5 Tips That Will Make Your Virtual Team Run Like Clockwork

In December of 2018, Virgin CEO Richard Branson said that working in an office 9-5 would soon be a “thing of the past.” Today, it's clear that the rise in the number of virtual employees means that virtual teams must be managed and kept productive. 

Businesses constantly look for ways to improve company efficiency and group satisfaction. Virtual teams, where employees from different locations all work together on one project, can be one of those ways. But, only if they remain productive. Managing these units can be difficult as workers can potentially operate in different time zones with distinct job responsibilities.

It’s tough to manage a virtual team and create a corporate culture with it. Especially if team members are spread out across the globe and might not ever meet in-person. There are several steps you can take to successfully manage a remote team; you can keep their engagement high without being overbearing:

1. Hire people you can trust to work remotely

It takes a certain discipline to work remotely and not everyone has it. Unfortunately, if even one person on your virtual team struggles with it, the entire team suffers. For managers, it’s the same challenge as having someone in the office who isn't a “team player.” Build your interview questions around how comfortable the applicant might be working remotely, such as whether they have proper equipment or a dedicated workspace.

After hiring them, don’t make the mistake of micro-managing just because you don’t see them face-to-face. If you’ve given them clear and detailed deliverables to start with, allow them the chance to succeed. Trusting your team to deliver will pay off a thousand times over in the long run. And, if one of them gives you reason to stop trusting them (missed deadlines, unacceptable quality of work, or absenteeism), you can handle it one-on-one with that person.

2. Take advantage of technology

Whenever there is a major shift in how business is done, it seems to either slightly precede or follow innovations in technology. Just a few years ago, there were only a handful of software choices that could allow virtual teams to communicate, share work, track time spent working, and collaborate. Today, there are several highly-rated programs and apps that can be easily tweaked to fit your needs.

For communicating with each other, email became the tool of choice over the last 20 years and it wasn’t hard to see why. The only problem is that email became so omnipresent that EVERYTHING came in via email. If you've ever been stuck in an endless "reply all" chain, you know how draining it can be. Now, most time-management advice revolves around limiting your time reading emails. 

3. Create a routine similar to what they’d have in the office

Technology aside, remote employees can fall off the grid without regular check-ins. Isolation can also decrease motivation, no matter how adept a person might be working solo. As a team leader, establish a day where you schedule one-on-ones with your employees. Routines add a sense of familiarity and uniformity even though team members operate from different places. 

It's critical to have individual meetings and conversations with each team member without others online so you can discuss their concerns or challenges. Discuss recent work and their schedule ahead, and encourage them to provide detail about their tasks and projects so you can help with any issues before they cause bigger problems.

4. Pay attention to time zones

It’s more common these days for virtual teams to have members who reside in different locales around the world. Although these employees may be operating in various time zones, it’s necessary for managers to make sure at least some work hours overlap. This ensures important group information doesn’t fall through the cracks and workers remain responsible for their part of the project. This might be difficult or next to impossible if you do have employees on the same team who are half a world away from each other, but even scheduling one hour of overlap so they can answer questions immediately can be a huge help.

5. Seek clear and concise writing in communications 

Even with meeting technology, the written word is still the most important communication method. It’s critical that you emphasize how vital clear and concise writing is to your virtual team. Miscommunication and misunderstanding happens through email and messages, so encourage (and demonstrate) what clear and concise writing should look like. 

Virtual teams are an important part of many businesses today. Furthermore, experts predict that remote work won't dissipate, but actually increase. Teams comprised of remote workers can be a challenge to manage, but through sound management techniques, technology, and patience, it can be incredibly rewarding.