Embrace Your Remote Workflow

As explained by Karen Sobel Lojeski, virtual distance is a primary cause of vulnerability of remote employees. It combines three dimensions: physical, operational, and affinity.

Simply, the physical aspect refers to geographical distance. The operational aspect refers to organizational processes. Affinity distance lies in the emotional and mental connection.

By closing the gaps in each component, company leadership may radically transform the performance and satisfaction of employees. 

If we take a look at the real-world feedback, we’ll see a clear overlap with the concept. 

Moving on from theory to practice, we offer to go through the list of tips and check if you already implement state-of-the-art remote solutions.

How to work globally

Hiring

Unlike common beliefs, international hiring can be cost-effective if the right strategy is at hand. Other positive results also include:

• flexibility;
• productivity boost;
• employee satisfaction.

When building an international team, you consider taxes, organizational costs, and legal procedures. Besides, hiring people of different cultures requires you to demonstrate your reliability as an overseas employer.

Usually, you will do the following:

Pick the hiring model (direct-hire, contractor). Just like in local hiring, you will decide how much control you need. Both models have their advantages. The main difference lies in the levels of loyalty and connection of remote employees to your business. 

Track tax liabilities. Both to your local government and the foreign government. 

Comply with the local labor laws. You will more likely need a registered entity in the place you choose.

Set up payroll. Some countries do not allow workers to receive foreign payrolls or require additional steps to register them.

Offer culturally aware benefit packages. It is best to conduct local research on the values and opportunities that the potential overseas candidates have in their home countries. 

Onboarding

The set of rules aligned to remote onboarding is straightforward and partly fits offline, too. At this stage, newly arrived workers need to feel like they are in the right place. 

1. Start without delays.
2. Prepare a virtual employee manual and a company culture guide. 
3. Get employees online as soon as possible. 
4. Provide a personalized remote onboarding plan with video check-ins and targets. 
5. Introduce professional development and personal growth plans from the start. 
6. Encourage collaborative learning.
7. Create a sense of belonging to the new environment. 

Training

It is challenging to learn with the lack of face-to-face supervision and social contact. Most of the current workforce underwent traditional school education in a safe environment with minimal distractions and technical hurdles. 

Educational methodologies have been on the scene for decades for a reason. Many companies believe it is enough to launch weekly workshops with a senior colleague when, in reality, it may get overwhelming and confusing without proper preparation. 

These steps will help you bring the methodology to your remote training process:

1. Pick a delivery model
   1. synchronous learning
   2. asynchronous learning
   3. mixed learning
2. Purchase training software
   1. virtual classroom
   2. conferencing and webinars
   3. LMS
3. Design learning materials
   1. videos
   2. polls, surveys, quizzes, assessments
   3. human-computer dialogue simulation
4. Deliver training by a professional
5. Monitor learning performance

Once the process is set up, training can go deeper with gamification and mobile-friendliness. Luckily, there is no need for in-house development, as the best training apps already offer in-built features to enliven the learning experience. 

How to grow remote teams

Remote teams grow with a healthy focus on: 

• outcomes, not activity
• clear communication
• right technology
• rules of engagement
• quality documentation
• social interaction
• empathy
• mentorship, rather than management
• structure
• transparency
• support
• trust & ownership
• well-being

Strong work culture and hiring by it will help managers grow a healthy collaborative environment. There are no limitations in how crystal-clear guidelines and expectations need to be communicated. Having less physical presence doesn't mean fewer needs. It is vital to work on personal development plans and career achievements. The best way to check your current remote employer performance is to collect feedback right now!

What is asynchronous work

Why implement asynchronous work?

In a remote world, we work in different time zones, cultures, schedules, and more.  We don’t expect people to reply instantly, and we need to respect their boundaries. 

In an asynchronous work model, employees build the order of their tasks and adjust it to personal schedules. 

Asynchronous work stands on three main building blocks: 

• multiplexing;
• communication;
• action. 

Async processes can only be managed with a unique vision toward trust assigned to employees. 

Asynchronous planning relies on a smaller breakdown of the tasks and releasing Minimal Viable Changes as frequently as possible. 

This approach assumes that more frequent shipping allows to spot negative feedback quicker and react to it with the new changes timely. It also helps allocate resources wisely, letting workers accomplish more tasks within the same amount of time due to the reduced size of the tasks. 

Check out this comprehensive guide on asynchronous processes to learn how you can integrate them into your workflow. 

