How do you handle data entry challenges when working remotely or with a distributed team?

I would also add: make sure your employees are TRAINED. First and foremost. I believe it is always the manager/boss/CEO’s job to provide the appropriate tools and education. Also, often times, expectations change. And those should always be communicated with very clear intent- by the person “in charge”.

When juggling a case load that involves strict deadlines and multiple people to coordinate with a group or a team, it is important to specify what data is to be collected and entered into a database by what time and date and by whom. As a supervisor who oversees this large task with many moving parts, my suggestion is to look over the caseload and get a clear picture of what needs done and by when then look to your team and what you’ve observed pertaining to each individual and their capabilities. Then, I would divide the duties accordingly before scheduling a meeting to distribute the caseload among the team. Check in with them as the schedule progresses, making sure everyone is hitting the right target time range and go from there.

In my opinion, it's always a good idea to start with a clear project plan, complete with deadlines and tasks assigned to the appropriate team members. It's inevitable that the plan may alter midway through the tasks, but it's helpful to have a clear concept of what data has to be collected, how this will be done, who will do what part, etc. from the outset. This reduces the likelihood of mistakes and misunderstandings. Timescales for each work must be realistic and should take breaks and any potential?obstacles into account. If any team member needs time to complete any kind of specialised training, this must also be organised and incorporated to the schedule. These type of planning can be done using software or written formats.

I did financial nursing audits for several different companies. Having a VPN was a given especially working with patients medical and financial records. The coordination between the hospital & company IT departments was a necessity. Having set policies & procedures for handling the printed materials remotely was a priority. How long to keep records and how to dispose of them?

Using a VPN or private server locked cellular device that doesn’t allow personal use is good for this. When I worked for the Census Bureau, we had private data and were under strict usage limitations and that is the route they took. It seemed to work really well.

There’s always going to be challenges when working remotely or with a distributed team. Each team member may receive, input or record information differently,this may be an issue. Information can me missed or input incorrectly into the database. Repeating back the information received, is key. This is true when the person on the other end of the call is hard to understand. If a remote member makes a spelling mistake with the client’s name, duplicate files are made and if a report must be done this makes the report untrue. It’s imperative that all the distributed team go by the same rules of recording. Even if a team member inputs in real time, check with the client to see if all the information provided is accurate before saving the data.

For me, this has been the biggest lesson to learn. As both a recovered workaholic and perfectionist- it can feel difficult to seek help. Though, I am always the first one to offer it. Building trust, confidence and (definitely) always focusing on collaboration are my top 3 goals in life (and business). ??

I also am a firm believer in setting boundaries with yourself. Take breaks, focus on self-care, and above all breathe in the moment. This world is abundant…for all of us.

I usually has a notebook where I record what I am doing during each day that I am working remotely. Those notes later on, I transfer when I am physically in the office and take care of whatever is pending from my notes. There are things I can't do remotely, so I either delegate that particular situation when is something that needs to be handle in person or there are copies to be made and file.