Remote work is rapidly on the rise and this is no longer news. Working from home, coworking spaces, satellite office, or café is becoming a common trend as people crave flexibility in their work environment.
Flexibility in the workforce is no longer a trend but a necessary part of business growth.
Furthermore, as a result of the current COVID-19 pandemic, remote working has become a necessity for companies all across the globe as leaders and team managers have suddenly found themselves managing completely a remote team.
To some team leaders and managers, this could be a tough time especially for those who are yet to be more conversant with the forceful transition to remote working.
If you happen to be among this group, here is a list of tips that will help you manage your remote team and build trust with your employees.
A regular virtual conference meeting
In order to maintain that interpersonal connection and relationship, your team needs to see you, and you need to see them as well. Consistent virtual meetings are very essential to stay up-to-date on what your employees are working on, checking on projects, and develop a rapport.
Schedule meetings way long ahead of time
Calling for an emergency meeting is not really a good idea if it is not really necessary. Undoubtedly, working from home means more time with family and in most cases house chores. These teams also need some kind of boundaries to outline their work and personal life. Always make sure meetings are scheduled way long ahead to enable your team enough time to prepare.
Resource your team
Don’t just assume that your team has the essential tools to keep them up with work. It is your responsibility to provide them with the necessary tools such as laptops, software, mobile devices, and high-speed internet service.
Leverage on technology
Communication is the life wire of remote working. As a manager you need to keep your team connected, and utilization of communication tools is simply the best way to engage everyone seamlessly. Technology tools like Slack or Microsoft Teams are far better than the regular email and text messages for better communication and collaboration. Fortunately, some of these collaboration tools are available for free at the moment.
Set expectation and deadline
As a manager, you need to set a clear objective on each and every task or project and make it known to them. This should involve not just setting tasks, they should be able to understand the reasons behind the tasks, deadlines, and the expected deliverables of each task or project every member of your team is working on.
Don’t also forget to state how to measure success.
Set goals too
In as much as expectations are in place, setting up a daily goal with your remote team is also very important. This will keep them engaged, productive, and not lose steam.
Focus on result
Don’t spend time thinking or wondering what your team is doing at a particular time or how many hours they put in work, rather focus on results and deliverables accordingly as assigned to each member of your team.
As it is becoming increasingly common for employees working remotely, we hope these tips help to overcome the challenges surrounding remote team management.
