How to Implement a Successful Remote Working Strategy

To many people, teleworking may sound like a dream come true. But it’s not without its challenges. For example, you may find yourself overworking, becoming distracted easily, or perhaps even lonely from a lack of social interaction.

As our team continues to grow at MGA, so does our number of remote workers. We currently have team members based out of Dallas, Austin, and Phoenix as well as one who spends the majority of her time traveling. Over the years, we have learned how to manage the challenges that may come up along the way and how to help our remote team be successful regardless of the miles between us.

4 Best Practice Tips to Set up Remote Workers for Success

• Communication. Communication is a crucial component to any successful relationship, and your team at work is no different. However, with remote workers, it’s easy to get wrapped up in just the work details when you’re on a call or chat with them. While this is important, yes, don’t forget the small talk too. Being out of the office can be challenging for team members from a social aspect, so asking about their family or what they’ve been into lately is a great way to build rapport with the long-distance members of your team.

• Video Chat. We can attest first hand to how vital video chat is in keeping the connection alive between you and your remote team. In fact, research shows that over half of human connection is nonverbal. There are many inexpensive (and some even free) resources out there that make video chat a breeze, such as Skype, Zoom, and Google hangouts. We recommend switching your calls or chats to video whenever possible to stay connected with your remote team.

• Technology. In April of 2018, we took on the massive task of enhancing our IT infrastructure by diving head first into the cloud. We saw the requirements of our computing power was changing, so we got ahead of the curve and found a remote solution that bolstered security, made scalability easier, and streamlined how we do our work. This was a game changer for our remote team as well as anyone who needs to work from home occasionally. Instead of having the ever-evolving challenge of accessing your work environment via a personal computer, our team is now able to log into the cloud via a secure web interface to access the files and programs they may need. All they need to be successful is a Wi-Fi connection.

• Expectations. While setting expectations is essential for all employees, it is especially important when looking at your teleworking team. By setting clear and explicit expectations, you can ensure that deadlines, roles, and projects aren’t overlooked or missed. This ultimately leads to a happier team on both ends. Team members are able to deliver to those expectations, and management can rest assured that nothing is falling through the cracks.

How to Make Remote Working Actually Work

To implement a successful remote working strategy, it is important to over-communicate, see each other face-to-face, have proper technology in place, and set realistic expectations. It’s also important to make sure your remote employees feel like they are part of the team.

Is your company looking to implement a remote working strategy? Let us help. We are happy to share what works for us and also what doesn’t work for us. With our hands-on experience, we can help you build a strategy to ensure a successful outcome.

We are here to bring simple solutions to your complex problems.

Let’s talk!