Remote workers want their managers “to be present, hands-on, and operationally vigilant without being intrusive,” according to “What Great Remote Managers Do Differently,” a new study published in the Harvard Business Review.

“(E)mployees don’t want their managers to micromanage them; they want their managers to micro-understand their work,” wrote Raghu Krishnamoorthy, senior fellow and director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Chief Learning Officer doctoral program.

Opening that that “remote work is here to stay,” Krishnamoorthy noted the unpreparedness of managers at the onset of the pandemic-induced shift to remote work. He cited data from another Harvard study that found only two in five leaders to be prepared to manage remote workers and to keep them engaged, and the same ratio of workers who felt supported by their managers.

“Micro-understanding is about better integrating yourself into your team’s workflow and problem solving remotely,” he wrote, as opposed to the “restrictive” and “heavy managerial meddling” associated with micromanaging. In this environment, trust is key; not only does the manager trust that the employee is performing while working remotely, but he or she must now be an “enabler,” not an “enforcer.” This means that what managers do remains the same, but how they do it does not.

In this context, remote managers must now concern themselves less with “presenteeism” than with managing results and outcomes. The result, Krishnamoorthy found, is that “employees considered the managers to be even more of a key resource in getting the job done remotely.”

Managing remotely is balancing act, so the remote manager must strike that balance between excessive oversight and missing in action. To be micro-understanding means to be present and approachable, providing support and serving as a resource. That includes frequent team meetings and check-ins—but not check-ups.

Other examples of situations where micro-understanding is necessary are setting priorities and clarifying; problem solving; and, checking in and showing compassion.

“Micromanagement is an employee obstacle,” Krishnamoorthy concluded. “Micro-understanding is an employee resource.”