Startup companies with potential for growth may not have immediate resources to build a team; the cost of managing workers may hamper ability to use existing resources for core business functions. Recruiting remote employees may come to mind but also invite unexpected outsourcing issues for which small organizations may not be ready for. However the benefits of having a remote team to the business growth of a company cannot be underestimated. In fact, in majority of cases the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Still some organizations are simply too afraid to try due to the fear of the unknown.
If you’re an organization considering recruiting remote teams, these tips will make managing them easy.
Working with remote teams would not be possible if not for the digital technology. If you’d think about how communications are carried out between multinational outsourcing clients and their vendors, only one thing comes to mind and that is digital technology. If this technology is good enough on a large scale then your remote teams can benefit as well from the same. There are many free communication software that your team can make use of in communicating day-to-day messages, sending and receiving large amount of files and real time collaboration of project ideas.
In remote work or outsourcing it is important to select the right person that can independently do the job well and on time. This is because even though you’ll have your communication lines open, you will not be around to manage your team face-to-face. Hire team members on the basis of being a self-starter as well as being able to resolve project issues before they become hard to manage. Hire the prospective remote worker only until these qualifications are satisfied.
Don’t promote solitude among your remote workers lest central office workers would think that they are just back-up workforce or a dumping station for meaningless tasks. Regardless who holds the core functions among your workers have a time where both types can meet and collaborate with one another. Let your remote workers feel that they belong to something bigger even on a distance.
Because they work from home, remote workers always find it hard to draw the line between work and personal life. The comfort zone that is their homes can make more room for extra work and to which they do so mindlessly. This is not to say that they would eventually complain as most remote workers willingly take on work until they finally doze off. However, the danger is when they don’t see and feel the burnout coming until it happens. Make rest mandatory for them just as keeping full time for their regular work.
How often? It depends on the level of work involved. If remote workers are managing projects that require level by level supervision then do check-ins at least every two weeks. This is only to make sure that project milestones are on schedule and any potential issues are discussed early on before they actually happen. For tasks that do not involve strict supervision then check-ins once every two months would already suffice.
Read Next: Best recruitment practices for successful client-talent matching
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Article Contributed by HR in Asia‘s Team.
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