Managing a remote team can be challenging, especially in the IT operations field, where you need to coordinate complex tasks, monitor systems, and troubleshoot issues. How can you keep your team productive and engaged while working from different locations and time zones? Here are some tips to help you succeed.
One of the keys to effective remote work is to communicate your expectations clearly and frequently. You should define the goals, roles, and responsibilities of each team member, as well as the deadlines, deliverables, and quality standards. You should also establish how and when you will communicate, what tools and platforms you will use, and how you will track and measure progress. By setting clear expectations, you can avoid confusion, misunderstandings, and conflicts.
There's a few ways to do it, but I found my remote teams to be most successful by regular collaboration via video calls, as well as a dedicated teams channel. I was fortunate to have varied skillsets, so my team regularly collaborated with my SMEs helping to support lesser experienced admins. I found it best to set the goals and give them autonomy on how to achieve those goals. They knew I'd be there for support, but rarely did they need "direction". Basically, let them do what they already know how to do and stay out of the way.
In earlier days of remote working, i have been facing burn out situations and later found this is happening because team members were not provided with clear directions. As a leader it is always a must have skill to provide clear defined goals, when it is expected to complete, what to do if stuck with challenges, how to report when it is completed and whom to be consulted for support etc.,
In my leadership role, I have found that fostering open communication and a supportive environment is crucial for ensuring team members feel valued and motivated. Recognizing and celebrating team achievements not only boosts morale but also enhances camaraderie and collaboration. Empowering team members to take ownership of their work while providing guidance leads to remarkable results, even in remote settings.
engage with them. Build a culture of honesty shared vulnerabilities so that they feel safe about giving realistic dates. This helps you be honest with the people you report into.
Yes, I could give you a practical example. We had placed orders on a firm for ERP implementation in Oct 2019. By the time the BBP was prepared and servers were installed, Lock down was announced due to COVID 19 pandemic. Our team took up the challenge and with the support of the vendor, stake holders and Management, the entire configuration, development and customization was done from remote by the vendor. Testing was done by core team and the lean presence of the employees during covid 19. Initial end user training was provided through VCs. Subsequently when lock down was lifted, the project was implemented. Success is mainly attributed to the willing participation from stake holders, apart from strong goals, roles and responsibilities.
Another essential factor for remote work is to use the right tools to facilitate collaboration and communication. You should choose tools that suit your team's needs, preferences, and skills, and that are reliable, secure, and easy to use. Some of the common tools for remote IT operations teams are cloud-based platforms, such as AWS or Azure, for hosting and managing applications and data; collaboration tools, such as Slack or Teams, for instant messaging and file sharing; project management tools, such as Asana or Jira, for organizing and tracking tasks; and video conferencing tools, such as Zoom or Skype, for holding meetings and presentations.
Usage of right tools is a key towards success. With team peers already provided with different tools for different purpose, it is always a best practice to agree the methods/tools that will be used for different scenarios. If this is not agreed, we might ending up in mis-communication and confusion. Example: During a critical P! issue, Instead of calling on a cellphone, writing email and asking to connect
I like that you mentioned, "You should choose tools that suit your team's needs,..." A very important part to consider, if the tools do not improve the way we work or move us closer to our goals, there's no point having them, that goes for everything from hardware to software, etc.
One of the challenges of remote work is to maintain a sense of connection and trust among team members. To overcome this, you should schedule regular check-ins with your team, both individually and collectively. You should use these check-ins to provide feedback, guidance, and support, as well as to celebrate achievements, recognize contributions, and address issues. You should also use these check-ins to foster a positive team culture, by sharing updates, news, and personal stories, and by showing empathy, appreciation, and respect.
1. Maintain good project dynamics by setting up weekly or bi-weekly meetings with your outsource team. 2. Define clear agendas and ensure a common vision for the project. 3. Receive progress reports from the outsource team before meetings. Agree upon their format, e.g. they can provide information about the percentage of overall budget spent, percentage of scope completed, active risks, blockers, etc. 4. Consider demo meetings to introduce functionality, in particular to the users with no technical background, and gather their feedback.
Having regular catchups is really important to understand the other person's mentality, situation. This will also builds trust and thus reflecting in team bonding hence translating to boost in team productivity. Fun events ,one on one discussions, feedback sessions shall be conducted to bridge the gap and demonstrate cognitive empathy. Larger diverse remote team members, sometimes feel being left out, lack motivation, feel stressed which will inturn makes them unproductive.
One of the benefits of remote work is that it allows team members to work according to their own schedules and preferences, as long as they meet their goals and deadlines. You should encourage this flexibility and autonomy, by giving your team the freedom to choose when and how they work, and by respecting their boundaries and preferences. You should also avoid micromanaging your team, by trusting their skills and abilities, and by focusing on the outcomes rather than the processes.
