In the midst of a pandemic, more teams are fully or partially remote… but a successful transition from in-office to working from home may not always be the smoothest!
At Brooklyn Outdoor, we have some previous experience of working efficiently from home, from other sides of the country, and more! Therefore, we have some useful advice for how to make sure your team is communicating properly and has everything it needs to succeed. Check out our interview with Authority Magazine for Five Things You Need to Know to Successfully Manage a Remote Team!
Continue reading below, or click here for the whole feature!
Managing a team remotely can be very different than managing a team that is in front of you. Can you articulate for our readers what the five main challenges are regarding managing a remote team? Can you give a story or example for each?
1. Communication:
With less face-to-face communication, it’s important that your company comes up with an organized plan for communication. Scheduling and (most importantly) holding bi-weekly meetings you can quickly address issues and create strategy. If you’re not doing this, then you may not be aware of what obstacles your team is facing, or better yet what creative approach they want to share with you.
2. Reward and acknowledge:
Working from home in a time of some much uncertainty can leave employees feeling stressed and disconnected. As a leader you should understand that and recognize people for their accomplishments and hardwork. A “thank you” or “great work” goes a long way when it comes to making employees feel valued and appreciated.
3. Family/work life balance:
With most of the family at home, employees who have children may have a harder time balancing work with childcare. It’s important to remember that although we are all in this together, each of us is having our own experience and facing our own unique challenges. Being flexible with call-times and virtual meetings is a great way to reduce the stress of balancing family and work-life.
4. Know your staff:
Some people are visual learners, others are verbal and so on. Without being together in an office or team setting, it may be difficult to focus on and cater to the needs of each employee, which can influence productivity, morale, and more. By knowing the way each staff member prefers to learn, and give and receive direction you will see much more productivity. One bit of advice is, pay attention to how people communicate in emails. Are they giving bullet points, or is it high in detail. Which every way a person delivers info, is likely to be how they prefer to receive it as well.
5. Making sure people have the technology and tools they need to work:
Does your staff have the devices, software, etc. they need for a seamless transition from work office to home office? The last thing anyone wants is a poor wifi connection, or to be missing the software for a conference call. Setting up your team with the appropriate tools will remove obstacles that prevent them from excelling in their workday.
