Published on December 6th, 2022 | by Bibhuranjan

10 Ways To Make Distributed Teams Work For Your Business

Having a team of employees outside the company’s office is normal nowadays. Whether it’s permanent, contractors working on-site or remote employees, there are many benefits to being in an environment where you can choose who works with you. What happens when a project requires an individual from that remote location? Organizations are looking for ways to integrate team synergy and coordination to smoothen the workflow and ensure efficiency.

However, many challenges come with a distributed team. Many companies need more face-to-face interactions and follow-up or checking on performance. It is seemingly hard to communicate. Also, the opportunities for collaboration can lead to inefficiency and miscommunication among team members internationally. It would help if you used the remote working tools that the team needs.

There are some ways to overcome these challenges, though. So, in this article, we will explore the top 10 ways you can ensure your team is working in the best manner.

10 Ways To Make Distributed Team Efficient

A distributed team consists of several coworkers who operate remotely, either locally or internationally. They might conduct their business locally but from afar or abroad. They don’t share actual office space and instead communicate online.

According to Forbes, 74% of employees prefer remote work to become standard everywhere. With this expectation, managers must learn how to make the distributed team work effectively for business. So here are they:

1. Select employees carefully

The first thing to do is to select the employees carefully. Having the right team is the starting point of ensuring that you will achieve your business targets rightly. You must ensure that you hire people based on personal skills, interviews, communication skills, and motivation. Undoubtedly, asking people about their views on collaborating virtually can be helpful.

2. Ensure consistent communication

Having proper and structured communication channels is essential for every team and business. Effective communication ensures that the team is aware of what requires and how it should do and is even aware of how to share concerns. Also, over-communication should be avoided as this can lead to confusion and distress.

3. Define the targets seamlessly

The ultimate goal is to earn profit. You can set the target based on the SMART strategy. The goals should be set daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly.

4. Use collaborative tools

Modern technology is always a great option when you are looking to work with a remote team. Video conferencing tools and productivity management apps are great for controlling staff engagement and team effectiveness. Also, ensure that remote workers have dependable technology and an internet connection.

5. Build trust among the team

Trust is the building block of every job and team. Building trust is easier when you work in a physical environment, building trust is easier, but the same is difficult when working remotely. The best way to do this is by keeping expectations transparent, sharing feedback and reviews, and having thorough communication. Also, as suggested in the Stanford Business article, remote work offers greater productivity, make sure to trust them with the job allotted. Simply by keeping a personal touch, you can quickly build trust among the team.

6. Conduct regular meetings and brainstorming sessions virtually

It is essential to have regular meetings with the team to know their progress and productivity. But at the same time, it is crucial that prior scheduling is done so that they have a proper timeline set for them. Encourage weekly virtual meetings and brainstorming sessions where the entire team can collaborate and share their views. Also, you can go speaker of the day concept and give every member a chance to conduct the meeting.

7. Ensure to have a structure

When the team is working in remote mode, they would prefer to have a level of flexibility. But being a leader, your schedule ensures proper structure and timeframe for every task allotted. You can achieve this by establishing set schedules to ensure workers maintain a healthy work-life balance, by facilitating conversations to make sure they are fruitful and by always allowing time for comments and questions during meetings.

8. Delegate authority to team leaders and team

One of the biggest mistakes people make with a remote team is a lack of responsibility and authority. Even if you set up multiple offices at different locations, ensure that you have local leaders or managers who can take of the targets. Over time, this might assist you in building solid, distributed offices that clients can rely on. Also, even though you need to maintain a check on everyone, avoid micro-managing once you have delegated the work and give your team space to explore and work independently.

9. Respect boundaries and time frames

You should be more aware of the boundaries and timelines when you have a distributed team. In various instances, remote team leaders ignore the time and can even ask to work extended hours, which can be stressful. In case the employees live in different countries, try to keep meetings at times when all can be comfortable joining rather than going for extreme hours.

10. Rewards and appreciation are welcomed

Last but not least, one should never forget rewards and appreciation. A simple appreciation can spark a high level of motivation, which will benefit the business in the coming years. It might involve providing a stipend or allowance to assist remote workers in setting up a successful work environment at home, offering staff development opportunities like online learning, and compensating teams for internet use.

Manage Distributed Team for Your Project

Managing a remote team can be challenging but possible. But at the same time, 77% report greater productivity, and 52% are less likely to take time off, as per CoSo Cloud Survey. Also, when you hire internationally, you get a mix of employees with a range of skills and aptitudes that can be beneficial in the long run.

Working with the remote team is truly fun when you start setting the guidelines, timetable, and work culture from the beginning. Also, with the changing working environment, businesses need to focus on diversification with distributed teams. In conclusion, while creating and maintaining distributed teams may initially require extra work, it will be worthwhile.

Tags: remote team management, remote working, team management

About the Author

Bibhuranjan Editorial Officer, technofaq.org I'm an avid tech enthusiast at heart. I like to mug up on new and exciting developments on science and tech and have a deep love for PC gaming. Other hobbies include writing blog posts, music and DIY projects.