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5 Tips for Successfully Managing Remote Teams

Many companies do not get the full value from outsourcing, and it is a direct result of the way they’re managing their remote teams. A remote workforce can add tremendous value to a business, but only if they are managed properly.

Adding remote staff to your business is an excellent strategy for maintaining continual growth, even during challenging economic environments. It helps businesses be more competitive, scale faster and be more agile. It reduces labor costs and provides easy access to an enormous pool of  high-quality global talent, making it easy for businesses to support additional time zones and helps them scale. Additionally, it helps lessen the need for costly office space, on-site staff support and other overheads that are often overlooked.

While outsourcing’s benefits are compelling, a little effort is required to really take advantage of the opportunities it offers. Even when you’ve built the perfect remote team, without the right tools, structured processes and workflows, you might not get the levels of productivity and efficiency that could be easily achieved with a few simple management tips.

How can you ensure that your remote team stays productive and connected regardless of where they are in the world? It’s simple.

To help, here are a few simple ideas that can be easily implemented in your remote team management strategy to achieve desired results.

1. Check in regularly

Not everyone thrives when working remotely. While some staff can be a lot more productive when working from home, others may still prefer to work in the office. 

As a business leader, you need to stay connected with your team, either directly or through a team leader. Understanding what they need to stay engaged and reach their potential, whether they’re sitting in an office or at home is crucial for your teams’ success. 

If they’re working remotely, we suggest giving them the opportunity to work in the office for a couple of days a week, or vice versa. This flexibility can result in massive improvements in recurring productivity. 

2. Don’t micromanage

Trusting your team to do their job effectively with minimal management contact is extremely important.While you don’t want to micromanage their activities, there are benefits in maintaining an active relationship with them. 

Having a quick chat with your team even once or twice a week can help you keep track of project status, challenges, goals and achievements. We suggest scheduling a 10 to 15-minute video call on Monday mornings to go over the week’s goals  and another video chat on Fridays to evaluate the outcomes and for a bit of social time. 

Leading an outsourced team can be daunting at first. Here are a few other tips on how you can start your day with your remote team.

3. Make good use of tools and technology

Video chats and instant messaging have made it easy for business managers to stay connected with their remote employees at all times. There’s a wide range of online communication tools such as video and messaging, file-sharing and project management apps that promote productivity and improve efficiency, reporting and transparency. 

Using these tools will ensure the highest levels of productivity and collaboration. We suggest familiarizing your onshore and offshore teams with these tools and implementing them into your workflows to help achieve your goals quicker and easier.

4. Nurture their skills through training

The pandemic forced businesses to shift into the digital space and created an excellent opportunity for people to upskill and reskill. Encouraging your remote staff to attend online training or webinars promotes staff loyalty and engagement, but more than that, you will continuously benefit from the new skills and experience that your team brings back to your company. 

Remember that when you arm your staff with knowledge and new skills you end up with a much stronger and more capable workforce, helping your business scale and deliver better outcomes.

5. Build an exceptional work culture

Managing remote teams isn’t just about ensuring your team delivers a list of tasks. Creating a culture of information sharing, celebrating milestones and recognizing achievements is crucial to fostering a strong, positive work culture. 

If you’re able to hit your marks for the week, share that with your team. At Cloudstaff, we celebrate company achievements with staff through annual team building events, year-end parties and breakout sessions –  all part of our corporate culture. While it helps improve staff retention, it’s also an opportunity for our customers and staff to strengthen and create new relationships, and further promote collaboration. Building a positive workplace adds tremendous value to the overall outsourcing experience. 

Outsource with Cloudstaff

With over 10 years’ experience, we have the skills to help you achieve your outsourcing goals and help with managing remote teams successfully. Contact our team to find out how we can help take your business to the next level.