8 tips on managing remote teams

It’s no secret that over the past years, an increasing number of employers have embraced hybrid or full-remote setups. Whether it was a conscious choice or a factor of the pandemic, the shift is still taking some getting used to: previously office-centric employees and leaders now have to work hand in hand to make “remote” work for them.

In a remote setting, there is always a risk of working-relationships becoming transactional — because as with all human interactions, where there is physical distance, there is also a form of psychological distance.

That’s why connection and engagement within a team is a crucial element that increases the trust and the productivity that keeps the team operating efficiently.

Here are 8 tips any leader can set in motion to make remote work “work” for them and their teams:

1???Create team rituals that regularly bring folks together.

Team rituals are instances where folks get to spend time together as a team to discuss business-relevant topics and to brainstorm solutions to potential roadblocks. One shared meeting per week (= overlap) to discuss business items is already a great start. And if your team values personal connection as much as getting down to business, think about scheduling optional “social hours” so the team gets the opportunity to bond on a more personal level.

2???Don’t force the overlap.

Despite the human need for connection, more meetings together as a team doesn’t necessarily mean better connection or a more productive outcome. Zoom fatigue is real, so avoid creating additional (unnecessary!) meeting overhead. Everyone has different preferences around how much connection they need with fellow team-members, so it’s always best to survey how the team perceives the added value from existing meetings and rituals. Don’t be afraid to regularly re-evaluate and tweak their format or cadence if needed.

3???Set the scene for trust and transparency.

No one likes to be micromanaged! Yet it’s what many managers in hybrid or remote settings tend to do, simply because they lack visibility of ongoing projects. Encourage your team members to proactively report back on their projects and tasks at team level, rather than to you directly. This will create a mutual sense of accountability across the team. For async updates, I highly recommend using a Slack check-in bot such as ??? Geekbot

4???Make sure everyone is always on the same page.

Communicate updates and decisions that affect the entire team in a timely manner - either on one of your “ritual meetings” or through a shared team channel. Business-essential info and major updates shared in meetings should also always be communicated in writing for future reference, and to inform anyone who couldn't make it to the meeting. Don’t worry about over-communicating or repeating yourself, and never withhold or drip feed information to individuals one by one (because hearing things through the grapevine can have major consequences!)

5???Don’t micromanage individual schedules.

Keep in mind that a team member’s working hours are not indicative of their contribution or performance. Outside of the “ritual meetings” and reporting back on their deliverables, your team members shouldn’t have to stick to a particular schedule — that’s the beauty of flexible, remote work! If you don’t see your team member’s Slack status light up as active when you are, or if they don’t respond immediately, don’t panic. There’s only ground for concern if a deliverable or a deadline is missed. The golden rule is to always trust folks to be responsible and autonomous beings — that way they may never give you a reason not to.

6???Encourage and respect team-members' focus-time.

Not all employees coming from office environments are used to being bombarded by Slack messages right, left and center — and they might still feel pressure to respond to those messages immediately. Yet, the option to have uninterrupted focus time when working from home is a gift that comes hand-in-hand with remote work. Let your team know it’s okay to accept this gift and show them that, sometimes, disconnecting actually helps reconnecting with work. You can lead the way here!

7???Celebrate successes and normalize “being stuck”.

Most companies have become really good at praising their employees openly. At Pitch , we dish out Tacos in an #appreciation channel and in our respective team-channels in Slack. However, sharing failures or difficulties is still something most people only feel comfortable doing when it doesn’t leave a paper-trail.

But sharing struggles or mistakes openly can create valuable learning opportunities for others. What you can do is to lead by example by being candid about some of the challenges you might be facing as a leader, normalize mistakes as a way to learn and grow, and encourage your team to do the same.

8???Lead by example.

You may have gathered from the previous points that, in all of this, it is essential that you do not dictate those new habits, but lead by example. Remote “values” (as many companies like to call them now), mean nothing when they are just a couple of rules printed in the virtual company handbook. As a leader, the best way to inspire your team to adhere to the new “remote language” is to let your behavior be the translator.

As a closing point, it’s also worth mentioning that company and team-specific remote “dialects” may develop over time, which is perfectly fine. In the long run, it’s always a good practice to regularly re-iterate on the rituals you have in place, and to understand if and how they can be improved!

And in the end, practice is always key in order to attain “remote fluency”.

Good luck on your path to practicing, preaching and re-defining remote work !