Has technology brought geographically-separate work teams closer together, or segmented each one inside a tiny, filtered communication bubble? You could say both and neither, but that’s not very satisfying. The reality is that long-distance, digital-only working relationships have become a necessity for most modern businesses but can be devilishly hard to manage successfully.
The expansion of remote work has been driven by a number of trends, including the 24/7 nature of competition from global players, always-on e-commerce portals, and a workforce that ranks employer flexibility above anything else.
The problem is that workers who rarely, if ever, come into the office call for a different kind of management. It’s too easy for them to get left out of team-building essentials, lose alignment with their teammates and disengage from the company’s priorities. As someone who leads a fully remote team and advises others on establishing a company culture that empowers remote workers, I know this all too well.
The Information Assembly Line
Relatively speaking, remote work was a minor variation for a small number of workers until 2009. That’s when the mobile office got a massive upgrade with the rapid adoption of high-powered smartphones, productivity apps, distributed processing in cloud-based data centers, and fat-pipe Wi-Fi/cellular networks. Work transformed from a location to a set of tasks that could be done anywhere. Nearly all of the data and functions most workers need can now fit inside a briefcase or a pocket. Gallup’s 2017 State of the American Workplace survey reported that 43% of the workforce is primarily remote.
The Ups And Downs Of Working Inside And Out
The problem with the dispersal of the workforce has been, with apologies to Jurassic Park’s Dr. Ian Malcolm, that professionals “were so preoccupied with whether they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should” work from home.
The freedom of remote work came with a painful loss of community. In a 2019 State of Remote Work survey, 70% of respondents said the flexibility in location or schedule is the best aspect of going it alone. The best aspect is also the worst: 22% said that stopping work and unplugging is their greatest struggle, and 19% said they were simply lonely. Another 17% struggled with communicating and collaborating with distant coworkers.
Engagement At A Distance
Engagement is often the key issue for remote workers because it so closely correlates to greater productivity, stronger task effectiveness, higher levels of job satisfaction and lower burnout, according to research by Gallup and a wide range of academic studies.
That’s why it is crucial to keep an eye on engagement, even when you can’t keep an eye on the workers themselves. Track their trends in productivity and check in with remote workers frequently about what’s going on with their lives, not just their project schedules. Head off burnout and prioritize work/life balance. Look for warning signs of loneliness or workers who can’t seem to stop working. You may need to make time to adjust workloads or schedule low-pressure team-building events.
Here a few tips and tools I’ve found to help remote team members feel like part of the team:
1. Keep the communication channels open.
Limit the number of critical communication channels to three per project, such as a phone or video call every Monday, a team messaging app for quick questions or resource sharing, and an email group for everything else. Reducing the channels assures that you do not miss critical messages, no matter how they arrive.
2. Think like a sports team.
A Workplace Team Survey found that employees who have played team sports in their private lives perform better in workplace collaborations. They tend to have greater trust in their teammates, exceed their goals more often, and are more likely to report constant improvements by the team. Coaches on sports teams offer immediate feedback instead of waiting for a quarterly review, lead the team in treating losses as lessons, and provide team rewards for individual achievements. Perception of fairness can be a source of conflict, so prepare to discuss this on the weekly call.
3. Identify signs of burnout and loneliness.
Slipping deadlines, excessive arguing over off-topic issues in email or messenger apps, and complaints are warning signs. Exhaustion, depression and fragmented sleep are red lights. The onset of burnout is not always as clear-cut as it sounds because burnout means a change in emotional resilience. Some productive, talented remote workers are introverted to begin with, so asocial behavior like cynicism and complaining might be components of who they are. Burnout may arrive without drops in productivity or quality. Don’t assume everything is fine if the work is fine. It may be taking more and more of their resources to keep up. Frequent check-ins and keeping track of trends in behavior can tell you if something has to change.
4. Proactively address burnout before it erodes engagement.
When you strongly suspect burnout is behind changes at work, head it off. Don’t wait to be certain. Agile best practices suggest setting up mini-projects in one-week sprints. Project management software can set expectations for everyone on steps during the week. In the post-sprint review, ask what went right and what should change before the next one. Teamwork is the key to performance, so pay attention to what stresses team linkages. If the signs of burnout are strong, suggest the four best antidotes: positive group activities, exercise, meditation and rest. Be careful with vacations because too often they cause more financial and emotional stress without addressing the root issues. Contractors may not be able to talk to the project lead about what is wrong out of fear of losing the contract, but they need to talk to someone about a plan for change.
Most of all, keep in mind that remote workers miss out on critical information because they miss out on casual contacts and nonverbal cues from their teammates. Bring them into the office about one day a week when possible, and talk to them about what’s going on outside work when it’s not.