Dos and Don’ts for Managing a Remote Team

Remote team management (also known as virtual team management) is a unique process of supervising, leading, maintaining, and managing a remote team with the help of effective internet connectivity. Nowadays, with the rapid advancement in technology, the virtual world is gradually turning out to be the new real world. You must have observed the myriads of virtual remote teams around the world in the form of outsourcing, data entry companies, digital marketing agencies, and many more.

In this new era of telecommunication and globalization, the process of working with remote teams has evolved to a significant extent. But still, efficiently managing a virtual team properly often comes with the following difficulties –

i. Difficulty in making interpersonal connections due to the absence of face to face communication.

ii. Various logistical problems, such as coordinating certain jobs across different parts of the world.

iii. Differences in culture, and

iv. Various technical issues that lead to gaps in communication or miscommunication.

In order to circumvent such problems you need to follow some specific dos and don’ts. Below are some tips that might be helpful for you to figure out exactly how to manage remote teams.

A.What you must do while managing a remote team:

Here are the things that you should do while managing a virtual team –

1.Select a well-reputed development management technique:

You can find various management types and procedures available to read about online, such as the scrum management process. You need to make sure that the management process will maintain honesty and integrity amongst your team members and simultaneously increase their productivity without pressuring them too much. You can find various monitoring tools online, such as Atlassian Jira, that can help you to monitor the progress of your employees.

2.Stick to your management technique:

Once you select a certain process you should be patient about getting the desirable results. If you change your technique frequently, your employees would have a very hard time adjusting. Therefore, it is best to stick to your management strategy for a while.

3.Holding video conferences:

As you won’t be able to physically meet your employees at will, video conferences help you to develop an interpersonal relationship with them.. Face-to-face meetings are very important. It would be beneficial for your company if you hold a video conference with your employees for every project.

4.Set up your expectation:

People usually work better within deadlines. When you are able to clearly lay out your expectations you are able to increase their productivity to a significant extent. You could set a 30 day or 60 day window to fulfil your specific requirements.

5.Prioritize your needs:

If you impose too much work on your employees all at once, they will be unable to do their job while maintaining decent quality of life. Hence, prioritize your needs and divide certain jobs among your employees according to their expertise. It is beneficial when you are able to show them the smaller targets and the big picture simultaneously. That way, they are able come up with effective strategies to accomplish the task.

B.What you must not do while managing a remote team:

Now it’s time consider the facts that you shouldn’t do while managing your team –

1.Don’t believe in rumors:

Don’t judge any one of your employees based on certain hearsays. Rumors can be dangerous as they create misconception and unnecessary misapprehension. If you hear certain things about someone, personally communicate with him or her and consider every matter before making your final decision.

2.Don’t forget to encourage diversity:

Diversity of ethnicity and culture could be a very good thing for your organization as it would help to manoeuvre certain strategies from various perspectives. Hence, with a multicultural and diverse organization you are able to eliminate the “group thinking” problem.

3.Don’t use an Information System that is too intricate:

If your information system (IS) is too complex then your employees would have a difficult time interpreting and communicating with it. This would ultimately impede your company’s progress. Use an information system, such as the Source Code Management (SCM), which is easily comprehensible.

4.Don’t micromanage:

Micromanagement might cause confusion and conflict amongst your employees, so you must refrain from micromanaging while dealing with a remote team.

If you follow these dos and don’ts properly, managing a remote team should seem like a cakewalk.

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