Running a remote team can help you save money on office space, reduce time wasted on the commute, and allow everyone to work from the comfort of their own home. It can infinitely increase your potential recruitment pool and make you competitive in areas where you would previously struggle to stay afloat.
All of this comes at a price.
You see, the traditional workspace existed for a reason. Being able to personally supervise your team has its merits. You get more control, more insight (and oversight), and inspiring loyalty is a lot easier.
It would take a lot of work to make up for all of this when running a remote team. Fortunately, just because it’s difficult, this doesn’t make it impossible. Here are the top four ways to run remote teams more efficiently.
1. Start by picking the right project management platform
The first thing you need is the right project management platform. This is your main working hub. Now, we would say that this is a tool without which a modern remote team cannot function, but the truth is that even on-spot teams cannot work in 2024.
First of all, it’s a platform that helps you assign everyone’s tasks and elevate the transparency of business processes. There’s usually a graphical representation of all the tasks, deadlines, and progress. This means that if you need to know something rudimentary, you no longer have to bother people; you can just take a glance at their sheet, card, or project page (depending on the platform).
Another thing you must understand is the importance of standardizing your communication. Streamlining your work process is important. If there’s a document to be submitted, it needs to be done via this platform and on the right page. Just think about what a nightmare it would be to hunt the correspondence where this file was shared. Did you do it via email DMs, or did you discuss it in the virtual meeting? By standardizing this, you can eliminate these types of disputes altogether.
Lastly, with the right project management platform, you’ll have an easier job restricting access to various staff members. While this may not sound pleasant, it is, nonetheless, necessary. Keeping everything on a need-to-know basis reduces the potential for a massive mistake and keeps your IP safe.
2. Think about integrations
Another thing you need to understand is that all the tools you use need to be integrated into a much larger system. Therefore, whatever tool you pick, regardless of whether it’s a communication tool, an ERP, or a CRM, you need to consider how it works with other platforms.
For instance, when getting a CRM, you want only the market’s best. However, in this search, you’re also looking for something that will fit all the other tools you’re using.
The main reason why you should be so fixated on this particular issue is the scalability. The sooner you set this up, the better. Namely, unless you plan to retrain and insist on your team starting a new onboarding process as soon as you introduce a new tool, this is essential. With a good integration plan, all you really have to do is ask them to undergo a quick presentation or watch a brief tutorial.
It’s also important that you keep everything centralized and available on demand. Sure, his is simple, while your team is small. Namely, a team of four people can be organized any way you deem fit. You can communicate via Instagram DMs, share files over Dropbox, and make conference calls via Skype, Google Meets, or Zoom. However, what happens when your team gets larger?
The sooner you resolve this, the better.
Most importantly, you’re looking to streamline your processes and standardize your workflow while the size of your team and your workload are still manageable.
3. Craft a strong security policy
The biggest challenge of running a remote team is the fact that everyone’s using their own devices, you have no idea what networks they’re using, and you don’t even know who’s on the other end of the line.
In an office, people are using their own terminals on their own secure networks. In the past, this went so far that some companies used intranet in order to keep their secrets extra secure.
In order to ensure this level of security in the modern office, there are really only three things you can do.
- Set a clear policy: This way, you’re letting everyone know what they’re supposed to do and what they should never do. This can involve a BYOD policy, remote work policy, Strong password policy, etc.
- Provide training and resources: The next thing you need to do is raise awareness and train your team regarding cybersecurity. This way, they’ll know how to protect themselves and your brand in a digital environment.
- Restrict access: Lastly, you need to keep the information flow on a need-to-know basis. Project management platforms can make this even easier by allowing you to choose who has access to which projects.
These methods are more effective than you think. You see, even a lot of offices that insist on presence in person insist on these practices and policies. The key thing to remember is that the digital world offers an extra layer of protection. Every action on these platforms leaves a digital footprint, which makes this crumb trail a lot easier to follow.
4. Rethink your payment model
The first thing you need to understand about running remote teams is the need for a unified payment system. Sure, some of your employees may prefer to be paid in crypto, but what does your accounting think about it?
Generally, including more payment options is a good idea, so there’s nothing wrong with including crypto payments alongside more traditional forms (like direct wire transfers). Doing this will also make you more appealing to a huge portion of your potential talent pool.
Just think about it: there are a lot of remote workers who see this as the absolute best way to receive funds. In fact, in some regions, they may even see it as the only reliable way to do so. This means that if you don’t offer it, you’ll automatically disqualify yourself as a potential employer and miss out on a potentially massive and lucrative talent pool.
Other than that, you may want to rethink your compensation plan in general.
As a remote employer, you’ll have a harder job inspiring loyalty and ensuring that your team remains loyal in the long run. One of the ways to do so is to either reward them with company shares or offer them to buy them at more favorable terms.
There’s no better way to make them feel like a part of the family than to actually allow them to own a part of your family home. This way, you’ll not just buy their loyalty but also ensure that they work extra hard (harder than ever before).
Running a successful remote team requires quite a bit of finesse
Each of these challenges and bottlenecks can be made up for with the right approach. First, however, you need to be aware there is a problem. Then, you need to plan out your approach. Do the research on your options and pick the set of actions that you find to be the most suitable.
