and globally. In 2020, 36% of workers were engaged at work. That dropped to 34% in 2021 and dipped to 32% in 2022. We really need to turn things around!
But engaging remote employees comes with its own set of challenges.
Without the physical presence and in-person interactions, remote workers may feel disconnected and isolated from the company culture and their colleagues. The lack of face-to-face communication can also lead to miscommunication or misunderstandings. Additionally, time zone differences and varying work schedules can hinder real-time collaboration and engagement efforts. Add to that the asynchronous nature of many remote roles — without the shared rhythm of an office, remote employees can feel out of sync, leading to reduced visibility and missed micro-moments of connection.
Recognizing these challenges is crucial in developing effective strategies to engage remote employees and foster a sense of belonging.
Making remote employee engagement a priority is not just a matter of employee satisfaction; it directly impacts the overall success of your business.
Engaged employees, whether remote or in-office, are more productive, motivated, and committed to their work. They have a higher sense of loyalty towards the company and are more likely to stay with the organization in the long run.
Engaging remote employees also promotes a positive work culture, enhances team collaboration, and improves overall employee wellbeing.
If you want to improve productivity, create a better customer experience, and unlock the full potential of your workforce, you have to start with engagement.
You’ve probably seen companies try to boost employee engagement with office perks like beer fridges, game rooms, or virtual happy hours. But here’s the truth: these surface-level ideas rarely drive real engagement—especially for remote teams.
True engagement isn’t about adding fun. It’s about making work more fulfilling, fair, and connected. Here’s what to avoid—and what to do instead—to truly engage your remote employees.
DON’T: Rely only on virtual happy hours or online bonding games.
These might help people connect temporarily, but they don’t fix deeper issues like poor communication or lack of collaboration.
DO: Identify the root cause of disengagement.
Find out why remote employees feel disconnected. Maybe your team needs better communication tools, more leadership visibility, or clearer goals. Focus your energy on solving those issues, not just covering them up with social events.
DON’T: Force participation in “fun” activities.
Mandatory games or virtual events can backfire. What’s fun for one group can feel uncomfortable or unnecessary for another.
DO: Offer variety and choice.
Give employees multiple ways to engage—mentorship programs, microlearning sessions, small group brainstorming, or informal coffee chats. Let people choose how they connect and contribute.
DON’T: Treat recognition as a checkbox exercise.
Many recognition programs lose impact because they highlight the same people repeatedly or lack genuine meaning. Recognition that feels routine or insincere doesn’t build engagement—it erodes it.
DO: Make recognition part of daily communication.
Encourage recognition from every level of the organization.
Managers can start or end their weekly meetings by celebrating wins.
Executives can spotlight teams or individuals in monthly town halls.
Peers can nominate colleagues for recognition through open channels.
HR can track and celebrate diverse contributions across roles and departments.
DON’T: Assume engagement happens automatically.
Even great leaders can overlook remote employees when they don’t see them daily. Remote engagement takes consistent effort and intentional communication.
DO: Create an ongoing connection.
Check in frequently, not just during reviews or team meetings. Use internal communication tools, one-on-ones, and pulse surveys to stay close to how employees are feeling.
When you focus on building trust, communication, and a sense of belonging—rather than one-off perks—you’ll see stronger engagement across your remote teams.
To understand if your remote employee engagement strategy is actually working, you need to look beyond simple participation numbers. Focus on metrics that reveal connection, belonging, and real impact.
1. Sense of Belonging
Track the percentage of remote employees who report a strong sense of belonging, rather than just saying they “feel connected.” This gives a clearer picture of emotional engagement.
2. Peer Recognition Frequency
Monitor how often remote employees recognize or are recognized by peers. Remote workers often miss out on casual “thank-you” moments that happen in offices, so this is a crucial engagement signal.
3. Wellbeing Indicators
Measure wellbeing metrics such as stress levels or “thriving” scores. Current studies show that only about 36% of remote employees report feeling truly thriving, which makes wellbeing a key area of focus.
4. Collaboration Tool Usage
Look at how deeply remote employees engage with your collaboration platforms—how often they interact, share updates, or participate in discussions—not just whether they log in.
5. Retention and Loyalty Rates
Compare turnover rates between remote, hybrid, and in-office teams. High engagement among remote employees directly correlates with stronger loyalty and lower attrition.
By tracking these indicators, you move beyond surface-level activities and start improving the remote employee experience in measurable, meaningful ways.
Engagement campaigns specifically designed for remote workers can provide a focused and tailored approach to fostering employee engagement.
So, how do you take engagement strategies and make them remote-inclusive? It’s simple. Make sure your remote teams have access to the right channels and that managers of remote teams have support.
If your managers don’t know the first thing about managing a remote team, you have to train them. You have to give them a framework for how to evaluate performance and lead their team.
And if your remote employees don’t have access to channels where recognition, learning and development resources, and critical information is housed, then you miss the chance to engage them.
Build your foundation before you build your campaigns. It’s that simple.
Remote work is no longer an experiment—it’s a defining feature of modern organizations. But engaging remote employees requires more than good intentions or trendy tools. It demands empathy, structure, and a culture that values communication, connection, and wellbeing.
The most successful companies in 2025 will be those that treat engagement as an ongoing relationship, not a one-time initiative. That means listening often, acting quickly, and adapting continuously to employee needs.
When remote employees feel seen, supported, and connected to purpose, engagement naturally follows—and so does performance, retention, and innovation.
The biggest challenge is maintaining connection and visibility. Without in-person interactions, remote employees can feel isolated or overlooked. Consistent communication and recognition help bridge this gap.
Managers should focus on frequent check-ins, clear expectations, and empathy-driven leadership. They can use one-on-ones, pulse surveys, and recognition tools to stay connected and responsive to employee needs.
Virtual events can help, but they shouldn’t be your only strategy. Real engagement comes from meaningful work, inclusion, and trust, not just online social events.
Effective tools include internal communication platforms, recognition software, collaboration apps, and pulse survey tools that provide real-time feedback and sentiment analysis.
Look beyond participation metrics. Measure sense of belonging, peer recognition frequency, wellbeing indicators, and retention trends to understand the deeper impact of engagement initiatives.
Run short, targeted pulse surveys every 4–6 weeks and comprehensive engagement surveys twice a year. This balance ensures you capture timely feedback without overwhelming employees.
Sydney Lauro is the Demand Generation Manager for theEMPLOYEEapp. Prior to joining the team at theEMPLOYEEapp, Sydney worked in internal communications for Chipotle Mexican Grill. She uses her internal comms expertise and passion for improving communication and the employee experience to create content and share best practices to help other communications professionals.
Use our 4 simple steps to boost engagement among your hybrid staff.
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Learn how to include your remote teams in your engagement programs.
