In today’s modern landscape, working remotely has become fairly commonplace, with both employers and employees often benefitting from great stay-at-home deals. But despite the many advantages of such arrangements, there are several challenges inherent to managing remote teams that every manager should be aware of. In the competitive field of software development, especially, projects can easily get derailed unless:
1. Recruitment is taken seriously
Finding the right people for a remote working position is not the same as hiring employees in general. In addition to all the regular hard and soft skills a position would entail, you’ll also have to be on the lookout for people who are driven and do not require constant prodding in order to get the job done. Don’t be afraid to turn down candidates you feel might not be reliable or easy to communicate with and remember that you’ll need to be able to wholeheartedly trust any person that comes on board.
2. A full embrace of Agile principles
By now, the Agile working methodology has become well known for its efficiency and results. The system encapsulates a wide range of practices designed to minimize wastefulness and ensure that everyone feels engaged throughout the working process. Keep in mind that not all Agile-related practices may be suited to your business, so feel free to mix and match until you find the right combination.
3. Every team member’s contribution is adequately tracked
Far and away the greatest challenge in managing a team of remote developers lies in tracking their progress. Whether you offer compensation per hour or per milestone, it’s important to know that everyone is pulling their weight. For this reason, investing in a quality team time tracking app can end up saving you a lot of time and energy and often ends up making things easier for everyone involved.
4. A sustainable reward system is put in place
People in regular jobs often enjoy a complex system of bonuses and raises that’s designed to keep them engaged and passionate about their job as they grow and mature professionally. In order to achieve the same results, you’ll have to create a similar reward system that gives something back to overachievers and maintains a high level of engagement. This could be as simple as offering a monetary bonus, or supporting further career development through subsidized courses and training sessions.
5. The team learns how to stick together
Staying in touch with your team is paramount in any remote working scenario. Aside from regularly scheduling face-to-face meetings as opposed to online conference calls, you should also consider organizing team building events such as taking a trip together or at the very least going out for lunch from time to time. People are much less liable to have wandering eyes if they forge a strong bond with their places of employment, so do whatever is necessary to ensure that no one feels left out.
As you can see, there are several challenges that every remote team manager must overcome in order for his or her project to truly prosper. As the world continues on the path to globalization, chances are that more and more people will opt for remote employment and choose to work on projects they’re passionate about, so it’s worth taking the time to maximize your odds of success.
Author bio: Milos Mudric is an SEO consultant and tech enthusiast. He is the founder of Silver Fox Digital and SEObrainiac.com and he occasionally writes interesting stories about SEO, but sometimes also about Blockchain, IoT, Fintech and other topics.
