Effective Leadership: 5 Tips for Managing Remote Teams

The communication skills you rely on in person become even more important when you’re managing remote teams. When employees are working from home, it's a lot easier to miscommunicate or misunderstand messaging because of the separation that physically exists between you. To bridge this gap, many teams stay connected while working remote via communication channels such as:

Developing a positive rapport with your direct reports is key when you’re managing remote teams. The biggest difference between leading teams in person compared to remotely is the ability to connect on a person-to-person level.

In a remote work setting, you can run the risk of employees feeling disengaged and unsupported because they aren't getting the same daily feedback from an in-person relationship. That's why it's important to foster your employees' developmental success through ongoing and dedicated coaching. By showing your employees that you're invested in their individual success, not just the collective success of the team or company, you make them feel valued, motivated and more engaged on a personal level.

Some best practices for coaching are:

Fear not! Your company culture does not have to get lost in the shuffle simply because you’re working remotely. In fact, for many remote teams, culture thrives as employees actively seek out ways to achieve the feeling of togetherness they felt when they were in the office. For example, if your company has a culture of playing fun board games at lunch, consider digital versions of your favorites like Monopoly or Catan and put together a lunchtime game.

Another way to tie into your company's culture and values is to make them a part of your daily or weekly meetings. If you have a culture of recognizing your colleagues, then save a few minutes at the beginning of your meetings to have at least one employee recognize another for their work. You could even keep track of the special mentions over time and send a monthly or quarterly update to further share the recognition.

Remote work came as a surprise to many people in 2020, and there was a steep learning curve for both direct reports and supervisors to make it work. One positive outcome of this is the now ever-growing reservoir of free online resources to help you with managing remote teams successfully. What we're really trying to say is, you're not alone. There are countless people in a similar situation to yours, with similar challenges, who may have ideas or solutions to help you on your way.

One of the best places to find your peers can be on LinkedIn. For example, if you're a Human Resources Manager and you're looking to survey other peers about how they solve specific remote work challenges, search 'HR Managers' on LinkedIn, join one of the groups that pops up and ask your questions. You may be surprised by the quality and the thoughtfulness of the responses you get and are bound to find some great solutions you hadn't thought of. Who knows? Your experience might also help someone else at the same time!

While these tips can help you learn to thrive as a remote team leader, it's important to remember the skills that carried you to this point. Many of the effective leadership skills you embodied before remote work will also help you now.

For example, if your employees appreciated your open-door policy in the office, why not keep that policy running virtually? Let your team know you're there for them to talk whenever they need it by instituting an 'open video meeting' policy. Employees can book a 15- or 30-minute meeting with you as needed. By showing your employees they can still virtually poke their head in the door and chat, you're keeping the transparency and open rapport they appreciated about you before work went online.

Looking for more ways to build effective leadership skills? Earning a master’s degree could be a great next step. Contact us to learn more about our online programs designed for working adult students.