You cannot always be there to take decision. Learn to delegate. For this building a team leadership structure with clear defining of duties and responsibilities is of paramount importance. Slowly come out of micromanaging the work and decisions of the team ans start giving them autonomy. You as a leader can take up the next responsibilities only when you have someone to take up or support you with your existing responsibilities.
Always avoid micromanagement. Trust your team and make them understand their accountability. Otherwise, if deliverables are meted and customer is happy we are all good. Flexibility and autonomy if used ethically and effectively would be a win-win for all of us.
One of the ways to keep your team productive and engaged is to promote their learning and development. You should provide your team with opportunities and resources to enhance their skills and knowledge, such as online courses, webinars, podcasts, or books. You should also encourage your team to share their insights, best practices, and challenges with each other, by creating a learning community or a knowledge base. By promoting learning and development, you can help your team stay updated, motivated, and confident.
Never stop learning, this applies to all levels and all hierarchies. Sharpening the saw is essential as an individual and also as a leader. Encouraging teams for upskilling, conducting trainings, workshops, providing online tutorials will all enhance team performance and help us outshine as an organization.
Being in a technology industry it is good to promote learning and development in that way your team will have a better understanding of any situation they will face staying active and up to date it is a great way to be on top of everything and stay productive professionally and individually.
Technology is changing on a daily basis. IT operations is most impacted with the changes be it Zero Day Vulnerability or planned update/upgrade. One key aspect of IT operations is CIP (Continuous Improvement Plan) which can be performed only when the team is aware of new technology and services and able to evaluate them for improving. This is also very critical for adhering to SLA which are becoming ever more demanding. Guide and encourage the team to learn newer technology and adopt the same in their daily work. What is applicable for your team is equally if not more applicable for you as team lead. You need to be one step ahead of the game.
One of the risks of remote work is that it can lead to stress, burnout, or isolation. To prevent this, you should support your team's well-being and balance, by encouraging them to take breaks, exercise, and socialize. You should also respect their work-life balance, by avoiding sending messages or requests outside their working hours, and by being flexible and understanding if they have personal or family obligations. You should also check on your team's mental and emotional health, by asking them how they are feeling, and by offering them support or resources if they need them.
Instead of avoiding sending messages outside other people's working hours. I find it much more efficient to support an environment where instant responses are not expected and focus time for work or private is encouraged. This is especially true in a remote setting.
Happy team is a motivated team. Happiness come from internal well being and healthy work environment. Actively encourage your team to adopt healthier working habits. A good Work Life Balance is very important mainly considering that some IT incidents can run for hours well beyond working hours and can be very stressful. Ensure that there is enough cool off periods for your team to prevent burnouts and fatigue. Each team and each team members are unique and different. As team leader you need to understand and guide and help the team. This will promote a positive, engaged, and productive workplace.
Where work from home is commonplace, it's more important than ever to ensure your team is comprised of self-starters and that they're doing work that is intrinsically interesting and exciting to them. A remote employee who is actively interested in what they are doing, and enjoys doing it, is far less likely to become distracted or take advantage of their freedom, while remaining a productive, inspired, and engaged asset to the team. Productive 1:1s on a weekly or alternating cadence can serve as a goal post of sorts, and are a good tool to ensure strategic alignment to goals and review accomplishments or expectations. This is a great time to simply connect with your employee and discuss their personal goals and interests as well.
An individual is productive and efficient when is happy and recognized, but setting clear objectives and expectations around responsibilities is key. Once that is done, putting processes in place, while maintaining regular communication and follow up will definitively maintain the everyone engaged.
Important is to set the proper communications tools that allows a seamless connection. and structure that communication in a way that there is enough time, frequency, agenda and clear key indicators to address. So everyone understand their role, contribution and maintain the engagement to the high level.
The key for remote IT team to work together is team building. Building an effective team takes time and effort. But once you have created the team as a single cohesive group, it will not just self sustain, but also improve. I have seen attrition rate for such team to be lower also.
To maintain a productive and engaged remote team: Implement daily stand-ups using video calls for progress sharing and blocker addressing. Conduct weekly one-on-ones to discuss individual progress and provide support. Maintain a shared document for roles and deliverables to align expectations. Foster collaboration through online brainstorming tools. Encourage work-life balance with clear boundaries and support for well-being. Offer virtual training for continuous skill development. Celebrate milestones on a "wall of fame" to appreciate successes. Hold monthly retrospectives for collective learning. Organize virtual team-building events to strengthen connections. Lead by example with healthy work habits and open feedback channels.