3 Ways To Better Manage Your Remote Working Team

Currently, the culture of working from home is on the rise. By 2025, there will likely be 87% more employees working from home than there was before the COVID-19 outbreak.

To account for this expanding shift, we must modify the way we manage our business teams. Remote teams play by different rules, necessitating different managerial approaches. When managed properly, remote workers can be at least as productive as those who work in an office. Here are some policies you should take into account when working with your home-working teams.

1. Ensure Proper Use of Remote-Working Technology

The foundation of a work-from-home culture is having a solid understanding of the technology on offer. As a team manager, it is your responsibility to make sure your workers have the tools they need to do their jobs, such as dependable internet and reliable computers. For the best performance and streamlined communication, you and your team may also utilise specialist collaboration and messaging software. And of course, ensure that staff members have the necessary instructions to use them to full effect.

While technology promotes and compliments working from home, it can also occasionally create problems. Workflow disruptions caused by technical issues such as Wi-Fi outages and system crashes aren’t uncommon. With your staff, you must be patient and assist them rather than scrutinise them. By using this approach, you will gain the respect of your team, demonstrate empathy and improve workflow.

2. Have Effective Communication

Whether a team is remote or physically on-site, effective communication is essential. However, there are additional barriers to clear communication and a greater risk of misunderstandings in remote-working teams. By doubling the amount of time you spend communicating with your staff and emphasising one-on-one sessions, you can keep this common issue at bay.

Since emails are the preferred method of business communication, you might want to think about employing email analytics software for quick and efficient collaboration. The software enables you to track communications by setting up shared and individual inboxes for your team members and allows you to efficiently respond to incoming emails by prioritising their importance. The software allows you to schedule reports, set goals, and track employee performance all in on one platform.

3. Motivate Employees

Maintaining employee motivation when working remotely can be a challenge. Out of sight, out of mind. However, despite the physical distance between your team members, you can raise your employees’ morale from afar. Start by expressing your gratitude to them when they perform well. Instead sinking under their workload, encourage them to take breaks and concentrate on a good work-life balance. Constant breaks allow workers to recharge and do their jobs more productively. Additionally, employees will be more motivated and do higher-quality work if you let them know you appreciate their efforts and are concerned about their mental health.

Despite the calls from larger organisations to bring teams back into the office, work-from-home appears to be becoming more and more popular. It provides a welcomed break from the pre-COVID chaotic way of living. Long trips to the workplace can be avoided, and flexible hours allow workers to fit other (more enjoyable) activities into their daily schedule.

However, there is a drawback to everything, and team managers often take the brunt of it. It can be challenging to maintain a consistent workflow across team members who may never have never even met in person. Misunderstandings and miscommunication can be brought on by poor management, regardless of where teams are physically located. Since managing remote workers is still a relatively new concept, there are no fixed rules, but by following the advice above, you can edge closer to having an efficient and happy working team.