Working from home is now very common worldwide. With the advent of new technology, employees can do their jobs from anywhere – not just at an office. This flexibility helps in many ways but also makes managing teams more tricky when people are in different places. What does it mean to organize a team with members spread out? What tools can help coordinate everyone? This article explains the idea of a “remote team” and suggests the best remote working platforms to connect people working at home or elsewhere outside a main work building.
What is Remote Team Management?
Remote team management means organizing, directing, and supporting teams where people are working in different places – not gathered in one main office. It involves scheduling project timelines, planning who does what work, and handling communication for team members based at home, at additional office spaces, or traveling. The manager gives guidance, backup, and supervision so everyone stays on track toward goals and keeps collaborating smoothly even when not physically together.
Why Has Remote Work Become More Common?
There are the following reasons for the growing importance of remote work:
- Technology – Fast internet and tools like video chat allow effective communication. Collaboration apps help teams work together online.
- COVID-19 – The pandemic forced companies to embrace remote work.
- Flexibility: Workers value being able to better combine their personal and professional lives and not having to commute to an office every day.
- Globalization: Talented individuals can be hired by businesses anywhere in the world thanks to remote employment.
Key Aspects of Managing Remote Teams
The following given ways are best to manage employees:
- Communication – Set expectations for online availability and response times for messages or requests. Encourage proactive updates from team members on progress and obstacles.
- Collaboration Tools – Provide platforms for messaging, video/voice chat, file sharing, task lists, and documentation so people can work together effectively.
- Tracking & Evaluating – Use project management software to create plans for deliverables, assign tasks, follow progress, and identify problems early.
- Company Culture – Foster social connection, and create shared experiences and values so remote team members feel unity and mutual support even when not together physically.
- Balance & Wellbeing – Understand the unique stresses of remote work. Encourage taking breaks, unplugging after hours, and establishing work/life boundaries.
Leading Platforms and Tools for Remote Teams
Specialized software can streamline coordination, collaboration, and analytics:
1. ProHance
ProHance stands out as the leading premium solution available for optimizing remote team productivity, offering managers an unparalleled comprehensive suite of analytical tools, including detailed tracking of time utilization patterns, productivity benchmarking relative to peers, granular breakdowns of idle time triggers, and customized real-time data visualizations into progress towards OKRs. The interactive dashboards provide unprecedented visibility into efficiency metrics, while the built-in analytics empower leaders to spot trends, compare top and bottom performers, run what-if scenarios for optimization, and accurately forecast future progress. No other software matches ProHance’s capabilities when it comes to understanding the drivers of distributed team success and designing programs targeted to improve remote workforce efficiency and collaboration.
2. Slack
Slack sets the standard for streamlined team communication and transparency. Custom channels organize conversations while robust capabilities exist for group messaging, file sharing, and documenting key information.
3. Trello
Trello displays workflows visually on digital boards/cards that are flexible and intuitive. Great for task coordination, project roadmaps, assigning responsibilities, and monitoring progress.
4. Zoom
Zoom has become synonymous with reliable video meetings. Features like screen sharing, whiteboards, breakout rooms, and chat facilitate collaboration.
5. Asana
Asana helps plan and coordinate complex projects with tools for creating timelines, assigning tasks, and setting milestones and deadlines. Tracks progress across individual and team workloads.
Powerful Software for Managing Remote Employees
Alongside collaboration capabilities, specialized software also focuses on optimizing remote employee productivity and efficiency:
1. ProHance
ProHance leads this category with its unparalleled analytics into utilization rates, productivity optimization tools, and comprehensive employee performance management. Powerful forecasting functionalities allow modeling scenarios for improving productivity, like reducing everyday minor delays, while optimization tools provide tailored guidance for enhancing focus.
It grants managers the ability to truly understand productivity patterns across remote individuals and teams. Leaders gain actionable and tailored recommendations on strategies most likely to boost efficiency for specific employees based on historic time utilization data. Simply put, no other software grants the depth of insights or specialized optimization tooling targeted to improve productivity among distributed team members.
2. BambooHR
BambooHR allows streamlined handling of HR processes like recruitment, onboarding, payroll, and benefits coordination for remote operations management by using one integrated platform.
3. Workday
Workday delivers an end-to-end solution for HR, payroll, time tracking, expenses and other tasks – with accessibility for distributed teams. Customizable workflows and self-service options.
Strategies for Making Remote Teams Work Well
To properly use the benefits of remote teams, managers should focus on linking the company’s main targets with plans for remote work by:
- Choosing carefully which jobs can transition well to remote – some roles may not adapt as smoothly
- Setting up rules, tools, and check-ins so everyone knows what’s going on, what needs to get done, and what problems come up. This allows people to correct early.
- Tracking whether remote team members feel motivated and included, and fostering social ties between co-workers since they don’t see each other in person. Having everyone do video check-ins, virtual coffee meetings, and recognition programs.
- Building some flexibility into hours and response times to acknowledge remote work-life balance while still establishing boundaries so customer needs get fulfilled properly. Providing core time frames where meetings get scheduled during overlapping hours.
Some other recommended best practices include:
- Extra clarity when assigning tasks or sharing guidelines so instructions don’t get confusing across distances
- Leadership modeling effective remote work etiquette around meeting deadlines and communication
- Consistent surveys to monitor remote employee satisfaction and troubleshoot issues
- Establishing centralized knowledge management platforms and protocols for documenting work
- Occasional offsite team gatherings so members can build connections face-to-face
With deliberate strategies supporting social ties, transparency, and work-life balance, research indicates remote team members feel more motivated and productive overall while having higher job satisfaction. Know more about the Best Ways to Effectively Manage A Remote Workforce.
Conclusion
As remote work becomes a staple of the modern workplace, specialized platforms rise to prominence – helping leaders manage distributed teams. ProHance stands out as the top comprehensive solution available, while tools like Slack, Trello, and Asana also facilitate collaboration. For organizations to truly optimize remote operations, they need to pay as much attention to employee experience as specific work outputs by fostering balance, engagement and transparency from afar. With proper coordination tools and management strategies, distributed teams accomplish amazing things.
When it comes to remote team management, no platform matches ProHance’s capabilities in the best employee management software list. ProHance should be the foundation of any long-term strategy with unprecedented analytics into remote workforce productivity plus tools facilitating tracking, optimization and forecasting. Leaders gain insight into time utilization patterns, progress towards OKRs and comparisons benchmarking top/bottom performers – all displayed on customizable dashboards. ProHance partners with organizations to build high efficiency distributed teams of the future.