Tips for Building a Remote Team

Thinking of building a remote team for your own company? Now, that’s not such a bad idea. After all, not only will it be beneficial for your business, it will also be beneficial for your employees. A 2-year study showed great results in productivity when employees worked from home. At the same time, 82% of remote workers report reduced stress levels in a survey.

While it seems easy, there’s a couple of things to consider before setting the idea into motion. If you take note of these things, then you can implement a remote team that will help your business flourish. Here are essential tips to remember when building a remote team: 

Lay down the groundwork

Before anything else, you need to lay down the groundwork. Implementing a remote team needs careful planning and if you don’t establish the groundwork beforehand, the team (and most likely your company as well) will easily fall apart. 

Start with an organizational chart. Include the team members, their positions, as well as their duties and responsibilities. You can also take note of future team members you’ll be getting. Aside from these, you also need to think about meetings and communication. Are meetings weekly or daily? Which large conference call provider will you choose? What messaging platforms will you utilize? It’s best to think about these things and lay it all out so you can be well-prepared. 

Find the right people

You need to make sure that you find the right people for your remote team. It might be better to get employees who already have experience in working remotely, rather than assigning or asking people to start working from home. People who have already been remote employees know how to function in this kind of setting. They’ll also have little to no trouble adjusting to the demands of a remote team. These people will fit just right into the remote team you’re building. 

Use remote team working tools

It’s also a must to utilize remote team working tools that will help the team members in their daily work process. The most crucial things to consider are the communication tools and other messaging software, conferencing software, and project management tools. These kinds of tools will help increase employee productivity even in a remote workplace. 

Know how to create meaningful connections

When building a remote team, you should also know how to connect. One of the disadvantages of having remote employees is that you don’t get to interact in person, which is a hindrance to deeper conversations. Still, you can find ways to create meaningful connections with everyone in the remote team. You can try to instill a culture of sharing happy moments in meetings. Or something as simple as using real photos for profiles, instead of abstract photos or cartoon characters. 

Learn to invest in your team

Investing in your team is also a good practice. As the leader or the CEO, you should be investing in their professional development, and even in their personal growth. Encourage them to take online classes, pursue a habit or a passion, register to leadership seminars, and more. Motivate them to be the skillful and talented persons they deserve to be, and in time, your company will benefit from it as well. Also, here’s how to prepare your employees for working remotely.