This article focuses on the remote manager – and I’m not talking about the guy sitting down the hall in the big corner office who is psychologically distant and intimidating. I’m talking about the manager supervising staff members who are spread across multiple remote locations - something I’ve been doing for 30 years.
In many ways, managing teleworking staff remotely is very similar to managing staff in an office setting. The basic management tasks are pretty much the same. But in a remote setting, more emphasis needs to be placed on three key principles: trust, communication, and interaction.
Principle 1: Manage with Trust
First, let’s address the “elephant in the room”: How do you know your remote employees are working if you cannot see them? Are they streaming Netflix? Watching the latest sporting event? Doing household chores? The honest answer is that you have no idea what they are doing.
But you really have no idea what employees are doing in a traditional office setting either. Are they working on the latest report or playing Solitaire? Crunching out 3rd quarter numbers or emailing their mom?
This is where managing with trust comes in.
You could literally drive yourself bonkers if you worried about whether employees were at their desks working dutifully. A better approach is to trust that they are working. Your employees are professionals in what they do. Assuming you have hired qualified people, trust that they can manage their personal and work lives in a way that provides them with balance and enables them to produce at a high level.
I realize letting go and trusting is a tall order, but I fully believe that employees will be highly engaged and productive working remotely if management can step back and trust. Think McGregor’s Theory Y trust-based management - squared!
Have I ever had an employee do personal tasks while on the clock? Absolutely! Have I ever done personal tasks while on the clock? Absolutely! We are all human and our personal lives sometimes seep into our work lives, and vice versa. But the real question is not what an employee is doing at the moment, but whether he/she consistently performs and is available when needed. In other words, are the results there? This question is one managers must ask whether they manage a remote or traditional workforce.
We recently revised our flextime policy. Flextime is what we call personal leave that must be made up within the same week it is taken. I asked employees to enter their flextime in the time-tracking system and to post scheduled flextime on the company calendar. I was absolutely shocked at how much time employees are out of the office during normal business hours for flextime. Doctors’ appointments, haircuts, kids’ sporting events, house errands, you name it. As I looked at the numbers, I could feel my hackles rising. But I had to take a step back and ask: Is the work getting done? Are we producing quality work products? Do the employees seem happy? The answer was a resounding yes.
I also noticed I was one of the biggest users of flextime and that the flexibility was a huge benefit to me. I realized that just as I can be trusted to make up my time, I can extend that trust to others. Let’s face it, people have busy lives. Given the opportunity, most remote employees can manage their schedules in a way that is a win-win for both the employee and the company. And when a problem arises, I can deal with that one-on-one while still fostering a culture of trust throughout the company as a whole.
Principle 2: Over-Communicate
It can be intimidating at times for an employee to contact a manager. In a remote setting, it can require even more initiative since employees do not “run into” a manager in the hallway and can’t pop their heads into a manager’s office. For this reason, managers should take the lead when it comes to communication and should provide ample opportunities to communicate in a remote setting.
There are tools that can help remote teams communicate, such as:
- Videoconferencing - we use Zoom, which provides affordable and reliable videoconferencing, allows us to host breakout sessions for smaller meetings during videoconferences, and enables participant polling to gather feedback. We rarely hold traditional phone calls now that we have such a capable videoconferencing system.
- Instant messaging – we use Slack, which helps teams communicate via instant messaging through channels that they can set up for projects or other topics of interest (like the “company water cooler”). Slack is fast and convenient for communication. The added benefit is that internal email has been reduced by 95%.
- Employee engagement app – we use 15Five, which enables me, as a manager, to keep my finger on the pulse of my team. At the end of each week, employees post their accomplishments and goals, and respond to questions. Sometimes these questions are of a personal nature, such as “What would you do if you won the lottery?” But more often, the questions solicit feedback on company issues or policies. For example, “Name one thing you would like to change in our employee handbook.” Another helpful feature is the weekly high-fives, where employees can recognize each other for “above and beyond” efforts.
The apps and tools really do help, but of course they do not replace more direct communication. One of the most powerful techniques I have discovered is one-on-one meetings between managers and employees. In a one-on-one meeting, the goal is to coach the employee, not to go over the status of work assignments. It is recommended that a manager sit down with each employee for 30 minutes to ask questions, listen, and coach. It’s also a natural time to talk about any issues the manager may be having with the employee, or vice versa.
I hold these one-on-one sessions via videoconference with each of my team members on a monthly basis, and have been amazed by the dialogue the sessions promote.
I must admit that I have, in the past, been one of those managers who has avoided one-on-one meetings with my team members. I even had to force myself to conduct annual performance reviews. Team collaboration completely changed for the better with one-on-ones. As a manager, it keeps me in touch with employees, provides the chance to get to know them and their needs, and is an opportunity to help them grow. On the flip side, it makes me more transparent and accountable to my team.
Using Zoom, Slack, 15Five, and one-on-one meetings, my goal is to “lead out loud” and set an example to my employees to over-communicate. This does not mean endless conversations that bog down performance and that test patience. But a manager should provide multiple methods and opportunities for a remote team to stay in touch. Remote work can be isolating. Tensions can build and problems can drag on for weeks when employees are remote. Provide the opportunity and set the example, and communication will happen.
Principle 3: Provide Opportunities for Personal Interaction
Despite all of the electronic wizardry out there, nothing truly replaces personal interaction. I feel it is important to bring people together on a periodic basis, such as an in-person meeting monthly, quarterly, or perhaps annually (for very remote teams).
When your team is together, you should take advantage of the opportunity for interactive activities. Having employees sit through a meeting to listen to the latest project updates does not take advantage of the fact that they are together in the same physical space.
When your team is face-to-face, it is time for interaction. Break your team into small groups and ask them to discuss certain topics, and have each group present a summary. Provide training, preferably by an employee with expertise in a particular area. The more hands-on the better. Design something using a whiteboard or flip chart, such as new team website pages. Finally, allow a bit of down time, such as a longer lunch, for everyone to catch up and relax.
In addition to meetings, consider a team event once or twice a year. Such events are a great way to foster team-building and to create memories that help bond remote teams. Memorable events could include visiting a museum, cooking a meal in a studio kitchen, or going on a team scavenger hunt. More adventuresome outings could include skiing, rope climbing courses, or hiking. In our company, we have done all of the above with rewarding results. Perhaps my favorite was “Escape the Room” in New York City and, conversely, I would not repeat the bruises we received from human foosball (but we still built memories). When it comes to events, try to pick an activity that allows everyone to physically participate. Watching everyone have fun is wonderful and the bonding is priceless for team development.
The Secret
When you trust your employees, over-communicate, and provide opportunities for interaction, you will build a happy and productive remote team. The secret? You will get your time back. A finely tuned remote team can run with less management, which enables you to produce, learn, and contribute to your organization in other ways, such as in leadership and vision-setting.
I manage a team of 12 remote employees while regularly contributing to projects as a lead consultant and also implementing a multi-year inbound marketing effort. I still have a lot to learn about effective management. But the principles above have allowed me to establish a culture where management and employees trust and support each other, and regularly engage through a variety of methods. This frees up my time and drastically cuts down on the time I spend on office politics and problems. What manager wouldn’t want this?
