A few years ago, work from home became a fad as more and more people began to develop the courage required to start their own online businesses. Today, this trend solidified itself because of the Coronavirus pandemic, and working from home or working remotely has become more common than it ever was.
Remote work can be termed an inevitable necessity across the world today, and especially in those continents and countries that have been most affected by COVID-19. This unusual situation that is largely affecting the labor market comes with an array of advantages and disadvantages.
The advantage is that we save time. The commute to and from work is eliminated and employees can work in a comfortable, non-stressful environment. But on the other hand, it might be hard to focus while working in a comfortable environment. Managing teams remotely can be challenging as well. Thus, we will share effective tips for successfully managing remote teams.
Tip #1: Use Professional Tools to Manage Workflow
To manage a remote team successfully, effective communication must be facilitated, and while email was adequate in the past, it isn’t anymore. Especially because your team will not be in close physical proximity and hence cannot discuss important matters instantaneously.
One of the most popular tools for group communication is Slack. By using this tool, you can do much more than just communicate. If you choose the appropriate set of applications to use in combination, you will be able to manage custom Slack workflows as well.
Choosing to manage custom workflows with specialized tools will allow you to manage your team on auto-pilot, which means that wherever you are and whatever you do, your teammates will have tasks planned for them and will be notified about them. Furthermore, they are even reminded about their tasks at appropriate times.
Tip #2: Plan Daily Check-Ins
If your team is up for it, try to engage in a short face-to-face chat with your teammates every day. Tools like Slack go a long way, giving your employees a sense and a reminder that they are still a part of the team might really help lift their morale. You can also use popular tools like Google Hangouts or Zoom to communicate via video with your team for daily check-ins.
This is especially important if you have team members who are stressed about the COVID-19 crisis, and have had their work performance affected. Engaging with employees will provide reassurance that everything is normal and things will return to normal when it’s time.
Tip #3: Focus on the Outcome
Focusing on the outcome as opposed to the actions is a skill that every business owner must develop. This includes paying attention to your goals, which should be the primary goal of every business.
If you strive to micromanage every single employee on your team, you will simply burn out and cause unnecessary stress and frustration for your team. If you already hired them as professionals, let them deal with their responsibilities and monitor them in moderation. Otherwise, why pay a team if you know better, and are the one doing all of the work?
Tip #4: Choose Your Technology Wisely
Both communication and connection must operate seamlessly since they are key parameters required for successful teamwork. If you want to manage your remote team more efficiently, you should handle that and make sure your team has access to all of the digital and physical tools required to accomplish their tasks.
If you plan on working remotely for a longer period of time, investing in top-notch technological devices is important along with enabling access to the best digital tools. That is because old devices or those of poor quality can break down at any point. Amid the pandemic, it might be quite challenging to procure a new device on the same day when you need a replacement.
Tip #5: Stay Flexible
While working remotely and living in these trying times, there will be difficult and stressful days. Some days will be hard for you, and some days will be hard for your teammates – you need to understand the stress and pressure everybody is under and stay as understanding and flexible as possible. When has extra stress ever done anything good for work productivity and effectiveness?
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