What is the key to successfully managing a remote team?

Goals and expectations must be recorded along with the milestones keeping in mind time, cost and deliverables. Any risks need to be mitigated in advance accordingly.

We always need to understand the definition of success is for the particular project, Not all projects will have the same goal. When starting out you can use the standard metrics as a guideline. But always tailor it to suit the project's expectations and goals.. Once this is understood, the proper team can be aligned with a common goal.

In my experience, listening to ideas and openly giving and receiving feedback can help create great ideas. I don't consider any questions dumb, I just sometimes am moving at a much higher level that its hard to slow down. I also expect trust and respect to be earned, I always try to bring the best out in people and look for positive but that takes alot of time. If I make the time to teach/listen and I see actions not reflecting that, I get frustrated. I never will ask anyone to do something I would not do or have not done. I care too much sometimes and am more patient with people I am trying to build relationships with expect my own team/people already know my expectations.

Effective communication, establishing clear expectations, fostering trust, providing necessary tools and support, and maintaining regular check-ins are key to successfully managing a remote team.

When it comes to successfully managing a remote team, communication is key. As a leader, what I have found helpful is using a friendly platform for communication (Whatsapp and Skype for example). This allows for every team member to be present and contribute towards a set goal. Additionally, motivational support and training on how to effectively carry out tasks remotely is essential.

This is a bit nuanced, Just because the tools is the new IT thing, doesn't mean its always best for the project. Any communication strategy must be created based on the stakeholders that are involved in the project. Some might need a summary, others might need a full report on the status. Some might want a common tracker, they can log in to check the updates themselves. Others might need the report to be delivered to them. I have been in projects where everyone on the team doesn't have access to MS projects application, hence we needed to submit the reports in Excel and MPP. So any comms strategy and tools need to consider the stakeholders and the kind of access they have.

Establish precise expectations and goals: Select the appropriate communication resources: Establish rapport and trust: Encourage and empower your group: Control hazards and difficulties: Recognize and advance:

Communication with clarity is crucial in meeting project goals. In my experience, a flow chart of work flow must be maintained in advance so that the work may progress on semi-auto mode. Any delay needs to be flagged on time so that it can navigated immediately. Being proactive is the key!

In my experience it is beneficial to specify what platform/tool is used for what kind of information and to limit the number of communication channels. However it can be necessary to adapt the communication channel to the needs/preferences of the volunteers to increase responsiveness and engagement.

Definitivamente, a comunica??o em ambientes digitais apresenta desafios únicos, especialmente quando lidamos com uma variedade de plataformas e indivíduos com diferentes estilos e abordagens. é crucial estabelecer critérios ou níveis de comunica??o, levando em conta as plataformas e o acesso à informa??o, para evitar a perda de comunicados essenciais. Frequentemente, a utiliza??o de softwares especializados é uma solu??o eficaz para organizar o fluxo de informa??es e garantir uma comunica??o eficiente e oportuna. Essas ferramentas n?o apenas ajudam a estruturar a troca de dados, mas também a manter todos os membros da equipe informados e alinhados, independente das suas preferências ou dinamicas de trabalho.

I think trust is the most important thing between management and employees. If management doesn't trust it's staff...micromanagement tends to take place which can affect the staff that is being micromanaged to be less motivated to do their work and kills moral.

Building trust and rapport with the team is a very important factor to consider. Get them to understand the requirements clearly and have an open door policy so that they can reach out to you with their questions. One should not show irritation with questions they come up with, it might be silly at times but understand where they are struck. Once your team get a hold of it, they will take ownership on their own and work more efficiently with your minimum intervention.

Even if we work with the same people on multiple projects, I see that all projects go through the 5 stages of team development - Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning. Additionally, to foster and maintain a healthy working environment, the team needs to celebrate the achievements, go through what worked and what didn't, and promote continuous learning within the company and team. I remember during the pandemic, we had virtual coffee sessions, and game hours ( where we played online scrabble, and picture charades ). This helps with the team to get comfortable with each other during the course of the engagement.

Trust and rapport comes with confidence and past experiences. It does not come overnight and needs to be built on a day to day basis with small wins each day.

Generar confianza suena fácil pero es realmente de los temas mas complicados de lograr realmente, considero que es algo que se obtiene/se gana y para nada es fácil, además de la ya mencionada comunicación tiene mucho que ver el mensaje que damos por ejemplo si los objetivos son individuales, serán de la misma manera los logros y los esfuerzos puestos en ellos. Busquemos generar un equipo que pueda confiar entre sí y que tanto los objetivos como los esfuerzos sean a nivel de equipo para que los logros sean a nivel de equipo generando a su vez una confianza.

Team spirit is very crucial to keep the project on track. Understanding each team members strengths, weaknesses and allocating tasks accordingly will benefit the project. Individual trainings and conversations go a long way to upskill the members!

The project coordinator must be flexible enough to work based on the project requirements. I have seen projects that require more technical engagement than project metrics, others where customer wants the project lead to direct everything. So understanding what kind of team and the work the project requires is paramount. This of course will come with time as one works on different kinds of projects and with several teams during the course of their career.

Communication breakdown must be noted as a risk as part of risk management and mitigation steps must of put into place. In case a team member is not able to join their project calls or complete the task due to network issues a back person needs to be identified well in advance to take over. If the task cannot be done by another person, having a backup plan for the network issue, such as providing them with a high-speed internet dongle or arranging a separate remote office space for them should be considered as a part of the project budget.

It is best to assess and evaluate all the potential risk well in advance and put them in a risk log. Break down your primary project objective into smaller tasks and keep a tracker to the milestones to complete every tasks. This will assist you to communicate better with the internal team and also provide clear timelines to the client. Incase if any one of the timeline is missed, do not panic, draft a contingency plan to stick to the major milestone. Risk management is very useful to manage open or ongoing or new challenges, you will ever come across during the project.

On top of the mentioned points such as trust and communication, I firmly believe that intentionality is key to successfully manage a remote team. Being intentional in every aspect of our decision-making, processes, and way of working is crucial. It means being deliberate and purposeful in our actions, ensuring that every step we take aligns with our team's goals and objectives. By being intentional, we can foster a sense of clarity, focus, and accountability within the remote team, leading to greater productivity and success. I am actually reading “Remote not Distant” by G. Razzetti on the topic.

Ensuring you have the right people who can do the right things in the right time. Then you will have a clear pathway to achieving a goal(s).

Understand the capability and the skills of each person in your team and use their strength by putting the right person in the right place this will help you to track and evaluate your team and make it very productive.