Managing Remote Workers
Time-stamping this blog post because a lot has changed in the last 2 years and I presume a lot will change in the next 2 years to follow.
Prior to March 2020, remote work was an elusive concept that many employers challenged. The true ‘work-home-ers’ were far and few between. Insert a global pandemic. Organizations — big and small — were forced to connect their workforces remotely. And while the economy and the job market contracted (and then contracted some more), business was poised with a unique challenge to overcome:
How to effectively manage remote workers without a decline in productivity (or culture)
Rebecca Knight of Harvard Business Review provided a framework for managers who have remote direct reports back in 2015 and she may have just been a pioneer of her time. As the landscape has changed come 2022 and as Career Civility is focused on improving communication in the workforce, read on to find out how to best communicate, manage, and improve culture amongst your remote (or hybrid) workforce.
“We have a tendency to overcompensate and approach remote workers and virtual teams as these mystical beasts” (Mortenson, 2015).
Overcomplicating something in business??? Shocking
Working from home, working remotely, and working across time zones should no longer be deemed as obstacles but as common workplace practices. And yet, some remote managers make it look easier than others. It may not be because one manager is more qualified than the other, but because this is a skill that takes time, patience, practice and intentionality to refine remote management skills.
Knight (2015) breaks down 6 frameworks to follow -
Set expectations
Visit on a predictable schedule
Encourage communication
Spark impromptu interactions
Nurture familiarity
Make them feel part of the team
If you can zoom out from the day to day functions of your job/team - you can start with a 3 piece framework before you jump into Knight’s recommendations.
Set purpose and goals for the team
Communicate, communicate, communicate
Create personal relationships
When preparing to write about managing remote work, I read a lot of blogs, resource docs, and personal opinions on working from home and working remotely and there really wasn’t one bad piece of advice I came across. I did notice, however, that there was a lot of advice. This can be overwhelming and hard to implement all at one.
So, let’s zoom out -- What is the purpose of your team? What goals have you set out to accomplish in the next week, month, quarter, year? Who are the individuals that make up your team? What are their roles and responsibilities? What are their values? What strengths and weaknesses does each member possess?
Great - the foundation of your team is clear. We have defined the ‘why’ and the ‘who’. Now onto the ‘how’.
A lot of the ‘how’ is the framework Knight defines. More specifically, I want to focus in on step #3 -- encourage communication.
Communication is always a skill deemed necessary for any function in the workplace to succeed. And yet, it is always overlooked as a competency.
*Enter Career Civility*
Whether you are communicating virtually or in person, you must be intentional about communication.
Communicate your expectations.
“Set an appropriate cadence of communications -- including how quickly employees need to respond to email; what follow-up steps should be taken and on which days check-in calls should occur” (Ferrazzi, 2015).
Communicate your values.
-In the office this may look like the time you come into work, the clothes you wear, the decor on your desk or the lunch you eat.
-On a remote team, this may look like the outfit you are wearing in your avatar picture, the status you set on your messaging channel, and the energy you bring to video conferences
Communicate your wins.
Whether this is out loud in the office or via email - all wins are important. Make sure to celebrate them!
Communicate your needs, challenges, and learnings.
And lastly, ask for feedback. None of us are perfect. Find out what works best for you to communicate what works well and what doesn’t — whether it be a team meeting, a 1:1 meeting, or email.
Bottom line - it is necessary to recognize the differences between office and remote workers but communication needs to be intentional.
How do you manage your remote team? I’d be curious to learn what works (and doesn’t work) for your team! jenna@careercivility.com
References -
Knight, R. (2015). How to manage remote direct reports. Harvard Business Review.
