How to start a remote team?

Remote working is becoming an increasingly common practice for businesses big and small.

It wasn’t too long ago that remote working was the purview of startups and micro businesses. But increasingly enterprise level organizations are getting in on the act. Global giants like Xerox and Deutsche Bank are integrating remote teams into their workforce.

Technology and a shift in management style has created an environment in which remote teams are able to contribute to the overall success of the organization while reducing overheads.

It also has the added benefit of building trust between employees and the business and reducing turnover. Which has the added benefit of reducing operational costs further.

However, building a remote team is more than just hiring someone, handing them a laptop and waving them out the door. Building an effective remote team takes time, planning and effort.

Here are some things to consider:

What is the team for?

Before you go through the time, hassle and expense of building a team, make sure they have a clearly defined role within the business first.

A clear understanding of why the team exists, what they need to achieve and how their activity will contribute to the overall success of the business, is essential.

Being able to answer those questions will inform the kind of recruitment search you need to undertake. It will give you a firm understanding of the skills, experience and culture you need within the team and help them get off to a flying start.

Define the Structure

When building a remote team - especially one that could cross time zones - establishing a structure to the team will help give the team stability.

An essential part of this is hiring the right kind of team leader or project manager. It’ll be their job to keep a firm hand on the rudder, especially in the early days as everyone gets to know each other.

It will be their job to navigate social differences, personality clashes and the inevitable challenges that come from not physically being in the room together.

Everyone in the team needs to have a defined role and set of responsibilities. This can be put into an organizational chart if you feel it would help.

But the main thing is that everyone in the team knows what they should be doing from day one. A lack of clarity in this area is what kills teams before they ever get off the ground.

The absence of direction and defined tasks leads to time wasting, poor productivity and a demotivated team. Which inevitably collapses in on itself.

Procedures and Guidelines

Once you’ve created a structure you need to implement procedures and guidelines to make sure that structure holds up.

Create workflows so every member of the team can see their area of responsibility and where - if any - there are overlaps. Workflows are intended to make processes more efficient by defining the process itself.

This has to be backed up by guidelines that ensure the processes lend themselves to efficiency and productivity.

Guidelines should expand on the workflows you have created with not only descriptions of what these steps look like, but also the rules and regulations of the organization.

This is a good place to include frequently asked questions and other useful information to support the team in their work.

During this stage is a good time to factor in evaluations, both in terms of frequency and how they are to be structured. You should also consider what the key performance indicators should look like.

Take some time with each team member to discuss the guidelines to ensure everyone understands what is expected of them.

Find the Right People

Building any team from scratch is hard. You need to find the right skills and experience as well as the right cultural fit. However with a remote team you also need to find someone who has the self discipline to sit in a home office and work.

Remote working isn’t for everyone and finding the right kind of mindset is an added complication. However, the upside is you aren’t bound by geography. You can recruit from anywhere in the country. Or even the world.

This vast talent pool means you can cherry pick the people who you believe will not only do the work but create the best team.

Cultural fit in a remote team matters. They need to be able to communicate and support one another across chat, voice and video calls just as effectively as if they were in the same room.

Again, remote working isn’t for everyone. Poor communication and a poor onboarding process kills teams.

To ensure you get the best of the bunch, consider factoring a few behavioural exercises into the interview process.

Depending on how much depth you want to get into and the seniority of the position, you can ask questions based around ethics, communication, relationship management, leadership and business acumen.

Choosing a team that can work together - where personalities are in balance - and accept each other will more or less decide whether the team succeeds.

Give them the right tools for the job

You’ve saved a fortune on office furniture so make sure they’ve got reliable technology and the right software to deliver.

If you’ve spec'd out the team structure and responsibilities correctly it will be evident what software packages are needed and by whom.

Similarly, you will know who needs a MacBook Pro and who needs a standard laptop.

You will also need to determine how the team will manage tasks/assignments, collaborate, file share and communicate. They also need to know who to talk to if any of the software stops working or their hardware fails.

Identifying the right software packages is essential. Not only so the team can call, chat, email and file share, but so they can do so reliably and securely.

Considering evaluations, one-to-ones and other private conversations will take place over these platforms, it needs to be a reputable solution.

When team members are working remotely it is essential to ensure they have the correct space set up at home and they are well equipped to deliver their best work without distraction.

Building and establishing a remote team is a challenge but one that can yield huge rewards if executed correctly.

Define the parameters, make a plan, bring in brilliant and talented people and give them the tools they need to flourish. The rest should take care of itself.

I would love to hear feedback on your own experiences working remotely or managing teams during lockdown. Feel free to comment below and share knowledge to help others experiencing similar challenges during these uncertain times

Stay safe and look out for weekly posts answering your questions on these topics.