Leading a remote workforce can be a challenge particularly in these uncertain times, here are our top 10 tips to think about how you can lead your teams effectively over the coming weeks and months:
1. Check in daily with your team individually both from a personal and work perspective, daily interactions for everyone at these times will be crucial. Speak to your team how they would like to do this e.g. email, messenger or over the phone.
2. When catching up with your team, make sure you listen to them, how they are feeling, where they might be struggling etc, this should be a two way dialogue.
3. Keep team meetings in the diary but keep these short and to the point or you will lose people, remind people of etiquette - to be fully engaged throughout the meeting.
4. Keep communicating any central organisational messages so everyone is up to date, this will also help to alleviate fears of team members.
5. Remind teams of what organisational support is still in place when they work from home, this could be what technology is available to make their life easier or reminders of wellbeing programmes such as employee assistance programmes.
6. Use technology to your advantage - if you have MS Teams for instance - Instant messaging and group chats can be used for quick decisions but also for informal banter that will keep camaraderie going.
7. Use document sharing and threads to continue collaborative working.
8. Stay clear on objectives and setting priorities, priorities will keep evolving so ensure everyone is clear on what is expected of them.
9. Look at where skills across the team can be best utilised based on new business priorities and think about how you can work differently as a team.
10. Stay positive, pragmatic and take a problem solving approach to challenges and don’t forget to ask for help where you need it, there are plenty of people here to support.
Gemma Carter-Morris, Director of Wellbeing, Next Steps Consulting