Here are just a few reasons to adopt asynchronous workflow:

• Optimized resource management;
• Increasing productivity;
• Interruption-free work environment;
• More empowered and satisfied team. 

How to foster a shared culture in remote teams

Building connection

Communication should be frequent and diverse to produce something as sophisticated and encompassing as culture. The software for effective remote collaboration has pretty much all the features you need for this. Some companies prefer to go far beyond in-built communication. 

Fun company traditions, celebrations, and annual company retreats are just some things that make companies stand out as remote employers. 

Best-performing remote teams share a set of similar values, which looks like this:

• communication;
• self-discipline;
• organization;
• keeping things updated;
• putting people first;
• etiquette behind the internal and external virtual conferences.

Remote work toolkit

Hiring, onboarding, training

Automated job posting: ZipRecruiter

Best features: 

• Integrated with top job sites
• Instant match
• Easy-to-use dashboard
• Screening questions

All-encompassing hiring platform: LinkedIn

Best features:

• World’s largest network of professionals
• Candidate prioritization
• AI-based recommendation
• InMail and email candidate outreach

Highly customizable hiring tool: JazzHR

Best features:

• Custom branding
• Candidate ranking
• Team collaboration
• Digitized offers

Hire from anywhere: Breezy

Best features:

• Promotion
• Automated workflows
• Simplified offers
• Collaborative hiring

One of the most viewed job boards: Remote.io

Best features:

• Employer’s dashboard
• Customization options
• Automated posting

Cloud-based hiring platform: Zoho Recruit

Best features:

• ATS and CRM
• Scalability
• Advanced analytics
• Custom automation

Fast LMS: iSpring Learn

Best features:

• Automated deadline management
• Comprehensive reports
• Industry-leading authoring tool
• Integration with your IT ecosystem

Award-winning LMS for business: Absorb LMS

Best features:

• Smart administration
• Learner engagement
• Reporting and analytics
• Department level branding 

People-first software: Kallidus

Best features:

• Competency checker
• Classroom events
• Customizable design

AI-based collaborative learning: 360 Learning

Best features:

• Course templates
• Authoring tool
• Collaborative editing
• Blended programs

Professional digital learning products: Thinkific

Best features:

• Course templates
• Live lessons
• Communities
• Student data analytics

Collaboration and communication

Instant messaging

Slack

Best features:

• Channels
• Digital HQ
• Team chat
• Workflow builder

Microsoft Teams

Best features:

• Post variety
• Rich text editing
• Chat translation
• Priority notifications

Google Chat

Best features:

• Group collaboration
• Google workspace integration
• Filterable search
• Smarter chat with bots

Discord

Best features:

• Invite-only
• Topic-based channels
• Voice channels
• Moderation tools

Video conferencing software

Zoom

Best features:

• HD audio and video meetings
• Built-in collaboration tools
• Recording and transcripts
• Streamlined calendaring

Skype for Business

Best features:

• Customizable participant views
• Recording
• PowerPoint presentations
• Polling

Slack

Best features:

• Built-in video calls
• Third-party video calls
• Screen sharing

BlueJeans

Best features:

• Meeting highlights and transcription
• Live meeting controls
• One-touch access to meetings
• Analytics

Team collaboration software

Mattermost

Best features:

• Playbooks
• Boards
• Connections with developer tools
• Channels

Asana

Best features:

• Multiple views
• Automation of routine work
• Customizable workflows

JIRA

Best features:

• Roadmap
• Backlog
• Sprints
• Reports

Trello

Best features:

• Boards
• Cards
• No-code automation
• Integration of top work tools

Monday

Best features:

• Boards
• Views
• Dashboards
• Automations

Miro

Best features:

• Online whiteboard
• Pre-designed templates
• Embedding documents, spreadsheets, and PDFs
• Digitized handwritten sticky notes

Zoho projects

Best features:

• Task management
• Task automation
• Blueprints
• Time tracking

Cloud-based storage tools

Dropbox

Best features:

• Integrations
• Secure access
• Content optimization

Google Drive

Best features:

• Built-in protections
• Real-time collaboration
• Embedded search

OneDrive

Best features:

• Real-time MS apps use
• Controls for security
• Microsoft 360 connection

Sync.com

Best features:

• Secure collaboration
• Backed up work
• Custom-branded client file portal

Remote work is a discipline. Its fundamentals are yet to be comprehensively covered in business schools. Until that moment, our tips are here to help managers to transform the way teams work remotely.