This day and age, it is becoming increasingly common for organizations to transition their teams to a remote working model. This arrangement can offer numerous benefits, such as cost savings for each business, giving employees new freedom to set their working hours, and greater employee satisfaction. However, it also brings a suite of complex challenges for leaders of remote teams.
No matter the size of the company, managing remote team members can present its own set of hurdles to be overcome. In this article, let’s explore the common challenges associated with leading a remote team and how you can navigate them.
Understanding the Challenges
Before diving into how you should lead remote teams, let’s first discuss the main challenges associated with this setup:
- Poor Communication
One of the most common issues among remote teams is the struggle to communicate effectively. Without the benefit of in-person contact, understanding directly can be difficult so leaders must create new systems to ensure all team members have the opportunity to have their voice heard.
- Workers Feeling Isolated
When working in an office environment, employees typically have teams of colleagues that are readily available to engage with and collaborate with. However, when working remotely, employees can feel disconnected from the work and their colleagues, leaving them feeling isolated and lonely.
- Loss of Motivation
When in groups, colleagues are often able to motivate one other and spur each other on towards great achievements. With remote teams, this is typically lost. The virtual environment can make it difficult to keep morale up and often, motivation and productivity declines.
Overcoming the Challenges
Now that we’ve discussed the common challenges that are associated with managing remote teams, let’s now look at the steps you can take to overcome them.
- Create Scheduled Check-Ins
One of the best ways to stay on track in a remote team setup is to create regular check-ins that are scheduled on the same day each week. By having this session, you can ensure that all your team members are able to communicate the progress they’re making in line with their goals and ensure that any issues are addressed in a timely manner.
- Establish Team Building Exercises
Team building exercises aren’t just to be enjoyed in the office. Often, virtual exercises can be just as fun and encouraging for remote teams. Establishing team building exercises can help bring team members closer together and give them a chance to get to know each other better.
- Monitor Performance
When managing remote teams, it will come in handy to monitor the performance of each of your team members. Use tools like a virtual classroom to track the progress of your team and allow you to measure their success. You can also use other metrics such as attendance and completion of tasks to monitor performance.
- Set Goals
Developing objectives and aligning them with your team’s strategic goals is an important step in keeping them motivated and focused. Be sure to incorporate individual and team achievements alike into your philosophy and set both short term and long term goals.
- Provide Support
Remote teams have to work together to accomplish goals. You must ensure that team members have the tools they need to be productive and you are there to support and mentor them. Encourage team members to ask questions and to keep you regularly updated of their progress.
- Lead by Example
Leading by example is always important, and this holds true with remote teams. Set the tone for the team and show your team members how to work efficiently and effectively by being visible and engaging with them in conversations.
- Get Creative
Remote teams don’t always have the benefit of in-person contact, but with a little creativity, you can make the most of the virtual environment. Introduce virtual socials and events to keep the team together, involve them in games, or provide virtual well-being classes to promote employee health.
It is the job of the team leader to ensure the success of the remote team, which requires a different approach than managing a regular office group. Keeping the points above in mind, leading remote teams can be just as rewarding. With the right practices in place, teams have the potential to be even more productive in a remote setting.