3 Tips to Build a Remote Team Effectively

3 Tips to Build a Remote Team Effectively

18th March 2019 Off By Priyanka Athavale

Remote working has garnered a lot of popularity lately. Employers are no longer restricted by the need to hire people living within a certain geographical range. In fact, remote teams are now going international, with people from different countries and even continents working together virtually.A survey conducted by Abodoo in collaboration with Vodafone found that 41% companies in the UK were already offering smart working options to their employees while 50% people said they would prefer a job with a flexible working arrangement.

One of the biggest challenges that remote companies face is the question of how to build a remote team. It isn’t as difficult as it seems if you know how to go about it, which is why we are listing out the top 3 tips to build a remote team effectively.

Build a Remote Team with These 3 Tips

#1. Trust

One of the biggest building blocks to a successful remote team is trust. If your employees trust you, then they will remain faithful to you and do their job productively. However, if an employee is in constant fear that he/she can be replaced anytime or believes that the company does not have their back, then that makes for an adverse work environment. Similarly, that is also the case if you don’t trust your employees to do their job and micromanage them. It is important to give as much priority to your remote employees as it is to customers. Your employees should be able to trust you and you should reciprocate that trust. That is key to building a successful remote team.

#2. Vision and Mission

When you build a remote team, it is important to establish the core values of your company first. Remote employees should also know what the company stands for, its vision, mission, values and morals. When this is clear, they will have a better understanding of what is expected of them. They will know the bigger picture that they are working towards. This helps to create some clarity about the expectations and values that a remote team should be aware of.

#3. Communication

A strong communication network is key to build a remote team successfully. Because your team is not in interacting face-to-face, there is always a risk of miscommunication. Thankfully, technology has advanced far enough to allow you to prevent this. One aspect is to use professional communication software like Slack, Skype, etc. besides the usual email and messenger. The second, and more important, aspect is to ensure that everything is properly communicated to your team. You need to put in place certain guidelines for tasks, meetings, and other daily operations. Be as clear as you can about agendas and meetings. Use customised documents or sheets for each team member for tracking tasks completed and assigning new ones. Make sure that all these procedures and policies are present in a written format and available to everyone.

In Conclusion

You can build a remote team successfully if you keep these three top tips in mind. They form the basis of your endeavour and will ensure that your team functions smoothly, efficiently, and productively. It will keep your employees happy and loyal to your organisation. It will also enable you to successfully build a team of the most talented and skilled individuals, irrespective of where on the planet they are located.

To know more about smart working or remote working in detail, check out this comprehensive and informative white paper that Abodoo created in collaboration with Typetec.