Remote working will be the new normal for many companies in 2021. Organizations must deal with remote, distributed, or global teams while trying to maintain high levels of productivity.

Organizations need to focus on creating productivity logs that take into account both sides of the equation – the effectiveness of the work the company receives and the wellbeing of the employees who do the work. This is the only way to create a successful environment for managing remote teams.

When overseeing remote workers or teams, you face challenges that would not have arisen if everyone had been working from the office. The pandemic only complicates this with the uncertainty that comes with it.

Let’s take a look at how successful companies keep pace and increase the productivity of their remote workers and teams.

Establish processes so your teams can work with greater autonomy

The dynamics of a team in the office don’t necessarily translate into full remote work. You may want to keep a closer eye on your team and their performance. That’s a mistake you don’t want to make.

In order for your teams to deliver, you have to Trust your remote workers. You hired your team because you are convinced of its capabilities. Give them a chance to show that. Granting greater autonomy in managing remote teams is directly related to how employees perceive job satisfaction.

Instead of checking in with them all the time, create a process based on goals, deadlines, and updates. This helps them get distracted and gives them a clear path to what to do.

The greater the freedom and autonomy at work, the better their performance and productivity. This is because they can work with their clear minds without having to worry about someone monitoring them all the time.

Give them the right tools and equipment to be successful at working remotely

The biggest benefit to managing remote teams is having access to the right tools and maintaining seamless work practices. Technology plays an important role in the success of remote workers and remote teams.

Make sure to train your teams on best practices for using the various remote working tools that the company has introduced. It’s not just about the communication tools you use for IM, email, video calling, etc. It’s also about all of the tools that teams use to carry out their tasks.

These can be tools that are used to pursue goals all the way to those that are used to provide feedback. Or those that are used to communicate with customers and suppliers. Make a list of the tools your remote teams need and make sure they can access them. This will make a huge difference and help you be more productive.

Ask your remote teams to set up a dedicated workspace

When working remotely, it is very easy to get into the habit of working from anywhere in the house. This may feel like freedom, but it has a negative impact on productivity. This is because people can get too distracted from what is going on around them.

Having their own workplace gives them a sense of regulation about the way they organize their working day. It helps to create a clear line between your work and your personal life.

It can be a completely different room or a special corner in a room, have a space that is only there for work helps to stay on track. You could offer them a scholarship to set up a home office or some other facility that makes it easier for them to find a job.

Mental and physical separation is an essential part of maintaining productivity and is something to encourage when managing remote teams.

Encourage your remote workers to maintain their physical and mental wellbeing

It is common for every employee to experience burnout, let alone when working remotely. Just as you want to avoid this when your teams are in the office, avoiding this for your remote teams should also be a goal.

There are many ways you can encourage your remote workers to take care of themselves. A mental wellness workshop is a good place to start. It will help your teams manage their stresses and other problems that bring them down.

A great way to promote physical wellbeing can be through a fitness challenge within the organization. As a team, you can all set weekly and monthly fitness goals. The camaraderie and company of their peers will help them achieve these goals on a regular basis.

Maybe there is something else like gym memberships that you can hand out. You need to find ways that work for your teams and make that a part of it.

The reason to care about the wellbeing of your remote workers is because it is directly related to their productivity and performance. The better they feel mentally and physically, the better they can do their job.

Make extra-work interactions a part of corporate culture

Remote working helps people stay productive and benefits businesses in terms of their costs and overheads. But if not done right, it can reduce the social component of collaboration. It’s important to maintain this social fabric as it helps keep teams together.

Activities like the water cooler talks, having a chat over lunch, strolling at someone’s desk, etc. provide opportunities for employees to interact with each other in a more casual way. It is important Maintaining a corporate culture in a remote work environment.

Weekly team meetings and calls where employees can talk about anything but work help maintain a friendly relationship between everyone. A video group dinner or a zoom hang after work is a great way to encourage interactions outside of work. An online game night or movie night is great too, just like if the teams were working from an office.

These activities help employees connect and get to know each other outside of the work environment. This bond brings teams closer together and helps them at work. Such teams are usually more productive than those in which the employees do not know each other well.

Final remark

Managing remote teams can be a challenge at times. But remote teams and employees that are properly managed are far more productive than traditional teams that work from physical offices.

It’s about identifying areas that can / are affecting productivity and fixing them before they become a problem. Done right, there is nothing like the performance a remote worker and team can achieve.

Start with good people, set the rules, communicate with, motivate and reward your co-workers. If you are doing all of these things effectively, you cannot fail. – Lee Iacocca, American automotive manager.