For a lot of people, having to deal with remote teams started a day out of nowhere. The doors of the companies closed, working in Home Office has become the norm and companies advanced before a pandemic.
Suddenly, face-to-face contact with staff and teams was exchanged for online meetings, frequent use of video conferencing tools, spreadsheets, and distance management methodologies.
With the relaxation of the quarantine and reopening of the economy, many companies can return to face-to-face care once they believe it is safe, but others are realizing that their teams are happier and more productive when working in their home offices.
The path ahead of each one will probably be different. But for some leaders, what was once a big change may turn out to be the direction your professional future will take from now on.
Think of all the ways people communicate when they're in their workplace. These situations do not just disappear because everyone is in their connected homes, using the computer.
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Check out below 5 tips that I have been looking for among the best and best known initiatives currently applied in companies, to optimize the work of remote teams:
1. Perform efficient remote work management
First, for the transition to happen in an organized way, we need to plan and adopt good practices, determine some rules with teams and use modern and efficient communication and management tools.
An action plan must be created for areas that determine all stages, deadlines and responsible for each project. In other words, organize employees so that everyone knows what their tasks and deadlines are and perform daily or weekly virtual meetings to align the progress of each of the tasks distributed.
Keep teams always in touch and well informed about everything that happens in the company, any relevant news should be shared and remember to also share the positive results, especially in this period.
2. Create the right toolkit
Think of all the different ways people communicate when they're in your company. Sometimes they sit in large groups piled up for hours while trying to reach strategies and solutions.
Other times, two or three gather in work sessions to bring the projects forward in a more tangible way.
And on other occasions, a single person sits silent, working on his workload.
These situations don't just disappear now that everyone is sitting behind a computer using various tools and spreadsheets, so evaluate the toolkit you offer to your remote employees. In addition to management software, localization tools such as the Canva Translator are vital for teams that need to adapt visual materials to different markets quickly and collaboratively.
Does it really meet all your communication needs? For me, these four are essential:
Video Conferencing Tool
There is no substitute for the ability to watch someone's facial expressions during a meeting, so having a quality tool that maintains a strong connection, allowing all team members to connect their videos at the same time, is crucial for group discussions.
Some of the most used tools are the Zoom (which allows 40 minutes of free use and has paid plans), Google Meet (currently free for meetings up to 24 hours and limit of 100 participants) and the old and well-known Skype.
Remote work software
You need to know who is doing what and what is the status of each task – and you cannot spend the whole day chasing this information. A remote work management tool allows internal and external people (think of customers or suppliers) to add tasks and assign them to teams or individuals.
As manager, you can quickly find out who is doing what, balance workloads, get updates, etc.
There are several softwares in the market. One of the most known and easy to use is the Trello, recently purchased by Atlassian.
Message apps
It is important to facilitate communication between all members and teams of the company without waiting for scheduled meetings. WhatsApp is today the most used in group and individual conversations to facilitate remote work. Telegram has been gaining space with more differentiated functions for teams. Another corporate option is the Slack, which has an interesting function called channels, with free and paid versions.
Brainstorming Tool
Personally, brainstorming is easier: throw everything into a whiteboard and see what works. Find a solution to do this with remote teams so that everyone can offer ideas productively during remote calls. Do you need a suggestion? I like the Miro tool.
3. Establish periodic meetings
Doing remote meetings is a great solution to keep the team engaged, pass on goals and priorities and make sure the entire team is aware of everything.
They favor communication with everyone, show the team that the company is present — even in this way of work — and help to clarify in a practical and quick way any point that may arise in the day to day.
Creating a meeting schedule and a follow-up strategy also brings more effectiveness to these events and allows information to stay on track when everyone leaves the virtual room.
4. Focus on the team's involvement. Productivity will come next.
It may be harder to tell if people are losing focus when they're not physically close to you. That's why it's so important that you intentionally reach out and make sure people are doing well – personally and professionally. Some related rules I try to follow:
Program and be diligent in maintaining your individual meetings. Make sure everyone has a space (forum) in which they feel comfortable expressing how they are doing.
Respect each other's limits. Do not take advantage of the fact that people can be reached all day and all night simply because they work in the same place where they live. Define that expectation from top to bottom.
Do not do multiple tasks during meetings. Instead, spend time watching your teams' interactions. Look who's really involved and who's not.
Ask me. What do your employees fight when they work at home? What's working well? How can you help?
5. Learn to overcome home office barriers
To work from home, there are certain barriers that need to be overcome, such as small distractions, to stay in pajamas all day long or to control the limits between personal and professional life.
Remember, never work in your pajamas! This ends up taking away the feeling that we are working and hindering self - discipline. Change clothes and organize your workstation before you start.
Choose a quiet place that allows you to work with posture and organization. Avoid working from the couch, for example. Choose a table with a comfortable chair in an environment that allows you to focus on your tasks.
Avoid work overload. As we have already said, at this time the balance between work and personal life must be maintained.
Work and dedicate yourself to your projects, but remember to keep your personal life up to date and take time for yourself daily.
Conclusion
Don't give up on your company's concept of culture. Culture defines the basic values and principles of your business. When it meets the needs and interests of their employees, they feel more enthusiastic about their duties – which are part of something exciting that is happening – and this, in turn, helps keep their best employees on board.
When you are working at home, however, it can be easy to forget that you are “part of something”, so it is important that leaders consistently remind virtual teams about what is important to the company, what is happening and how it affects them.
Also, take time to share personal experiences and stories. Revisit the mission statement over and over again. Encourage so-called virtual happy hours where teams can talk about culture and share some more “casual” conversations.
Remote work is at the same time a need and a differential for companies. In order to be implemented and run in the best way, however, we must follow the best practices that you have brought along this article.
Ignoring the reality of telework makes an organization lose in competitiveness, so it is still time to update.
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Until the next post!
