How to Manage a Remote Team | EP 31

How to Manage a Remote Team

1. Tip #1: Have clear descriptions of responsibilities and roles  01:38
   • Make sure that they understand exactly what you expect of them, what the job description is, and how they are going to fit into your company.
   • If you use internationally remote employees, know that work habits will be different. Something that seems common sense to us in the US, might not be that big of a deal in another country.
2. Tip #2: Have a set schedule 03:05
   • It helps to have a set schedule, so you know when that person is going to be at their desk working on your project.
   • This will help with knowing when to communicate, especially when you are on very different timezones.
   • Otherwise, you’ll be chasing each other around with questions.
   • This also really helps with planning deadlines. If you know you have 10 hours of scheduled work time on Wednesday and Thursday, then you can say that the project will be ready by Friday.
3. Tip #3: Make sure that you have clearly defined processes 04:34
   • Every company’s processes are different. Make sure that you have these outlined and that your employees, contractors, and clients understand them.
   • Creating handbooks for positions can help later on when you are expanding your team.
4. Tip # 4: Have established tools that everyone knows how to use 06:07
   • There are so many different tools that you can use to communicate. It’s easy to start sending messages across 5 different platforms. Not only is this confusing, but it’s also very time consuming.
   • Resources: Slack (messaging) and Asana (project management)
5. Tip # 5: Communication is key 07:02
   • It’s important to understand how people communicate, especially with a remote team.
   • Text messaging can come off emotionless. It’s easy to misunderstand the tone of the message.
   • Finding people who communicate well with you is really important.
   • Emojis can be a really good way to show happy, easy-going emotion with your team.
6. Tip #6: Be very clear about compensation 09:56
   • Money can ruin relationships. It’s important to define compensation in the beginning.
   • Define the amount you will be paying them, when they are going to get paid, and how they are going to get paid.
   • Resources: Transferwise
7. Tip #7: Have intentional culture and moral boosters 11:30
   • Give shout-outs and let your employees know that they are valuable.
   • Keeping your employees happy and motivated also helps with employee retention.
   • Part of being a good manager is figuring out what this means for each employee.