Working from home or remote working is more than a simple trend in the present day and time. Today, it has become a necessity and must be followed by all individuals globally. Consequently, there are managers and team leaders globally who have suddenly found themselves in a position to manage remote teams. In all honesty, this can be scary, especially for people who had never had this experience before and did not get adequate time to prepare. If you are experiencing the same problem, fret no more. We are here to help you. This article will provide you with some tips and tricks that can help you manage your team remotely and do a great job at it.
Schedule a check-in every day
It may seem a little overboard, but for teams and managers working remotely, this is necessary. So, even in a situation wherein texts, emails, and phone may have sufficed, in a remote working environment, frequent video conferencing is quintessential to establish a face-to-face interaction, which is technically missing in a remote working environment.
Offer them multiple communication technology options.
In all honesty, email is not enough. Remote workers have a prime advantage. What is it? They have access to a much richer technology, which comprises video conferencing. Thanks to video calls, the participants still get the cues they would have received if they worked as in a traditional setup. Video conferencing has multiple advantages. It is particularly beneficial for smaller teams. These visual cues are valuable in better mutual knowledge about the other members of the team. It can prevent the feeling of isolation amongst other team members. Video is beneficial for sensitive or complex conversations. A person feels better engaged in a video call than it would have been in an audio-only call.
Further, there are situations wherein a quick personal collaboration is pivotal over a visual detail. In such circumstances, employing mobile-enabled messaging technology, such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, Zoom, etc., will come in handy. These platforms can help when you have to engage in time-sensitive, less formal, and more straightforward communication.
Marry, an online C++ tutor with Fine Grades, shares that, ‘During the lockdown, all of us were working remotely, and that is when our manager used to interact with us every day via Zoom calls.’
Well, we are sure that there must be so many companies like Fine Grades, which must have taken this approach. However, if your company does not have any of these technology-oriented tools, then fret no more. Firstly, these tools are not costly, and you can always find a simpler version of even the most premium tools, and they will be an excellent fix for the short-term. However, before you begin using any tool, we would recommend you consult with your IT team to ensure proper data security in place so that your confidential information stays that way.
Build Up Your Team
Make sure that you take advantage of every opportunity to build up your team. Employees that operate in less stressful environments and are given opportunities to have fun with their coworkers are typically more productive at work. Schedule virtual team-building events like escape rooms from Escapely, or think about starting a monthly team bonding activity to keep everyone connected.
Hire doers
Doers tend to get stuff done, regardless of which corner of the world they are in. You do not even have to keep reminding the doers about a task’s completion. They will get it done once they know it is their responsibility. Of course, you will have to provide guidelines and directions for the imperative things, but even when you fail to give the instructions and guidelines, a doer will still find a way around.
Get people you can trust on board
If you cannot trust your remote employee, the remote work will come to a pause, comments, Daisy, a manager who works with TAE, a platform that offers marketing assignment help. See, if you keep worrying about what your remote employee is doing, when will you focus on your work? In this manner, your entire time and energy will be focused on anything other than your customers or products. So, always remember, trust is the key.
Always trust the people on board
There is a flip side to the situation mentioned above. See, in addition to the new employees, you also need to trust your company’s existing employees. Trust yourself that you have only brought valuable people on board, and then you will work at your pace and let them work at theirs.
Employ people who know how to write
In a traditional office setup, a good chunk of information is shared in person. On the other hand, in a remote working space, most of the information is shared online by virtue of written communication. Hence, communication is the most quintessential factor of a remote working team. For any remote team’s success, you should always hire people who know the language and can write good comments Zoe, a manager for TFTH that offers nursing assignment help for students.
Be flexible but organized
When you are working and managing a remote team, flexibility is primary. To maintain consistency, you need flexible working hours, comments Harry, who offers the best deep learning courses online.
Of course, you and your company need to have a concrete plan, but that does not mean that you should be inflexible. The idea is to get the work done. So, regardless of whether your employees choose to work in the morning or at night, your concern should be that the work is getting done timely, without compromising quality.
Have clear expectations right from the start
Every business has expectations from its employees, regardless of whether they work virtually or remotely. Thus, being precise about the expectations will help the employees be focused and work towards the same goals.
There should be clear expectations on:
- Scheduled meetings
- Availability
- Timely meetings
- Respond to email
- Work hours
- Key projects and deadlines
- Communication system
Eliminate obstacles
When the employees are working remotely, they will encounter multiple obstacles, such as distractions while working at home, emotional isolation, physical isolation, a delivery guy coming in with an order, children running left, right, and center, and so many more. You get the idea, right? These are only a few potential obstacles, which employees face. This will certainly hamper their performance. As a manager, you must make an adequate effort to eliminate as many of these obstacles as possible; only then will they perform better and yield better results.
Track their progress
Timelines are important. You cannot assign them a task and not tell them by when it should be completed. When an employee knows that there is a submission time, there is a sense of accountability and responsibility that they feel towards you. This will put you at ease and will also provide a structure to your team. Please bear in mind; simply because you do not see them working in the cubicle, it does not mean that the work is not happening. Trust the process, and trust your judgment.
